Update on UK-Spanish registered car plates

[geegee]

Having just gone through the whole process in Malaga thought I would add my experience to the body of knowledge for 'matriculating' your car in Spain, i.e. getting spanish plates:

Step 1. FICHA TECNICA obtained locally in pueblo from kindly mechanic. Straightforward. Cost 80€

Step 2. ITV - Took F.T. and all car papers to ITV centre Antequera for MOT equivalent. Interesting kind of do-it-yourself conveyer belt process (recommend you lean the spanish for 'switch on/off your brake/handbrake//lights; full beam/normal/half beam/foglights; go forward/reverse/stop/start; engine on/off; get on that belt and we will jiggle your car around violently with you in it, etc. Return in one week to collect your ITV 'passport' called a 'Tarjeta Inspeccion Tecnica' - it has a green, blue and pink copy and you need all 3 for trafico. Cost 100.13€.

CAUTIONARY NOTE: ITV centre KEEP your VC5 UK registration certificate and give you a stamped photocopy in return. DON'T be alarmed/throw a tantrum/resort to begging the sour-faced cow behind the counter to give it back to you on the basis that trafico will need it - they don't (oops!).

Step 3. IMPUESTO DE VEHICULOS DE TRACCION MECANICA - Accounts vary on this one, but I took my FT/ITV/all car papers along to the Ayuntamiento and asked to pay the road/circulation tax. In theory, you cannot tax a UK car until its matriculated, but cannot matriculate without the tax (see previous thread). However, mine allowed me to do it and saved me having to get temporary plates then tax it then get permanent plates. Get the certificate and official duplicate duly stamped. Cost 45€.(varies depending on your car, mine's a Smart so was cheap).

Meanwhile, you can be gathering all the other bits of paper you need before you attempt to matriculate, the following need not be in a particuar order but this happened to be mine:

Steps 4/5/6

Get a BAJA DE RESIDENCIA from the consulate if you intend to attempt to NOT pay the import tax, but the date it states that you entered the country must be no earlier than 3 months ago (not 6 - lie if neccessary if you are comfortable about lying on oath) of the date you attempt to matriculate, and you have to have applied for residency no earlier than 30 days previously. Otherwise you will get caught out and have to pay the import tax anyway. I did. Cost: 129€ wasted.

APPLICATION FORM - Go to Trafico in Malaga (same road as the Consulate) and get an application form and guidance notes from the Information counter for 'Matriculacion de Vehiculos Adquiridos en Espana o Paises Comunitarios'. The guidance notes are critical as they list the numerous bits of paper you need to gather to return and actually matriculate!


MODELO 565 - this is the form you need to obtain and fill out to pay the tax you shouldn't have to pay but the sods get you anyway. Get it from the Hacienda offices next to Corte Ingles - ask for Modelo 565 at the desk immediately on your right (go thorugh security and turn round and you will see it). Fill it in, then go right to the back office on the ground floor to the desk in the far right back corner and ask them to fill out the amount of tax you will pay (take your FT and other docs). Then take same form and obtain your 'etiquettas' from another desk at the opposite end of the rook - these are little white stickers that you put on each copy of your Modelo 565. Go to a bank (I went to Unicaja) and pay the tax - get your form stamped to prove payment. Cost: 315€

Step 7: Gather all your bits of paper together, heres the list of what I needed, some of which were not on the guidance notes as requirements. Other things they say you do need, I was not asked for - if in doubt take everything you have and a photocopy just in case:

* Application Form fully filled out (see your Ficha Tecnica/ITV cert for various car details they ask for)
* Original and Copy of your NIE certificate
* Original and Copy of (as it happened, worthless) Baja de Residencia
* Original and Copy of Solicitud de Residencia - they assume if you are matriculating a car you are also applying for residency
* Original and Copy of your Passport
* ITV 'passport' green, blue and pink copies
* Ficha Tecnica (not mentioned in the notes but they asked for it)
* Original and Copy of the stamped copy of your VC5 that ITV give you
* Original and Copy of your original bill of sale for the car from the UK

Step 8. IN TRAFICO - Take your Application Form, filled out, and stand in the queue for Caja's 1/2/3 on the right as you go in. Give the cashier your form and ask to pay the Abonar TASA. Cost: 66.60€. They will then give you a ticket with a number on (but no actual receipt for the cash) and you take a seat and wait for your number to be buzzed. Take all your bits of paper to the desk, and provided all is in order, this seemed fairly straightforwaed. They will then give you a small slip of paper which entitles you to get your plates.

STEP 9: Take your slip to the security desk (they point it out) BUT, they told me I had to wait until Monday to do this to allow them to process it! So near and yet so far....!!! So final installment yet to come!!

[El Cid]

Having just gone through the whole process in Malaga thought I would add my experience to the body of knowledge for 'matriculating' your car in Spain, i.e. getting spanish plates

Thanks GeeGee

That is, quite simply, the best account of how to re-register a Uk I have ever seen on the Internet!

Sid

[spanish_lad]

thats great, a couple of questions tho - was your car still within its tax and MOT dates ? did they take your MOT and tax disc documents? or did it work directly on the ficha technica ?

[geegee]

Hi, glad to be of service! Yes, my car was still MOT'd and taxed in the UK but they did not ask for either, only the ficha...the VC5 seemed to be about the main UK thing they were interested in.

[spanish_lad]

so anyone who owns a UK plated car, wether it is taxed and MOT´d or not, could get it re-registered, as long as they are the registered keeper ?

[chicdiz]

Thanks Geegee, thorough and amusing explanation. So glad that you've got your goal in sight.

Procedure is the same here in Cadiz province, apart from one extra bit of paper needed here for ITV and Trafico office - the Empadronimiento.

Hope all goes well for you next week.

[geegee]

Can't say for certain Spanish Lad, you know what they are like - the word inconsistency was clearly invented by the Spanish bureaucrats. but worth your giving it a try, they can only turn you away, not arrest you (I hope!)

[El Cid]

so anyone who owns a UK plated car, wether it is taxed and MOT´d or not, could get it re-registered, as long as they are the registered keeper ?

In theory I cannot see why not. Lots of people import cars from Germany etc. I cannot see why it should not apply to non residents - it's worth asking.

Non residents can legally own Spanish registered cars so I can't see why you cannot import one and reregister it.

What you cannot do if you are non resident is import it tax free.

Sid

[jwsp]

Or....pay a Gestor around 150euros to do it all for you....lol...

[Guest]

geegee, but you still have a rhd car, right!

[geegee]

Nope syd it was LHD to begin with!

[Guest]

Nope syd it was LHD to begin with!

Pardon my presumtuousness, in this case you did the right thing, it's good to have all that info, thanks!

[mhic]

I bought a motorbike recently in the UK and had it transported out here, the idea was that I'd ride it around for a few months then get it put on Spanish plates. But the insurance company that was prepared to insure it now tells me there has been a clamp down on insuring foreign registered vehicles so I have to get it re-registered sooner than I thought. But I called to the DVLA today to find out about export licenses and was told they no longer issue them and that all I need is a new V5 with my name on it. Anyone know anything about this?

Mhic.

[poshtotti]

Mhic

I think you'll find that the newer style V5 documents are more "User friendly", I know they are a two part document & there is details of export on one sheet, hope that helps?!

[pwwm]

You are correct re new V5 We had export certificate but friends have just used their V5 without any problems.

[mhic]

Thanks for that I do hope it goes through alright. I can't keep wheeling it out just to clean it the neighbors are starting to talk.

Mhic.