CAR AUCTIONS

In Ireland we have two impacts to registering foreign cars here.

First is VRT, it's applicable to all cars regardless of where they come from including the EU. For cars under 30 years old it's a revenue calculated figure based on their perceived value plus a NOX charge which is calculated on emissions. You can challenge the perceived value figure but only after you have paid the initial estimate and is successful the revenue will pay back any overspend. For cars over 30 years old VRT is a flat €200.

Secondly for cars coming from outside the EU you have to pay VAT at 23% on the current market value which is determined by the import company. Once again if you can demonstrate that the market value is less you can appeal on the same basis pay up front and claim back. You can't assume that the price you paid is the market value although it can help.

There is a loophole here that car registered in NI do not have to pay VAT even though they are UK registered this is part of the island or Ireland agreement. Originally this exemption only applied to cars registered in NI before Brexit but this has been successfully challenged and you now just have to demonstrate registration and use for over the last 3 months. I know of a few owners here using NI postal addresses for registration, insurance, tax and MOT for 3 months and then registering them here, mostly using friends or family addresses in the North.
 
anglospider said:
Maybe the rules have changed? I have a second home in France and registered my Alfa S4 Spider there some years ago. I insure it in France, and get the Contrôle Technique done there. The insurance company knows I am a brit with main home here as the correspondence is sent here.
Click to expand...
I was under the impression, as Phil points out, that unless you’re a resident of France, you cannot own and register a car to say, a holiday house in France. We own a house in the Loire but have main residence in the UK, and I was keen to move one of my father in law’s cars (LHD) from Holland to France and register it there. It appears to be quite a grey area but as Phil lives in France and deals with cars, I would think he has the knowledge in this particular field. Unless as you say, things have changed.
 
Coming up to 8 years here now and I've bought a few cars including the Porsche I brought over from the UK.
I use a guy to sort all my paperwork for the cars here who's accredited to do it and to ensure I stay on the right side of the law as an immigrant in France.
It's quite clear that you bring a car into the Country and want to register it you have to have Residency here and not be living in another Country having a second home here.
You have to start the process within one month and the car has to have French Insurance.
@anglospider God forbid you have a accident and injure someone as it would most likely be a prison sentence.
I said before many Brits think they are excempt from rules here and drive around in British registered cars and are living here using a relatives address in the UK to insure a car and register it there.
When in Rome do as the Romans do.
As a Garagiste here if a car comes to me that isn't legal I'm going no where near it.
 
philw696 said:
Coming up to 8 years here now and I've bought a few cars including the Porsche I brought over from the UK.
I use a guy to sort all my paperwork for the cars here who's accredited to do it and to ensure I stay on the right side of the law as an immigrant in France.
It's quite clear that you bring a car into the Country and want to register it you have to have Residency here and not be living in another Country having a second home here.
You have to start the process within one month and the car has to have French Insurance.
@anglospider God forbid you have a accident and injure someone as it would most likely be a prison sentence.
I said before many Brits think they are excempt from rules here and drive around in British registered cars and are living here using a relatives address in the UK to insure a car and register it there.
When in Rome do as the Romans do.
As a Garagiste here if a car comes to me that isn't legal I'm going no where near it.
Click to expand...
Thanks for clarifying this Phil. Clearly you know the ins and outs.
 
philw696 said:
It's quite easy as you choose where you live and then register your car there appropriately Brian.
Click to expand...
This very question was addressed by representatives of the Ministère de l'Intérieur in September 2022. Responding to questions asked of the ANTS and which contradict the advise you have been given.

Specifically, under Code de la Route, Article R322- 1, the Justificatif de Domicile required for registration can be obtained by second home owners, whose permanent address is outside France, provided the car registered in France is intended to be kept at their French address. Exactly as @anglospider says has been done.

Rather than repeating swathes of text here it may well be worth your while making further enquiries of your own. You could be missing out on a good chunk of potential business.
 
I'm sorry but this has been misinterpreted many times usually by the English French newspaper Connections that tell the British people what they want to hear.
Having my Ms French to guide me correctly and having a professional deal with my affairs and having my insurance broker at my disposal enabling me to buy cars on a whim you have to be a Resident in France and not another Country and hold a Carte de Séjour.
 
Regulations for those living in France permanetly are different to those whose primary residence is outside France. I would encourage anyone looking at this to contact their local Préfecture for guidance.
 
Sorry to have hijacked this thread by diverting to car ownership for second home owners in France. I am sure that it is fine, as otherwise I wouldn't have been able to register and insure my car there.
However, I emailed my insurance broker yesterday, in light of comments above. This is Generali, a big company.

Their response:

"Thank you for your email.

I confirm that it is perfectly legal for you to have a car registered and insured in France as long as you can provide proof of a French address."
 
anglospider said:
Sorry to have hijacked this thread by diverting to car ownership for second home owners in France. I am sure that it is fine, as otherwise I wouldn't have been able to register and insure my car there.
However, I emailed my insurance broker yesterday, in light of comments above. This is Generali, a big company.

Their response:

"Thank you for your email.

I confirm that it is perfectly legal for you to have a car registered and insured in France as long as you can provide proof of a French address."
Click to expand...
Have you told them that you live permanently in the UK and don't have a Carte de Séjour.
I've also spoken with my brother which is AXA in Laval as I've just sold a car and his words were
Why do the British think they are different to others and living here up to 8 months a year ?
Unless you're holiday home is a business and you can prove the car you have here is used regularly for the business you might be able to do it legally.
Most insurance brokers here are franchises but they should all be saying the same.
 
philw696 said:
Have you told them that you live permanently in the UK and don't have a Carte de Séjour.
I've also spoken with my brother which is AXA in Laval as I've just sold a car and his words were
Why do the British think they are different to others and living here up to 8 months a year ?
Unless you're holiday home is a business and you can prove the car you have here is used regularly for the business you might be able to do it legally.
Most insurance brokers here are franchises but they should all be saying the same.
Click to expand...
Could it be different for EU citizens Phil? My neighbour in France lives permanently in Holland (and is Dutch) but has a French registered car sitting on the driveway of his holiday home in France, clearly registered to him and to the French address.
 
Bebs said:
Could it be different for EU citizens Phil? My neighbour in France lives permanently in Holland (and is Dutch) but has a French registered car sitting on the driveway of his holiday home in France, clearly registered to him and to the French address.
Click to expand...
Anything is possible Brian but I'm not asking my broker again as he chewed my ear off but he assures me I'm totally legal and that suits me.
 
Yes, i did reiterate that I live in the UK, which is why they send my correspondence here.
I too have Dutch friends with a second home near ours in France, with a car they have registered here. The husband is a lawyer and Judge so I trust him to look into things thoroughly.

Anyway, sorry again for hijacking the thread!

Anything new in the auctions?
 
I wasn't going to say anymore but this guy Mark Rimmer is a Garagiste here in France the same as me apart from he's been here for over 25 years so he knows it all inside out and is a fluent French speaking resident here.

The second home owner debate.
The question about whether a foreign based resident can register a vehicle to their second home located in France crops up frequently.
I know that forums & groups on Facebook, X & other social media will have comments across a spectrum on a given subject which can lead to some different opinions. This group tries to be a source of information & will often support this information with links to official sources such as the French Government, the EU & Government departments so that members can read for themselves EXACTLY what officialdom says on a subject.
However, even when the wording is clear we still get posts that imply that the information given on this subject in particular is purely an opinion & has no basis in fact. These posts then go on to quote "opinion" pieces from newspapers, vehicle registration websites, other Facebook groups & what they have been told by an insurance agent as evidence that this group, the French Government, ANTS & the EU are all wrong. It is, however, my understanding (correct me if I am wrong) that the French Government & the EU make the rules rather than 3 people in a franchised insurance business in a little town's shopping precinct, an online registration company or a newspaper, none of which can provide ANY link to confirm that the second home ban only applies to French residents & not to mere visitors to our shores.
NGOs (non government organisations) do have an agenda to push though, as they are after your money & don't really care if it requires a little creative dialogue. This includes the above & of course, anyone selling property to potential second home owners.
When statements are made that go against what the French Government publishes & are not supported by a link to an official website (not some commercial site just using what they have read elsewhere) the comment will be deleted, not in an attempt to suppress opinion but to ensure that inaccurate, misleading & potentially dangerous information is not posted as FACT.
So. any of you who promote such, either provide the Government link or don't bother. And DON'T promote a Facebook group that claims that it is OK, because they, along with everyone else who reckon it is OK, have spectacularly failed to provide a single bit of evidence that their opinion is correct.
Until that evidence appears I will not waste my time responding on this subject & if you find that your membership of the group has been cancelled, it is because you don't need to be here.
 
midlifecrisis said:
Not on auction but I rather like this...A nice downgrade from the GT to pootle about in my retirement...

www.carandclassic.com

1968 Fiat 124 Green Manual, 5 speed Left Hand Drive in Lo...

1968 Fiat 124 Green Manual, 5 speed Left Hand Drive in London, United Kingdom - For Sale | Car & Classic, £16,000 * Deposit taken on 11 F...
www.carandclassic.com www.carandclassic.com
Click to expand...
Pretty cars especially the early ones. For years these were under the radar and were good value but recently they have been rediscovered and prices are now quite strong. Would I have one over a Fulvia no but I might be biased ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top