ITER DIRECT EMPLOYEE – IMPORTING YOUR CAR

“ITER staff members (who are not French and not resident in France) have the right to import or acquire in France a motor vehicle without payment of taxes and duties during their employment in France, which vehicle shall be registered in a special (diplomatic) series.”
(Article 13-3 of the ITER Headquarters Agreement)

 As ITER direct employee, you will benefit from specific procedures for the import/purchase and for the special (diplomatic) series registration of your car in France, as long as you hold a French special residence permit (with code AT or FI)

This benefit gives you right to:

 

Either:

  • Import one car to France without any taxes or duties if from a non-EU country OR
  • Buy one new vehicle* without any VAT (Value Added Tax = 20% in France)

* Only private passenger vehicles or motorcycles (no camping-cars nor commercial cars): to check the eligibility of the vehicle to the VAT-free purchase, please contact the WO

Please note that if you are married (or in a legally recognized union) and if your spouse is coming to reside with you in France (if she holds a French special residence card too, you will be entitled to:

 

  • 2 tax- and duty-free imports or purchases OR
  • 2 tax- and duty-free purchases OR
  • 1 import and 1 purchase

 Be careful, all car documents should anyway be in your name only for the special (diplomatic) series.

The Welcome Office will be the interface for those formalities.

 

If you do not hold the French special card, only the French standard rules will be applicable to your car.

 

If you wish to import your car from a non-EU country

 Import formalities:

 

Importing a car from a non-EU country will require some customs clearance, through the process of tax- and duty-free import of your belongings with the WO (see below and in Customs/International moving section).

 

Import of personal belongings

 

You will have to include your car in the inventory list provided to you by the Welcome Office (with its make, date and value) and you will have to prepare some documents for the French diplomatic registration of the car on its arrival (see hereafter for the list: Diplomatic registration – Non-EU cars)

 

Car registration in France:

 

As soon as the vehicle arrives in France, you have to start its diplomatic registration process with the Welcome Office. However, the application file will not be sent before you have received your French special residence permit and have a permanent French address. You will see the process attached.

 

Diplomatic registration – Non-EU car

 

IMPORTANT NOTES:

 

For a diplomatic registration:

 

•     the European certificate of conformity of the car is not compulsory

 

•     the French Technical Control Certificate is not compulsory (but the car should be kept in good condition anyway)

 

However, if you wish to sell the car in France (for standard French registration) the following steps will be required before you sell the vehicle: 

 

– obtain a French technical control certificate (compulsory for cars over 4 years for a French standard registration),

 –  obtain the European certification (your responsibility and at your own charge, unless the buyer agrees to make it conform by him/herself): the process may be long and expensive and there is no guaranteed result,

 – possibly pay import duties (10%) and VAT (20%) at the date of the sale.

 

Finally, note that it takes from 4 to 6 weeks once you have received your French residence card to obtain the French number plates (in the meantime, without plates on the car, you cannot drive the car in France).

That is why we usually advise not to import a car from a non EU-country.

 

 

If you wish to import your car from an EU country

 

Import formalities:

 

When you move to France from a country in the European Union, there are no special customs formalities to complete.

Car registration in France:

 As soon as the vehicle arrives in France, you have to start its registration process (a French address will be required). You may opt for a standard registration (to be done on the website of the French administration), or for a diplomatic registration through the Welcome Office.

 

Standard registration:

Register your imported car with French normal plates EU

 

Diplomatic registration:

Diplomatic registration – EU imported car

 

Note for cars imported from Germany: we advise you to obtain an export certificate and export plates before leaving. The process to register your car in France will be much easier.

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