Vehicle Importation

IMPORTING A MOTOR VEHICLE TO PORTUGAL

If you are taking up Portuguese residency you may import a motor vehicle tax-free, provided that:

• The vehicle is for private use only;
• The registered owner of the vehicle is transferring his residence from another EU member state where he has been resident for at least 185 days;
• The vehicle was purchased fully tax-paid in its registered owner’s former country of residence;
• The vehicle has been used by its registered owner in his former country of residence for at least 12 months.

Motor Vehicle Importation Procedure:

In order to import a vehicle, you should submit an application within a maximum of 12 months of arrival, to the customs office with jurisdiction over your area of residence:

Leiria, Lisbon, Portalegre and Santarém:
Alfândega de Lisboa
Jardim do Tabaco
Avenida Infante D Henriques
1100-280 Lisboa
Tel.: 21 881 4100
Fax: 21 886 8898

Braga, Bragança, Guarda, Porto, Viana do Castelo and Vila Real:
Alfândega do Freixieiro
Estrada Nacional 107
Perafita
4405 Matosinhos
Tel.: 22 999 9680/9690
Fax: 22 996 0725

Aveiro, Coimbra, Castelo Branco, Guarda and Viseu:
Alfândega de Aveiro
Edifício TIRTIFE, Lugar de Moinhos
3801-301 Aveiro
Tel.: 23 442 3350
Fax: 23 438 1062

The application should be submitted with:

• The vehicle’s logbook and its instruction manual or catalogue;
• A certificate of compliance or Form 1402 issued by the Direcção-Geral de Viação (Portuguese DVLA) confirming that the vehicle has undergone an inspection;
• Your passport;
• Your driver’s licence;
• Your residence permit or evidence that you have applied for a residence permit or a declaration from your local Parish Council (Junta de Freguesia) confirming that you are resident within the jurisdiction;
• Your taxpayer’s identification card, together with 3-years’ original tax returns or a declaration from the tax office in your area of residence attesting to the amount of income earned in Portugal over the previous three years;
• A certificate of cancellation of residence issued by the competent authority in your former country of residence. (If, as in Britain, there is no such authority, the Consulate will issue a certificate on production of your residence permit or evidence that an application has been made for a residence permit, your British passport and evidence that you lived – as a permanent resident – in your former country of residence for at least six months prior to arrival in Portugal.)

The authorities may ask for further documentation, as necessary, so it is advisable to contact them first for an application form, a list of the supporting documents required and the applicable fees.

Once your application has been formally submitted, the customs authorities may issue a limited-validity authorisation (guia de circulação) which will enable you to use your vehicle while the application is under consideration.

A motor vehicle that has been imported in this way may not be sold, loaned, pledged or hired for a period of 12 months following importation. In addition, it may only be driven by its registered owners or keepers and their immediate family. Only one vehicle may be imported tax-free per person once every five years.