Did you enter Germany by car? Is the car personal property?
The Green Card and customs clearance
Let’s consider an example of moving by car from Ukraine
Required Green Card (this is a type of insurance similar to the Ukrainian motor third-party liability insurance, valid throughout Europe)
How long you may drive on foreign plates
2. As a tourist you can 6 months driving a car with Ukrainian plates, but during this time the car needs to be registered in Germany.
Technical inspection at TÜV or DEKRA
Registration must begin at the TÜV offices or DEKRA. It is checked whether the vehicle meets the technical standards for roadworthiness in Germany. To pass the inspection, you will need:
- COC papers — certificate of conformity to European standards, issued by the manufacturer or
- Manufacturer’s data confirmation — confirmation by the manufacturer of compliance with the required standards. If it does not comply, they must be rectified at their own expense.
- Following the technical inspection, a printout confirming the vehicle’s roadworthiness for use in Germany is issued.
In the case of the author of this article, it was not possible to register the car. The car was a 2020 model, Euro 5. But it turns out that in Germany Euro 6 has been required since 2016. Therefore, it was not possible to obtain a certificate of conformity with European standards.
4. There is no need to deregister the car in Ukraine.
Registration at the Zulassungsstelle
5. Next, the car needs to be registered
First you need to find the vehicle registration authority in your city vehicle licensing office or Vehicle Registration Office. Whose address and phone number are easy to find online by searching for “Zulassungsstelle” + the town’s postcode. The office’s opening hours are also published there.
For successful vehicle registration, the following documents will be required:
- A valid passport or birth certificate if the owner is under 18 years of age.
- Confirmation of registration at a place of residence — Meldebestätigung.
- Confirmation from the insurance company that they are willing to insure the car: eVB number. The confirmation is sent by request via email or SMS. It is necessary to find an insurance company — they will send the number. We also provide such services.
- COC papers
- Manufacturer data confirmation
Registration costs €25–50.
Search Customs offices and the opening hours online using the city postcode. It is not necessary to go to the main office. Different customs branches provide different services and not all of them receive visitors. Find the department dealing with cars — the name contains the abbreviation KFZ.
What to take to customs
To the customs office (Zolldienststellen) take:
- Proof of long-term stay, Owner’s foreign passport.
- According to the documents, the owner must be the person relocating. Other people’s cars, even if the vehicle belongs to close relatives, cannot be imported duty-free.
- Three copies of form no. 0350 (customs declaration for the release of removal goods for free circulation for a particular use). If you find German difficult, ask the customs officers for help and fill it out on the spot.
- Proof of address.
- Vehicle registration document with translation. It is necessary to find a sworn translator and make a certified translation for 25-50 euros.
- The car purchase contract, also translated into German.
- The car — the customs officer will check the chassis number.
Vehicle tax
Vehicle tax depends on emissions and can average between 100 and 300 euros. You can calculate the tax at this page.
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