Motor homing in Spain

[hogger]

Hi All,

Was a member a couple of years ago but sold our van as it wasn't getting used enough. We just got our Visas for Spain and I was thinking of buying a second hand left hand drive MH and taking it over there. We want to travel around Spain a lot and I thought it was a good idea as it would on the cost of renting a place and the add on costs when we want to travel around.
I've since found out that I would need to pay import duty and vat based on the value of the vehicle.

Has anyone on here done this?
I'm now back at plan A to take the old car over and use it as long as possible then buying an MH there. I know cars are more expensive there and would assume the same for Motorhomes I'm not sure. My thinking is although more expensive to buy in Spain it would save paying all of the fees for importing.

I would appreciate your thoughts

Thank you.
Steven J

 

[jumartoo]

Hi All,

Was a member a couple of years ago but sold our van as it wasn't getting used enough. We just got our Visas for Spain and I was thinking of buying a second hand left hand drive MH and taking it over there. We want to travel around Spain a lot and I thought it was a good idea as it would on the cost of renting a place and the add on costs when we want to travel around.
I've since found out that I would need to pay import duty and vat based on the value of the vehicle.

Has anyone on here done this?
I'm now back at plan A to take the old car over and use it as long as possible then buying an MH there. I know cars are more expensive there and would assume the same for Motorhomes I'm not sure. My thinking is although more expensive to buy in Spain it would save paying all of the fees for importing.

I would appreciate your thoughts

Thank you.
Steven J

Hi there and welcome back to FUN.

I've answered your question on a Facebook site . I'm not saying it all again. Glad I prompted you about the licence and import regs.

I'll help with any other questions you may have if I can.

 

[ianp]

Hi
What do you mean by 'Visa's' ?....... are you to be resident and if so I think there are restrictions on driving a foreign registered car for any length of time.

 

[rolosroller]

 

[gus-lopez]

I've since found out that I would need to pay import duty and vat based on the value of the vehicle.

Yes & the aggro that goes with it all

I'm now back at plan A to take the old car over and use it as long as possible then buying an MH there

But there is a finite amount of time for that also

I know cars are more expensive there and would assume the same for Motorhomes I'm not sure.

Cars ,& commercial vehicles are far dearer the further south & east you go. look northwards,Madrid ,etc & you can get vehicles for 50% of what would be asked down here & with kilometres that are in the 000's not the multi hundred thousands.
Similar might well apply to motorhomes.
also be aware that many dealers advertise new motorhomes at a price that does not include the registration costs & tax, which runs in to 000's..

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[hogger]

Hi
What do you mean by 'Visa's' ?....... are you to be resident and if so I think there are restrictions on driving a foreign registered car for any length of time.

Sorry just logged in again. I thought I'd get message alerts to my email but apparently not. Yes we will be on NLV visas and I'm aware of the restrictions driving a foreign car in Spain. I think we would have maximum six months to get the plates changed to Spanish ones. I know there's costs involved in this and changing headlights etc

 

[hogger]

Yes & the aggro that goes with it all

But there is a finite amount of time for that also

Cars ,& commercial vehicles are far dearer the further south & east you go. look northwards,Madrid ,etc & you can get vehicles for 50% of what would be asked down here & with kilometres that are in the 000's not the multi hundred thousands.
Similar might well apply to motorhomes.
also be aware that many dealers advertise new motorhomes at a price that does not include the registration costs & tax, which runs in to 000's..

That's interesting about costs from North v South prices thanks for the info. Still trying to work out if it would be cheaper buying a LHD MH here or in Spain. I did message someone on Fb who deals with this kind of thing but no reply. Very helpful

 

[hogger]

Hi there and welcome back to FUN.

I've answered your question on a Facebook site . I'm not saying it all again. Glad I prompted you about the licence and import regs.

I'll help with any other questions you may have if I can.

Apologies for not replying I thought I had set up message alerts but apparently not. I don't remember seeing your message on FB, where did you send it? was it PM or a forum? I'm a bit thick about all this forum/ FB stuff.
I'm still trying to work out what's best. I have no idea which van to go for at this time which would be a start but as soon as you do that, I would imagine it's then difficult to find that van at the right price and location so I think I will keep my options open on that for now.
I think I need to speak to someone who deals with changing UK to Spanish plates. I did message someone on FB but he didn't reply grrrr

Thanks for the info
Steven

 

[ianp]

Sorry just logged in again. I thought I'd get message alerts to my email but apparently not. Yes we will be on NLV visas and I'm aware of the restrictions driving a foreign car in Spain. I think we would have maximum six months to get the plates changed to Spanish ones. I know there's costs involved in this and changing headlights etc

It's not just about the plates but a 'resident' is not allowed to drive a foreign registered vehicle and nor is he allowed to drive on a UK driving licence......so if your 'resident' then you need a local licence and vehicle..... as far as I understand...... does your 'visa' make you resident? How long is it valid for?

 

[hogger]

It's not just about the plates but a 'resident' is not allowed to drive a foreign registered vehicle and nor is he allowed to drive on a UK driving licence......so if your 'resident' then you need a local licence and vehicle..... as far as I understand...... does your 'visa' make you resident? How long is it valid for?

I'm not sure about our 'resident' status on our particular visa but it won't be too much of a problem as my car is quite old now so I could either sell it to someone coming to the Uk or just scrap it which would be a shame as it's been very reliable and has loads of miles left in it.

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[jumartoo]

I answered on a Facebook forum "Moving to Spain". It was a Steven with the same questions as you .

Contact these people for a quote for transferring vehicles. They seem to be a popular choice and have good results. I can't give a personal recommendation though.

Car Registrations Spain - Low Cost Vehicle Import on to Spanish Number Plates - Car Registrations Spain

We provide a low cost, friendly and professional service on all types of vehicle imports from UK, Europe and many other countries to Spain.

www.car-registrations-spain.com