TheSamba.com :: View topic - Importing from the USA to the UK? Look here for info how to

Tue Mar 04, 2008 11:18 am

Different set up in the epublic of ireland as I said.

I imported from the states ti Ireland, but as I had been living in seattle for a few years it was considered a 'change of residence' i.e I didn't have to pay any import duty.

Because the vehicle was(is) over 25 years old, the irish vehicle licencing people just wanted EUR50 from me for processing, very cheap.

Bu I may be importing it to the uk later this year, I'm not sure of all the costs involved in the UK.

I recommend a search of the DVLA website,

Sun Mar 09, 2008 10:54 pm

hi

milatary pesonal can do most anything(importing)to uk or to us.

one can drive a car in the uk/eu/us for a year without plates then!!!

u have to get insurance to be on the safe side.

if one is a tourist u can drive in us or uk without duty.

hope this helps.

Wed May 28, 2008 1:00 am

Hi everyone....

I am looking to import a 21/23 window bus from the US to UK to replace my beloved 65 panel which i sold last year. I dont know anything about importing such vehicle other than reading the posts on here, i was just wondering if anyone knows of any useful websites, links or contact numbers to start my search going.....

The condition of the vehicle is not a concern as im prepared to take out a full resto, but ideally a limited amount of welding would be awsome!!

Looking forward in hearing from you guys very soon

Best wishes
Matt

Mon Mar 16, 2009 10:47 am

Good Day All,

For some time now we have been receiving a lot of enquiries from this site and today I contact Everett Barnes the Webmaster to ask his permission to post about how we can help.

Essentially we can move any vehicle from the USA, whether it be a 10 seater helicopter, power boat racer, Ferrari or even a VW... :lol:

We can offer a full service from paying for the Vehicle (With your money of course :lol: :lol: ) to collecting the vehicle from the seller, customs clearing in the US, Shipping to the UK, Customs Clearance in the UK and delivery to your home.

Please remember though if the vehicle is a non runner then it cannot ship Roll On Roll Off, it can only ship containerised.

Be careful though as shipping Containerised from Long Beach on the West Coast is very expensive, whereas shipping from Houston in Texas is good, if it is a runner, then ship it RoRo but you can't have any parts in the vehicle.

Have a look at our site for more detailed info http://www.goldenchariotsinternational.com

As Everett has been so kind, we will offer a £25 discount to any member who quotes this site.

Hope this helps.

Best wishes,

John

Sun Oct 18, 2009 9:13 am

Can anyone tell me basically what it would cost roughly
to import a bus to the uk. would it cost the much more to import two
if a few people got together would it not make sense to import more than one to save money

thanx peter

Mon Oct 19, 2009 5:49 pm

RO/RO is about $1100 to $1400. importation tax depends on the value of the vehicle. there are also port charges.

Fri Jan 08, 2010 1:44 pm

hi All,

Interesting Thread.

Wondering how I would import a westy roof from the US (for a vanagon) and how much it would cost - anyone have any rough ideas?

thanks,

Sam

Thu Jan 13, 2011 1:33 pm

Has anyone ever tried to import a van to the UK as a non-resident? I'm thinking of sending my van across the pond next year, then flying over to pick it up and spend 6 months - year driving around Europe.

Thu Apr 05, 2012 10:52 am

Hi was wondering if anyone could recommend a shipping company based around the San Francisco/Sacramento area?

I have a bus currently in that area and would like to ship it back to the UK.

Just looking for a roll on/roll off operator and will collect from UK port. Either Southampton/Liverpool etc...

any help appreciated.

Mon Apr 23, 2012 1:11 pm

Try California connection, they have a base in Ramona,Ca I think and another in Derby.

I used them last year and it was a cheap, hassle free, top notch service.

Tue Oct 02, 2012 4:05 am

I have bought a bus that's in California. The seller has sent me a copy of the title, in his name. The plate shown on the bus is different from that on the title! Should I be worried? Also the "registration expiry date" has long since past. Anyone know what I should look for and check?

Tue Oct 02, 2012 5:31 am

So long as the chassis number is the same you'll be fine dude. He might've just changed the plates from private ones or some ppl keep the original black/yellow plates and has just bought newer ones.

When you fill in the uk customs forms, a 386, you don't need to out the reg or engine number on if you can't be arsed, just the chassis number :)

Thu Nov 01, 2012 1:34 pm

ive looked into VAT and if the bus is over 30 years old and origianl engine and no mods to steering i can apply for 5% vat is this correct, if so how would they do all the checks on the vw to tell??

Wed Jan 18, 2017 5:36 am

Hi Guys,

Didn't know whether to start a new topic or not, but here it goes!
My question applies to the UK, I have an oval window beetle project which was bought in to the country from the US near on 20 years ago! (not by myself) The car came only with the customs and excise slip which has the year and chassis number on it. The big question is - when its ready to drive how do you go about getting it registered with an age related plate? I heard the rules may have changed in 2013? Any help would be most appreciated.

Thanks in advance

Dan