Does my UK vehicle need to be registered to remain at French second home?
Residents in France must register their vehicle within one month of moving
Import fees may be due if bringing a vehicle here permanently
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Question: If we were to leave a car in France and not be living there, do we have to register the car? It will be on UK insurance during that time and parked on private land.
You do not have to register a car on foreign plates staying in France uninterrupted for no more than one year, as long as you, yourself, are not living permanently in France.
If a car stays in France for an uninterrupted period of more than 12 months, it must be registered in France. The UK authorities consider it has been 'permanently exported' at that point and the French authorities state it is no longer deemed to be in 'international circulation' and therefore must be re-registered.
As a UK-registered car is likely to have to go back to the UK for an MOT test once a year, you could bring the car back to France for another year after that is done.
The car must be fully-registered in the UK, have a valid MOT if it qualifies for one and be insured. In other words it must be completely road legal in the UK.
Read more: Is it necessary to pay a French driving fine before contesting it?
Switching car registrations in France
If you become a French resident, you have a month to apply to switch registration from the UK to France.
In order to import a car registered outside the European Union you need to have a European certificate of conformity, either in paper form or in digital form. Alternatively you can get an attestation of the vehicle’s identification in an EU-recognised format.
When neither of these apply you will need to take the car for inspection at a service called the DREAL.
The amount paid for the actual registration in France is set by departments, but all charge extra for more powerful cars.
The car will also have to be cleared by French customs, which might mean you have to pay 20% VAT on the price you bought it for.
For cars made outside the European Union, a further 10% customs duty can apply.
However, if you declare the car along with the household goods you are bringing with you as part of a move to live permanently in France, you do not have to pay VAT or duty on it.
