Expert answer

Hi Cesar,

No, you don’t specifically need the V5c. And it doesn’t really matter that the bike is coming over in a van. What is important is that you have seven days to book your appointment at your nearest NCT centre, and 30 days to complete the process of VRT payment and registration.

What you will need is proof of sale (an invoice for the bike with your name on it); proof of date of entry (a ferry ticket will do); proof of your ID and address (utility bill etc); and your PPSN number.

Expert answer

Hi Gerry,

Yes, that’s right. You need to fill out form VAT411, which allows a private individual — whether you are registered for VAT or not — to reclaim the VAT. However, there will be an extra cost involved — UK VAT is charged at 20 per cent, but Irish VAT is 21 per cent (temporarily)...

Expert answer

Hi Daire,

Wow. Quite cold right enough. Possibly, thankfully, it also won’t work. Even if you inherit the car, you’d still have to import it and re-register it and would still have to pay the VRT. 

Expert answer

Hi Catherine,

Yes, it will do as long as you get the conversion done before you import the car. Camper vans pay the same 13.3 per cent of Irish market value in VRT as regular vans, which is helpful, but you will need to make sure that your Caravelle is signed off by a ’suitably qualified individual.’ In other words, if you’ve done the work yourself, you may need to get it inspected  and approved by an official authority (a vehicle assessor who can check that it conforms to DVLA standards, for example) and make sure you have that paperwork with you when processing the import. Assuming that it passes muster in this regard, you’ll also qualify for cheap road tax — just €102 per annum for a camper van, regardless of size.  

However,  you do say that you’re ‘moving back to Ireland’ from the UK and bringing the car with you. That could mean that  you’re exempt from paying any VRT, once you can show proof of ownership (tax and insurance) for at least six months, as well as proof of change of address. Have a look at the Revenue.ie page here.

Expert answer

Hi John,

You should have no VRT to pay as you will have owned the vehicles already for for than six months. There will be small re-registration fees, that's all. Have a read of these for more information:

How Much VRT is Paid in Ireland?

Guide to Importing Cars from the UK

Expert answer

Hi Adaora,

OK, if you bring it in right now, and get it VRT’d before January 1st, then the VRT cost should be in the region of €1,700. After January 1st, that will go up a little as, with CO₂ emissions of 119g/km, and adding the extra calculation that Revenue will now be making to equalise emissions figures taken from the old NEDC test with the new WLTP test (which bring’s the Mazda3’s figures up to 144g/km) then it will be in a 19 per cent VRT  band, rather than a 17 per cent. That would most likely bring the VRT payable (including the NOx levy) to around €1,900, but all of that will of course depend on the individual car, its specification, condition and history.

Read these articles for more information:

How Much VRT is Paid in Ireland?

Guide to Importing Cars from the UK

Expert answer

Hi Maurice,

If you can't find the car on Revenue's own website, then you're going to have to work to your own estimate and hope that you're close. You can appeal the value Revenue comes up with at the car's inspection, but you must pay the VRT it deems is applicable first. And bear in mind that the OMSP will go up if the car has lots of extras. Based on what you've said, we'd estimate it to be about €50,000.

As the car is already over six months old and has done more than 6,000km, you won't have any VAT to pay.

I believe the WLTP CO₂ rating for that car should be under 50g/km.

So, going on that €50,000 assumption, if you register it before the end of December, it's in VRT Band A1 at 14 per cent, which is €7,000. A used plug-in hybrid up to two years old gets a €2,250 VRT rebate, so the net VRT cost to you would be in the region of €4,750.

If you wait until 2021, the VRT rebate won't apply, but the VRT rate will come down to seven per cent, which works out as €3,500, which would suggest that, if our assumptions above are correct, you'll save money if you wait. 

Note that I've not included the NOx levy in these calculations, as I can't quickly find what the NOx is for that model. The levy will increase slightly for you if you wait until 2021 registration, but not by a significant amount. You can read more about that in the relevant articles below:

How Much VRT is Paid in Ireland?

Guide to Importing Cars from the UK

Expert answer

Hi Adam,

If you register that car before the end of 2020 then there is no uplift and your annual tax will be based on the 94g/km rating.

If you cannot register it until after 1 January 2021, then the CO₂ rating will be uplifted, and that new CO₂ rating will be used to determine the VRT paid on registration and the annual tax bill from then on. 

There is no uplifting of the NOx levy, incidentally, but the amount charged will change a little come 2021.

It may be worth your while reading our three relevant guides, which have been updated since the Budget 2021 announcements:

Motor Road Tax Prices in Ireland Explained

How Much VRT is Paid in Ireland?

Guide to Importing Cars from the UK

Expert answer

Hi Adam,

No VAT will be payable, just VRT and NOx levy as you said.

Expert answer

Hi Bill,

Short answer? We don’t know. In theory, because the VRT rebate is being chopped in half for cars priced between €40,000 and €50,000, it will become more expensive, but then again it will also be in a seven per cent VRT band, instead of the current 14 per cent band. And even if that didn’t make our heads hurt and our calculators explode, Tesla Ireland brings its cars in from the UK and who knows what effect Brexit may have on the price?

We’ve spoken to Tesla about this and, while it was a firm ’no comment’ when it comes to confirmed pricing for January, the spokesperson did say that for the Model 3, assuming everything stays as it is now, the price change will be so minimal you will hardly notice it.