Laura1888

Anyone got any experience of shipping cars over?
Just wondered if its worth our while or whether its going to cost too much?

wanttobedownunder

Hi Laura1888,

The general opinion is that even though cars are expensive down under it is still cheaper than importing one due to the import taxes ect. Have a look at the link below. PS I presume that your from scotland with the 1888 in your name? We stay in Inchinnan.

http://britishexpats.com/forum/searc...archid=1144844

"onyirsell"

Tony.

Laura1888

hey looking at the link now

yeah we are in Fife. When are you heading out there?

Just bought a car a few months ago then made the decision to go to Oz so now we dont know what to do. Dont want to delay getting out there cos we're still paying a car off but dont want to go and still owe money to the dealer?

Confusing one!! Will look into it. Might be cheaper to get rid of it and but a new one when we get there

Laura1888

cant get that link to open

wanttobedownunder

Go to the search button at the top (in the beige toolbar) and type in "import car" and that should bring up the same thing

We have our PR visa and are waiting on our house to sell its only been on the market for 1 month so Im expecting a bit of a wait then we are off to Perth WA.

Defo cheaper to sell your car here and buy another one there unless its a rolls royce or something

Alfresco

Try this link:

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=600334

With the £ being so weak against the $ it may not be better selling here and buying in OZ.

Do the sums.

I'll be taking my car as it would cost me double to buy the same thing in OZ.

You have to have owned it for 12 months before moving.

Trevski

As stated you must prove ownership and use for the last 12 months before you can bring it to oz as a personal import, but i did pick up in your comments about you having money owed on the car if this is so you must get permission from and person that has a intrest in that car, they might not even let you take the car out of the uk.

bigAPE

Have a read of this article that I wrote on the process of importing your car. It's a couple of years old and the regulations vary slightly from State to State, but in general you will find it to be 98% accurate. It includes links to the relevant government departments and regulations including a breakdown of what you have to do.

There is also a link to an MS Excel spreadsheet with instructions on how to calculate a pretty accurate estimate of the real on-road to on-road costs of shipping.

Article: Importing your car from the UK to Australia

Hope this helps

Al

hillfamily

Hi Laura,

I am in the process of applying for an import permit for a vehicle and trailer. The paperwork seems quite daunting, but if you break it down into small chunks it can be done. I am in New Zealand but I think the rules are the same.

You must have owned the vehicle for at least 12 months and you have to prove ownership by way of receipts, bills etc. Their processing time is around 20 days.
I have received an email from Infrastructure dept to say that I have to be in Australia and provide a copy of the stamp in my passport before they can issue the permit!! But, this is a bit of a pain as it means I have to leave the vehicle behind in someone elses care and hope that I get my permit!! Then sort out the shipping from Australia.

You will need to check whether this applies if you are coming from the UK.

I arrive in Melbourne in 12 days so fingers crossed.

I hope this helps, feel free to ask any questions.

Angela

bigAPE

I have never heard of a situation like this happening. Everyone I have ever heard from who has applied for an Approval to Import from DOITRL has had it done via email/post.

What are your circumstances?

Al

steve_kelly_and_boys

big ape

i remember asking about shipping the car over early in our visa process and you said it was a waste of time
what are your thoughts now with the exchange rate as it is .

bigAPE

It's swings and roundabouts really. Your tax will be "higher" because you have to pay the Australian amount in Sterling but if you sold the car when you got here you would make "more" money. The problem is people rarely sell their import straight away which means in general you would be losing more money because the import duty on the import would cost more sterling for the Aussie amounts.

That said the duty amounts are due to change in 2010 and this will make it a more appealing choice.

Al

steve_kelly_and_boys

more appealing to import ? and do you know when next year

the only reason i ask about the cars is because of the exchange rate .

i can get a 3 year old bmw x5 / discovery / lexus rx300 and many others for between £15k - £20k with 20000 miles roughly

cannot get anywhere near that sort of car over there for that price and would probably keep the car for a good few years

are they a lot more to insure being an import and are there any other problems that may arise say like parts

spence501

Just out of interest. Does anybody know the costs involved in taking an Australian car back to Australia?

bigAPE

Duty on Personal Import of vehicles drops from 10% to 5% on 1st January 2010

As mentioned, it's swings and round abouts, if you're not going to sell it then the exchange rate is going to hurt you. The Duty is in Australian Dollars so you will have to exchange your Sterling to pay for it which at the moment is at a shocking exchange rate.

What will help is the change in Duty (above)

There are plenty of those cars here. If you could give me a specific example I can try to do an estimate and see what it works out like.

Insurance can be tougher to find if its a marque not sold in Australia, but aside from that shouldn't be an issue. Mine was cheaper than the UK.

Same as taking any other car to Australia.

Al