Exporting to forign countries (1 Viewer)

[JBHorne]

Can any one enlighten me as to what the rules are on exporting a U.S. vehicle?

I've heard rumors that the LC200 with the 5.7 available only here is quite sought after in other countries, and people will pay top dollar for them.

I'm not saying I'm selling mine, but I was just curious.

I've heard that a vehicle is eligible for export after 2 years of ownership. What's the deal with this?

 

[CivicFerio]

Hello,

I have exported a brand new FJ cruiser to the Philippines for my dad. The exporting isnt an issue, I just filed a PNO to the DMV for the car. The freight with insurance is less then $3000 but its the import tax when it reach there that will kill you. Philippines has a 200% tax for vehicles imported (your destination country may vary). Even with his customs connections he still have to pay 100% making it a 60K FJ cruiser when everything is done.

 

[invisibleforms]

Can any one enlighten me as to what the rules are on exporting a U.S. vehicle?

I've heard rumors that the LC200 with the 5.7 available only here is quite sought after in other countries, and people will pay top dollar for them.

I'm not saying I'm selling mine, but I was just curious.

I've heard that a vehicle is eligible for export after 2 years of ownership. What's the deal with this?

Watch out for the import duty depending on where you send it. Also, don't think you can sneak around the problem easily though I guess some have managed it. If you take your vehicle overseas and don't intend to export it you need a carnet for many countries so that you don't need to pay and reclaim the duty in each country you visit. When you obtain your carnet you have to post an amount in escrow equivalent to the highest duty of the countries you visit in case you don't bring it back. In countries like Egypt it can be as much as 500%!!!!!

 

[Exiled]

Exporting is rarely an issue if it's a personal vehicle. IMPORTING, on the other hand, varies from country to country and is usually impacted by a lot of different factors:

1. Whether the vehicle is new or used (with different countries applying different rules)
2. Whether the vehicle is compliant with country-specific regulations around safety, emissions, engine displacement, etc...
3. Whether the vehicle is below or above a certain monetary threshold (a lot of countries have "luxury taxes")

In general, the US is pretty lax about exporting (hundreds of thousands of US vehicles are exported to Central and South America every year) new and used vehicles as long as you pay the taxes associated with the sale, and that you're not exporting to prohibited countries (North Korea, Syria, Iran, Cuba and Sudan, I think). Importation, on the other hand, is very specific to each country and they fluctuate from fairly easy to draconian regulations, even for temporary importation (see 'carnet du passage' above). Some countries regulate certain vehicle makes, some countries don't allow new vehicles, others prohibit the importation of used vehicles. Some countries place strict regulations around engine size/displacement or fuel type, whether the vehicle is LHD or RHD, what safety equipment it must have, etc...