bigAPE

Interesting, this is the first car that I've looked at which falls into the Luxury Car Tax band.

UK Value: ~£30,000 (various sources)
Aus Value: ~$110,000 (~£50,000 - Drive + Redbook)
Final "on-road" Expense: ~£11,500 (including Basic Duty/GST of ~$15,000)
Saving: ~£9,800 (excluding LCT - see below)

Note - "On-road" means the cost from being road legal in UK to road legal and running in Australia excluding insurance

However, and I stress this, you will be liable to Luxury Car Tax on this import and I'm not sure exactly at which point in the duty calculation it's charged. Luxury Car Tax is currently 25%, but the government have been trying to increase this to 33%. This bill was blocked two weeks ago on a technicallity but is being voted on again today (I think) and is expected to pass this time. So you will be charged an additional duty of between $4,900 and $7,500 @ 25% or between $6,500 and $8,900 @ 33% on top of this. So expect that saving above to be cut into radically .

See attached PDF for more details (Car-Shipping-Victoria-Costs-LizF.pdf). This does not include the LCT calculations which can be found on the ATO website

Hope this helps

Al

Liz F

So does the valuation go on the Oz value of the vehicle at the present time or what the purchase price of the vehicle was?

Cheers for this.

Liz

bigAPE

As mentioned in the article, it goes by the "as landed" Customs value. This is supposed to be the value the car is worth in Australia, however what you do is get an official evaluation done from the UK (costs a couple hundred bucks and it's done on paper by fax/email). The valuation by an official certified valuer in Australia will likely be ~65% of the street used value. This 65% is taking into account that the car is an import, is not street legal (yet) and is technically uninsurable at that time. It's like a bare metal and technology value. This Official Valuation is generally accepted without question by Customs/ATO and everything from them on including the Duty/GST, LCT and Registration fees from your Government Department for Transport (VicRoads in Victoria) are based on that value.

If you're serious you first steps should be

1. Ensure you have complied with ALL of the import requirements (see VBS10 below). You have owned the car for move than 12 months haven't you?
2. Get an official valuation done by a certified valuer in the State you're moving too
3. Get the VBS10 Approval to Import form completed and approved

The VSB10 (previously VB10) is the Approval to Import

Website: infrastructure.gov.au/roads (formally DOTARs)
Document: VSB10 - Approval to Import Motor Vehicle Form (PDF)
Document: VSB10 - Approval to Import Motor Vehicle Notes (PDF)

Littleuns

We are also thinking about importing our car from the UK and have valued your guidance through your numerous posts on the subject.

However, how do we find out who are the Certified Valuer's for Perth?

Thank you

Kevin

Liz F

Yes I agree the information you have given has been very useful, I've just emailed customs to ask the same thing only for New South Wales. I'll let you know if they let me know of anything that would be beneficial to you.

wadhamsfamily

Hi Guys,

Im arriving in Brisbane in November and am struggling to make a decsion on my cars. I ahve 2 and intially thought its got to be woth bringing them but after reading the above and using the fantatic spreadsheet you have provided im amazed to see that it may be a mistake to do so.

Cars as follows

Porsche C4S Convertable 2005 fuly loaded
Uk Value 45000 pounds
Auss value 160,000 auss dollars

Also
BMW X5 Diesel
uk value 20,000
Auss value 55000 dollar

No acording to the spread sheet even though the value of the porsche is some 30k pounds higher its still hardly wort it am i getting that right ?

bigAPE

This is the information from the WA Department of Planning an Infrastructure (DPI )on Vehicle Import.

http://www.dpi.wa.gov.au/licensing/yourvehicle/1417.asp

You could contact them directly as well on +61 89427 6404

The Valuer we used was in Victoria but if you contact them I bet that they will either be able to complete the valuation for you or point you in the direction of a fellow valuer in another state:

Motor Vehicle Valuation Service
P.O. Box 159,
Glen Iris,
VIC 3146
Tel: +61 3 9885 5075,
Fax: +61 3 9885 5049


This is the process and requirements document from the NSW Road & Traffic Authority and it explains what you will need to do.

http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/registrati...dvehicles.html

It looks like the engineering check is done by the RTA's Vehicle Identification Inspection Unit (VIIU) although I find the whole RTA website quite confusing. The best bet is to contact them directly

+61 2 4920 4159 (8.30am – 5pm Monday to Friday, 8.30am – noon Saturday AEST)

You'll also need an Unregistered permit for the period from when you have left the dock and before you are registered, this allows you to drive the car to and from inspections and compliance appointments (only).

http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/registrati...ation/uvp.html

Al

bigAPE

As per another post with a high value vehicle this is creating a problem for me as I have not yet found out at which point in the calculation the Luxury Car Tax is applied and depending on where it applies varies in thousands of dollars. The other scary one is that there is a bill doing the rounds in the Senate that will increase LCT from 25% to 33%. It was rejected by one vote a month ago, but is back in the senate this week with the revision needed to get it past the swing voter

Source: ABC Radio website

However, as above I can give you ballpark figure on the basic import and a gauge of what the LCT would be

Porsche 911 Carrera 4S Carbriolet 2005
UK Value: ~£45,000 (various sources)
Aus Value: ~$210,000 (~£95,000 - Drive + Redbook)
Final "on-road" Expense: ~£19,377.38 (including Basic Duty/GST of ~$28,700)
Outcome: Should make around £33,500 excluding LCT (see below)
LCT Estimate: $24,500 @ 25% or $32,300 @ 33%

PDF: Car-Shipping-Victoria-Costs-pc4s.pdf

for the other car..

BMW X5 3.0D 2005 (guessed year)
UK Value: ~£19,000 (various sources)
Aus Value: ~$62,000 (~£27,900 - Drive + Redbook)
Final "on-road" Expense: ~£7,600 (including Basic Duty/GST of ~$8,500)
Outcome: Should make around £2,250

PDF: Car-Shipping-Victoria-Costs-bmwx5.pdf

I must say that of all the little reviews I have done these last few over the past few days are the first where people could actually make money (on paper). The laws and duty are so heavily biased towards you not making money from it that it's rare that you would, however when you have unique cars like the C4S Cab then I guess you're bound to make some money. I must say if it was me (can't believe I am saying this) I would consider it, but you need to move fast as it can take up to 21 days to get Approval to Import from DOTARS.

I personally wouldn't bother with the X5 unless it's in mint condition, they are everywhere here and this is what has driven the used market value down. You're call of course and you will need the vast amount of money to ship them here, ~£28,000 all told in shipping, fees, duty, GST and rego tax, etc.

Hope this helps

Al

Liz F

This is the reply I got to my email to customs.

Dear Liz

Thank you for your enquiry about importing a car.

The first thing that must be obtained before bringing a vehicle into Australia is a Vehicle Import Approval. This is issued by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government.

Their website for more information is www.infrastructure.gov.au, phone 1800 815 272 within Australia or from outside Australia (02) 6274 7111 or [email protected]



The vehicle would also have to be steam cleaned as required by the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS). Their website for more information is www.aqis.gov.au.



The vehicle will normally attract an import duty rate of 10%, the duty will be charged on the value of the car in Australia . This value can be obtained by contacting a motor vehicle valuer in the state you are travelling to.



The vehicle would also attract a Goods and Services Tax (GST) rate of 10%. The GST is paid on the combined value of-

- The Australian value of the vehicle

- The duty paid on the vehicle

- The cost of freight and insurance



The vehicle may also attract Luxury Car Tax (LCT) of 33% of the value of the vehicle in excess of $57,180. The value of the vehicle used is the combined total of-

- The Australian value of the vehicle

- The duty paid on the vehicle

- The cost of freight and insurance

- The amount of GST paid



Because of the various duty rates applicable, and the existence of two valuation regimes depending on whether the car was purchased before or on or after 2 March 1998, a publication, called the “Guide to the Importation of Privately Owned Motor Vehicles or Motor Cycles” is available which clearly describes the process involved and the methods to be used in calculating any duty and tax liability.

http://www.customs.gov.au/webdata/re...ePrivOwnMV.pdf

http://www.customs.gov.au/webdata/re...s/commer02.pdf

You will be required to complete an Import Declaration and pay the applicable taxes before your vehicle will be released from Customs. You can lodge the paperwork in person at a Customs Office, or you can employ the services of a Customs Broker to lodge the documents on your behalf.

Without a value for the vehicle and the transport costs Customs cannot provide further information.

Regards

Ian
Senior Customs Officer
Customs Information & Support Centre
Australian Customs
Phone I 1300 363 263
Fax I 02 8339 6714
Website: www.customs.gov.au
Email I [email protected]
This information is provided as a guide only and should be clarified either by lodging a formal advice request with the appropriate section of Customs or employing the services of a customs broker if appropriate.

ex_exile

I was reunited with my car yesterday , I was talking to the boys in blue 1.2 km after I got behind the wheel :curse: but no tickets were written so its all good .

The process to ship it to OZ isn't that hard at all just a bit pricey.

wadhamsfamily

Based on those figures the Porsche does seem viable on paper at least. I guess it comes down to whether I want to invest another £20000 or more in an already expensive toy. Also the unknown effect on the value of a specilist car like this because its an import. I emailed Porchse Owners Club Brisbane and there opinion is deduct 10 to 15 % . This does wipe out the paper profit.On the other hand given the crazy cost of these toys in Auss one has to consider the fact that if I didnt take it then I would be extremely unlikely to decide to buy one out there in the future(obviouslyvi mean the wife wouldnt let me lol)so do I bite the bullet and do it anyway. Does anyone now the Aussie attitude to poms driving round in flash motors . Guess Ill find out.

Massive thanks to bigAPE we would all be in a spin(mind the pun) without your support and advice.You really should write a book my friend

bigAPE

Ah, got ya. THANKS Liz. I know exactly what they are referring to know, this is the calculation that I was after ! I've updated the Excel to calculate LCT as well now. I have attached a new template below

I think it depends on how you do it, if you're prepared to pay the bucks you can will get some companies who will manage the "entire" process for you (not once it rolls out of the docks though). It can be a lot of hassle, but it can also be very rewarding to go through the process and say "wow I did that!" at the end.

Personally, in hindsight, I know that the endless hours I spent on this would have been much better used helping my wife organise for the migration instead of rather selfishly being engrossed in shipping my car.

Al

slipshot

One thing to all those thinking of bringing in their 'pride and joy'.

When you come to sell it, it will be very very hard. Yes, you may get lucky, but you will have to declare that the car is a personal import and regardless of the fact it meets regulations etc, most people will shy away from those. And, ironically, the greater the value of the car, the more likely they are not to trust themselves to buy a personal import.

I have seen it a few times, and the seller ends up either not being able to sell or losing a fortune.

I know people say they have done it, and certainly, they have been able to import, drive for a few years and sell without issue. But I know of more who have done it, tried to sell or trade in and get some a low value, they either cut their losses and lose money or keep the car.

In my opinion, it is not worth it unless you intened to keep the car for along time (and how knows how long that will really be) or it's unique.

For example, I imported a repliaca Cobra to our house in QLD. I have no intention of ever selling the car, because I doubt I ever could. But it's not a daily driver so it's fun.

Just be warned...

Andy

Liz F

Think I've decided not to bother after all its too much hassle and the uncertainty of how your car in viewed like a second class citizen as an import. I've read that alot of insurers don't want to know and you have to have a special plate fitted to the car I assume saying its an import.

bigAPE

Thanks to the information Liz received I can now give you a firmer guesstimate on the total include LCT.

See attached PDF: Car-Shipping-Victoria-Porsche-C4S.pdf

Hope this helps

Al