Question about importing a car to Spain
Has anyone imported a car from the USA to Spain? Would you recommend it? what was the cost of doing it? Thanks in advance for any tips!
Answers
These are the answers of some Facebook group members:
”Not worth importing a car to Spain. Has to be converted to EU standards, shipping, and taxes. Just google it, and you will see”
”Agree with the comment. I researched it and have to change tires and windshield also paying massive taxes”
”We moved here in late March from the East Coast and looked into importing our car and decided immediately against it due to the container transportation/customs/duty/import costs – we had 4 quotes ranging from 3-6k (some with ship/customs & some w/o), since our car was a 2011 Volvo XC90 this did not seem cost-effective, so we sold our car and bought a used car here and were able to put a little bit of $$ away into savings. Some companies/military offer really great relocation packages that can cover this which is awesome, but our relocation was on our dime so we could not take any extra financial risks. If it helps, we did like A1 Auto Transport (the most reasonable)”
”It would have to be a rare exotic and fully paid off to make any kind of sense. In addition to those things mentioned (and drilling the fenders to add side marker lights), you’d need to meet stringent emissions laws to be permitted to drive within any of the major cities. I know several locals who can’t drive their old cars into Madrid”
”Thought about it as I had a car I loved in mint condition–small and fun to drive. Decided against it due to all the hassles of importing/converting. Also, US licenses are no good after 6 months of residency & then you have to take driving lessons & tests for a Spanish license–which we still haven’t gotten around to doing”
”I imported my French car by driving my cat over. It was a costly administrative nightmare”
”We converted our car, but only because it was already in Europe (Germany). The cost of the conversion was about €5000. Some of that is road tax, so you would pay that either way. I am guessing at least €3000 was the cost of conversion itself. We had to change the turn signals to amber and add a fog lamp. We paid a gestor to do it all. We are fluent in Spanish, but just didn’t want to deal with it. Another factor, it took six months to process. During that time, you are not allowed to drive the vehicle. We had plates from Germany, so we did drive ours. Normally, you would not though. Anyway, if you do it, the vehicle would need to be €10,000 more expensive to purchase in Spain before I would attempt this. Sometimes it does make sense though! Especially looking at the cost of automatics. Most are manual here. Don’t forget you need an EU driver’s license after six months”
”I did have my car imported from Tennessee to Spain. I was quoted $5000 and when all was said and done it was nearly $8000. It was a 2008 Nissan Maxima. This was done in 2018. Definitely not worth it and even though it was for sentimental reasons, I wouldn’t do it again. I could’ve gotten a new car here for the same price”
In conclusion, according to Spainguru Facebook group members, importing a car to Spain from the USA is discouraged due to substantial costs, including conversion, shipping, taxes, and modifications. The process can be bureaucratic and time-consuming, often taking several months. It’s generally advised to buy a car locally in Spain unless the imported car holds exceptional sentimental or rare value.
Related article:
What is the process for importing a car from Canada to Spain as a new resident?
Official DGT article about importing cars from outside the EU to Spain
