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Importing a car to France - Non Resident


Matelot
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Bonjour!

Can anyone please help regarding the question of registering a UK car in France from a non-residents point of view?

I am resident in the UK, but spend just under six months of the year at my house in France.

I have a second-hand Peugeot 206 at home in the UK that I would like to take to France and leave it there permanently as a little runner for local trips. Because it is a UK registered vehicle, I would like to get it registered in France as I don’t want the expense or hassle of bringing it back to the UK every year for MoT, etc.

However, most of the information I can find relating to registering a UK car in France, applies to people who are full time residents there.

Is there any way I can bring a car over to France as a UK resident?

Can anyone please help with advice?

Will Jock and Snowy reach Dick Barton in time to save him from the boiling lava?

Thanks in advance for any help!

Matelot

(Signs off to the ‘Devil’s Gallop’ music)

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I did this exact thing a few years ago, with no problem. (The only downside of doing it is that it has to be registered at your French address - so any speeding fines etc go there. I bit of a problem if you get one late in your stay, and don't get to pay it on time!!) The process is fairly simple, but takes effort. You have to get the necessary documents (CoC, proof of ownership etc etc - you can find details on many websites) and take them to the local prefecture with the appropriate fee. They issued me straight away with a document to allow me to get number plates made up (note that they have to be riveted to the car, not just screwed on!), and sent the Carte Gris (registration document) a little later.

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[quote user="PaulT"]I thought that the Law required the vehicle in the country where the person is officially resident and in this case it would be the UK.[/quote]

Not at the moment. Although the general case is that the vehicle should be registered where the keeper is officially resident, there is a specific clarification in that if the car is based at the second home of the keeper, and spends most of its time in that country, then that's where it should be registered. There is a proposal that would remove this exception, but AFAIK it has not been enacted yet.

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