Re: Moving to Hungary
 

Twice recently I have ordered car spares from the UK. One over the threshold for import duty and one under. In each case the carrier was DPD. The parts were held in a depot in France for customs clearance. For the package over the threshold I was sent an email from DPD requesting me to pay the duty (by card in euro) which I did and once paid the package was then sent via a DPD depot in Austria and then via Budapest to me. The second also went to the same customs clearance place in France and was assessed as being below the duty threshold and was then forwarded on the same route as the first free of duty. Neither package showed signs of being opened by customs for inspection so I presume it was all done on paperwork, a load of household goods might get inspected as would any parcel of interest.

I conclude that a carrier can sort customs duty, get it paid, forward the duty to the relevant country and forward the goods to the owner. With these parts the delay post Brexit vs. pre Brexit was an extra 4 days.

I suspect things would be different for a house load of belongings and the abilities of the carrier to use TIR shipments may be key to a quick delivery but it does seem that a carrier (with the right setup) can get customs clearance anywhere (approved) within the EU without the need for further inspection - chose your carrier carefully.

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

You're talking about packages which is a completely different kettle of fish to a container full of furniture and personal belongings. As part of my job I used to have to organise the paperwork for medical goods being shipped by the US government to South Africa, and I know how much work is involved. Every item down to the last suture needle had to be itemised and accounted for and it was a similar process when my belongings arrived in Hungary.

This is for removals from the US, like the UK. a non EU country to Hungary.

https://www.internationalmoving.com/...o-hungary.htmlCUSTOMS REGULATIONS

• Used household goods and personal effects are duty-free for foreigners with a valid Hungarian Residence Permit.
• All required documents must be in Hungarian including transport documents and must be submitted to Customs one day prior to clearance.

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

WOW!

Where did that come from?

Get back in your box "my friend"

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

It mush the same when we moved to Hungary 26 years ago, but then it was Hungary that was outside the EU. The physical examination was very very cursory but the paperwork was gone over in fine detail.

One advantage we did find was that private goods came in tax/duty free providing we had owned them for 6 months or more......So we bought a new Land Rover and paid for it in the UK and had it delivered to Hungary 6.5 months later. Because it was exported from the UK (outside the EU) it was free of all UK taxes and because we could show Hungary we had owned the car more than 6 months (from the bill) it was free of Hungarian taxes. That saved us thousands (literally). I'm not sure if the same would work today.

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

Was/is your Land Rover LHD or RHD?

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

LHD,
I picked it up from the main agent (there was only one then!) in Budapest road ready with Hungarian number plates and all.

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

Epic thread this one fellas....
I married a hungarian lady 4 years back and now really thinking about moving over (from Cardiff).
It's quite a big move - with Hungarian being such a tough language, and the infrastructure/cultures being different also. But great to hear that there are many brits in the same boat!
How was the change for you guys? What difficulties did you have to overcome? Biggest issues in adapting to Hungary compared to UK?

Cost of living also - Agi (the missus) told me it was a lot less..... but whenever I visit her family - I don't see a huge difference in prices (except for the beer, which is a bonus).

Thanks for your advice guys

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

Food and drink costs - depends on exchange rate and whether you will buy your favourite UK brand or Hungarian. Guinness is £2 per can/bottle. Currently we're staying with mother-in-law so there's three of us, plus our dog and mother-in-law cat which we are paying towards so not been able to do a proper weekly comparison but overall I think costs are less. Depends on the branded food you buy. Hungarian beers alot cheaper around 70-80 pence. Whisky about the same but depends which one. Surprisingly, Monkey Shoulder is cheaper here than UK (airport prices???).
Property - prices are increasing due to government supporting families with children.
Sorry supper ready so got to go. Will try add more later.

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

Cars - it's often been mentioned second-hand cars are expensive. I looked into getting a second-hand car to start off with but with high kilometres on the clock comparing to UK I thought incredibly expensive. Insurance is cheaper.
Driving licence - it was easy to switch to HU. Simple fitness to drive check up with local doctor then head into town to local council office to change. Received within a week. In between they give you a piece of paper in case you get stopped by the rendorseg. You need to check eligibility to change from UK to HU now UK is no longer in EU. I keep coming across different rules but most are for UK residents who moved here before 31.12.2020.

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

Re costs:
Since the wages are just a fraction of UK or German wages (I am German with English family connections ...) everything "work related" is cheaper, like food and drink in a restaurant, the calculation is different.
Before Covid I would get a pint of local beer for not much more than 1.50 €.
An example:
When I bought my holiday home and had some work done around 20 years ago I asked my friends in Germany (a builder, an electrician, a carpenter and other handymen ...) about costs of rebuilding, having new wires,new windows etc.
They told me a simple rule: In Germany you take the cost for the materials and add twice that amount for work ...
Then I found that in Hungary you take the cost for the materials and add half of that for the work.
So we put in some features which would just have not been worth the extra cost in Germany.
Imho that hasn't changed too much.

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

Nice one Wolfi (I guess Wolfgang?)
I think there are quite a few German chaps in my wife’s hometown, due to a Bosch factory there.

your post interests me - as my plan is to buy her dad’s house and renovate & extend it... and I have zero idea of the cost, but I’m guessing around €60k.
some of the building standard I’ve seen there is a bit shocking though - so I guess you have to be able to spot the cowboys.....

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

thanks Fen
any idea on exporting a car there? My wife’s family have Suzuki’s all over the shop - and I’m not too keen.

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

Hi The Duck
The cost of living here is much less than the UK - if you live like a Hungarian and don't try to buy all the UK stuff at imported prices. World market goods are at world market prices, give or take, these can be a bit cheaper only because the wages overheads are less than the UK. Houses are way cheaper (I'm originally from S:E: England) but big variations across the regions. Around here (Tapolca area) a good family house is between 50k and 100k with flats starting about 15k - (prices in GBP) council tax and road tax are peanuts compared to UK. Around here trades people charge about 10 GBP to 15 GBP per hour.

You don't say if you will need a job here or are a pensioner. IMO you can live on a UK state pension (if you have your own place) whereas in the UK you are usually in trouble if that is all you have. A point to consider perhaps is that thanks to Brexit I believe any UK state pension that you may be due will be frozen at the amount you get when you start drawing it (or the date you move if you are already receiving it). Private or work pensions are paid according to the particular plan rules as if you were in the UK. Pensions here are not taxed.

The cost of living is relative to wages and a qualified engineer takes home between 1000 and 1500 GBP / month and minimum wage is a bit less than 500 GBP / month.

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

nice one Peter
I’m 51, so a few more years to graft yet 😀
that said, I could probably sell up here and get by as long as I didn’t go mental. I’d be bored though, so want to work for a while. My company pension scheme is pretty good to be fair, so I should be fine later. Great to know it’s not taxed though... the taxman in the uk always has his hands out eh?

Re: Moving to Hungary
 

Building standards in terms of the building regs are quite high - building quality as done by the builders can be quite low. But then the UK suffers from the same problem, to get a good job you need to know what the builder should be doing and then watch to make sure they do it.. It is difficult to comment on the guess of €60k. without detail of what you are expecting to do for that money (and where) e.g. a village house could just about be bought and renovated for that sum - on the other hand if you are in Budapest and expect a 'turnkey' job then that sum would probably get you a decent garage.