Any legal obstacle to registering an import..

G

Gar

Guest
Hi All,
6 months ago I bought a brand new right-hand-drive car and have lived in Germany since. Avoiding VRT was my primary objective. I registered the car over there and am not due to officially return to Ireland for another 18 months. I own a house in Ireland and was wondering if anyone can advise if there is a flaw in my "master plan";) .

I reckon that since the car has been registered, taxed and insured outside of Ireland for more than 6 months that avoiding payment of VRT won't be a problem upon returning to Ireland.
However I wonder is there any reason why I couldn't drive back to Ireland with the plan to register, tax and insure it right away, using my house as my address. The next step would be to return to Germany with the car (and my new Irish Reg. plates) where I would run the car for another 12 months.

The final step would be to then finally return and sell the car (18months after having bought).

I would then hope to purchase new again and repeat the cycle, this time however we would be officially returning to Ireland after the 6mths in Germany...
Any ideas??:confused:
 
You will have to prove to the VRO that you have been living and working in Germany for the required length of time (car tax/insurance etc won't be enough, they will require bank statements, bills, evidence of paying rent etc., failure to satisfy them that you have been living abroad will mean paying the full VRT).

The lads at the VRO have seen every attempt to circumvent VRT that you can imagine (and probably a few more!), they will see right through this given the timeframe involved and will be extremely demanding when it comes to documentary evidence.
 
Gar said:
However I wonder is there any reason why I couldn't drive back to Ireland with the plan to register, tax and insure it right away, using my house as my address. The next step would be to return to Germany with the car (and my new Irish Reg. plates) where I would run the car for another 12 months.
Click to expand...
The fatal flaw in your plan is that you'll be driving without insurance. If you lie on your insurance proposal, i.e. tell them that you're living in Ireland when you will actually be living in Germany, your insurance contract is null & void. This is a form of insurance fraud. [Same applies to all the smartasses who register at their 'country' address while living/working in Dublin and those who register Mummy as the main driver when in reality, the young tearaway is the main driver] It is illegal, unethical, and a pretty nasty thing to do to your fellow motorists.
 
Eurofan said:
You will have to prove to the VRO that you have been living and working in Germany for the required length of time (car tax/insurance etc won't be enough, they will require bank statements, bills, evidence of paying rent etc., failure to satisfy them that you have been living abroad will mean paying the full VRT).

This wont be a problem. I can easily prove that I am living in Germany for the last 6months.

The lads at the VRO have seen every attempt to circumvent VRT that you can imagine (and probably a few more!), they will see right through this given the timeframe involved and will be extremely demanding when it comes to documentary evidence.
Click to expand...
I am sure you're right. But I guess I am most interested to learn if the VRO gents require much to say that I am back at my Irish address before I can get my hands on Reg. plates.
 
RainyDay said:
The fatal flaw in your plan is that you'll be driving without insurance. If you lie on your insurance proposal, i.e. tell them that you're living in Ireland when you will actually be living in Germany, your insurance contract is null & void. This is a form of insurance fraud. [Same applies to all the smartasses who register at their 'country' address while living/working in Dublin and those who register Mummy as the main driver when in reality, the young tearaway is the main driver] It is illegal, unethical, and a pretty nasty thing to do to your fellow motorists.
Click to expand...
Rainy Day, thanks for your advise. I hadn't considered this flaw. I suppose that I could be up front with the Insurance company and explain that I intend to spend 12mths in Germany before returning. Any idea if, as a rule, this would not be considered by various insurers?
 
RS2K said:
Insure it in Germany?
Click to expand...
My understanding is that one must have owned the vehicle for more than 6 mths outside the country to avoid the VRT, but then having registered in Ireland must not sell for another 12 months. Will just need to find out if insuring in Germany somehow stops the clock. Starting to feel like a non-runner...
 
Hi Gar,

Non runner! Think about it! If your scam was that simple then everyone working in NI would import a car every two years.

Personally, I had alot of hassle trying to get my car registered here in Ireland when I moved back a few years ago. I only finally managed to convince the them that I was back to stay when I actually started working here despite already owning a house here.

If you are going to go about it legally, the way to do it is:

1. Buy the car in Holland net of tax (high car taxes in Holland force the pre-tax prices to be low, especially of large weighty models)

2. Tax in Germany (low car taxes in that nation of car manufacturers)

3. Import to Ireland


Regards,
Laurie
 
Does anyone know what happens if you are studying abroad for more than six months and then you come back to work for the summer can you register it then. What are the pitfalls (if any around that)


Cheers
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top