Free car park outside Nice, France?

Does it cost much to import a car to France?

• I own an old Cirtoen ZX estate1996. Was thinking of having it as a holiday car in France, park it my parents. Its worth more to me to have than to sell. As it is in good shape. Is there any import fees?

• Answer:

  ***Assuming you are coming from UK or another EU member state*** When you get to France you will need a European Certificate of Conformity - basically a peice of paper supplied by the manufacturer that states that it complies to European regulations. Without this you will have to have the car tested by the French authorities for roadworthiness and this can be very expensive and time consuming. There will also bee some local administration costs to get new French registration documents etc - but this shouldn't be too expensive. There is a form to fill out on your V5 vehicle ownership documents to send in to DVLA - but this costs nothing - just to state that it has been exported. As long as the car is older than 6 months then there is no duty or excise to pay - just drive it there - it will be easier than you expected - I have imported from France to UK and UK to Ireland with no difficulties - but make sure you get the certificate of conformity - the manufacturer will get you a replacement if you are stuck. Within the EU should be no problem. Coming from outside the EU could be a big problem though...