Registration and paperwork

Do you need a Certificate of Conformity to import a car to the UK?

Only if the car is under 10 years old and was registered in the EU. In that case the Certificate of Conformity (CoC) is the manufacturer’s proof that the car matches an approved type, and the DVLA uses it both as proof of approval and to fill in the technical boxes of the V55/5. Cars from outside the EU need IVA instead, and classics over 10 years old need no approval at all: what matters for them is proof of age.

Published 26 September 2026 · 8 min read

Need a Certificate of Conformity? Get a price for your CoC and we obtain it for you →

1. What a Certificate of Conformity is

A Certificate of Conformity (CoC) is the document a manufacturer issues to confirm that a specific vehicle matches a type it has had approved. The EU framework regulation defines it as the document "issued by the manufacturer which certifies that a produced vehicle conforms to the approved type" (Regulation (EU) 2018/858, Article 3).

In practice it is one or two pages tied to one VIN. It carries the European type approval number, the date of manufacture and the technical data of that car: dimensions, weights, engine, emissions and CO2. It comes free with a new car sold in Europe. For 10 years from manufacture a duplicate must be available on request, for a fee that covers its cost, marked "duplicate" (Article 36).

2. When you need one to register a car in Great Britain

A car or light van usually needs vehicle approval before the DVLA will register it. The CoC is one way of proving that approval. Whether you need it depends on the age of the car and where it was registered before:

Those routes come from GOV.UK's page on getting vehicle approval for an imported vehicle, and the 10 year exemption for cars and light goods vehicles from the DVSA exemptions list.

The GB conversion IVA for left-hand drive cars is a paperwork check, not an inspection. The VCA's application form asks for the CoC plus a garage invoice, dated within the last 3 months, showing that the headlamps dip to the left, the speedometer reads in mph and the rear fog light is in the correct position. GOV.UK lists the fee as £100.

The 2001 catch. Even over 10 years old, a car first registered on or after 1 March 2001 with EU type approval and a CO2 figure needs approval to be taxed at the right rate. If you have none, GOV.UK says to send the DVLA a letter explaining why.

3. How the DVLA uses the CoC

First registration of a used imported car is done on form V55/5, and for a car under 10 years old the DVLA asks for proof of vehicle approval. The CoC does two jobs here. It proves the approval, and it is the source for most of the technical boxes on the form: DVLA's V355/5 guidance notes tell you to copy the type approval number, variant, version, CO2 figure and dimensions from the Certificate of Conformity or from the IVA certificate.

The same notes list which approval numbers are accepted for a first registration in Great Britain: numbers starting with e, p, g or n. An EU approval starts with "e", so a normal EU CoC still works for a used import.

The CoC also matters in London. Its emissions figures are the evidence TfL accepts if its checker lists your car as not meeting the Ultra Low Emission Zone standard. See whether yours is likely to pass with our free ULEZ checker for imported cars.

4. Classic cars: why there is usually no CoC

If you are importing a classic, you will almost never be asked for a CoC, and you often could not get one if you tried. BMW explains that cars built before 1 January 2000 generally did not have one, and that cars built for markets outside Europe never have one. Mercedes-Benz only issues duplicates for European cars built after 1996.

A classic over 10 years old does not need approval. What the DVLA needs instead is proof of age, so it can give the car an age-related number plate:

• The original foreign registration document, which normally shows the date of first registration. The DVLA keeps it.
• If that is missing or unclear, a dating certificate that proves when the car was built, sent with a covering letter. We obtain it for you.

Form V765 is a different thing: it is only for claiming back a car's original UK registration number, and it needs an owners' club to endorse it (GOV.UK). For a car that was never registered in the UK, the DVLA simply issues an age-related number.

5. Which brands can supply a CoC

A genuine CoC is never something a dealer or a website can "generate". Which cars can have one depends on the brand:

We obtain the CoC for you as part of the import: all we need is the 17-character VIN and the country where the car is registered. A CoC usually costs from £120 to around £385, depending on the make, model and year. If your car is over 10 years old, ask first whether you need a CoC at all: often a dating letter is the document that matters, and it usually costs from about £60 to £90 through an owners' club, or from about £120 to around £300 directly from the manufacturer.

6. CoC or proof of origin? The mix-up that costs money

Two different "certificates" come up when you import a European car, and people confuse them all the time:

• Certificate of Conformity: a type approval document for the DVLA and the VCA. It gets the car registered.
• Proof of origin: a customs document, usually a statement on origin from the exporter or your own knowledge as importer, that lets you claim 0% duty on a car built in the EU or another country with a UK trade agreement (GOV.UK).

A CoC does not reduce your duty, and proof of origin does not get the car registered. You may need both, one of them, or neither: a classic over 30 years old, in its original state and of a model no longer in production pays 0% duty and 5% VAT anyway, and needs no approval. Our free VAT and duties calculator shows what you would pay.

7. Three myths about the CoC

"Every car built in Europe has a CoC." Only cars built for the European market, and generally only from around 2000.

"Over 10 years old means no paperwork." You skip approval, but you still need proof of age, and the 1 March 2001 rule can still apply to the tax.

"A duplicate CoC is always free." The rules let manufacturers charge the cost of issuing it, and the duty to supply one only lasts 10 years from manufacture.