To import a car from Romania to the UK, get two things from the seller: the original talon (the registration certificate), together with the cartea mașinii if the car has one, and a signed contract de vânzare-cumpărare. When the car lands in the UK, we take care of the customs declaration, NOVA and the DVLA paperwork. A historic collector's car over 30 years old, in its original state and of a model no longer in production pays 0% duty and 5% VAT; anything else pays 20% VAT, plus 10% duty unless it was built in the EU (or another country with a UK trade agreement) and has valid proof of origin.
- Talonul, officially the certificat de înmatriculare: the registration certificate, and the part the DVLA needs. With it, the cartea mașinii, officially the cartea de identitate a vehiculului (CIV), which holds the car's technical record and chain of owners. Make sure you get the original: the DVLA keeps it, and photocopies are not accepted.
- Contractul de vânzare-cumpărare: the sale contract, signed by seller and buyer, with the VIN, price and date. UK customs works from the price.
A car without a sale contract, such as a gift, needs an independent valuation instead. If the talon is missing, the DVLA may accept a dating letter to prove the car's age, which we obtain for you.
Deregistration in Romania, any export plates and the export paperwork are handled by the seller. If you need it, we arrange the transport to the UK, and we handle the customs declaration, NOVA and the DVLA paperwork.
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Duty and VAT on a car from Romania
| Your car | Customs duty | Import VAT |
|---|---|---|
| Historic collector's vehicle (9705): over 30 years old, original, model out of production | 0% | 5% |
| Built in the EU (or another country with a UK trade agreement), with valid proof of origin | 0% | 20% |
| Any other origin, or no proof of origin | 10% | 20% |
Romania shows clearly why the factory matters more than the seller. Dacia builds cars at Mioveni in Romania and at Tangier in Morocco, and the same model name can come from either plant. A Romanian-built car can use the UK-EU preference with valid proof of origin; a Moroccan-built one cannot, even if it has only ever been sold and registered in Romania, and would need proof of Moroccan origin under the separate UK-Morocco agreement instead. Check the build plant before you budget. For classics, origin stops mattering: a car over 30 years old, in its original state and of a model no longer in production pays 0% duty and 5% VAT wherever it was made. See how to work out if your car is a classic.
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Work out my import taxRomanian classics and paperwork gaps
Romania's own motoring history is the draw. The Dacia 1300 family, built under licence from the Renault 12, was the country's everyday car for decades, and Romania also has older Western cars brought in second-hand over the years. An unmodified example over 30 years old whose model is no longer made fits the 5% rate; a heavily modernised one does not.
The catch is paperwork. Romanian rules only treat the CIV as required for vehicles registered after 1 July 1993, so an older classic may genuinely never have had one, and some older cars carry old-model registration certificates. None of that stops a UK import, but two checks are essential before you pay: the VIN on the car must match the talon, and the person selling must be the owner the talon names.
Romanian cars are left-hand drive; our guide to registering a left-hand drive car covers what that means in the UK.
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Your UK checklist
- Customs clearance, duty and VAT: handled by us when the car arrives.
- NOVA: the HMRC notification, sent by us within 14 days of arrival.
- A UK MOT if the car needs one, which the car can take on its Romanian plates. A car built or first registered more than 40 years ago with no substantial changes is exempt (you sign a V112 declaration instead), and a car under 3 years old does not need one.
- DVLA: we complete the V55/5, and you send it with the original talon, the MOT certificate or V112, photo ID, proof of UK address, the £55 first registration fee and road tax. Details in our guide to registering an imported car with the DVLA.
Bringing a car over from Romania?
We handle the customs, the VAT and NOVA, and we prepare every DVLA form, you just sign and post. Over 1,500 vehicles cleared since Brexit.
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