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Export a car - Gti556
Hi,

I was planning on moving to france for a couple of years

So here is my problem

If let’s say I export my Uk registered car to France and put it on french plates for the period I will be living there for and then a couple of years later re import the car back to england and decide to sell the car
Will the hpi check show the car as an import?
Export a car - Metropolis.
Whilst I don’t know the answer to this specific question, I’m not sure I would be concerned especially if selling to a private buyer. If I am buying a cat and someone went to the trouble of taking it abroad with them, I would actually see it as a plus that clearly the car was cherished, probably drove on long trips and meant something to the owner.

Maybe I am a rarity because I own a Japanese import which I can’t even disseminate the service history for, but I really think in your case you needn’t worry.
Export a car - Xileno

I don't know how far you have got with this but you might want to approach the problem from the bureaucratic French side of the fence first before making any decisions.

I say this because in the late 80s some friends of the family retired to France and decided to take their UK registered RHD car. The bureaucracy to get it registered and showing French plates was quite entertaining, it dragged on for months and months and even involved a letter having to be obtained from the German manufacturer to declare that it was a genuine vehicle. Imagine the worst French bureaucracy and add a factor of three. I remember the husband saying to me that he would never have started the transfer had he known it was going to be even a fraction of the work. With Brexit it difficult to imagine it will have become any easier. The wife sensibly bought a Renault 4 when they arrived.

Unless the car is of particular value (financial or otherwise) I would sell it or store it in the UK, buy a French-registered car that you can sell when you come back.

Edited by Xileno on 05/03/2021 at 15:21

Export a car - Gti556
And I did take all the paperwork into consideration and it seems like I do need to apply for a form from the dealership to confirm that the car is road legal but apparently it doesn’t take too long
Export a car - Gti556
True but some people do tend to play on the price or avoid an import

I wish everyone could think like this ^^ but I do agree with what you just said
Export a car - badbusdriver

I wish everyone could think like this ^^ but I do agree with what you just said

You wish everyone could think like what?

Really don't understand this conundrum at all. I could understand (up to a point*) if it was a car you really loved and never want to part with, but as you are already thinking about getting rid when you come back from France, why not just get rid of it now?. Buy a car in France for the two years you plan to be there and sell that before coming back to the UK.

*I say, up to a point, because personally, if it was a car I really loved, I'm not sure I'd want to subject it to continental style parking!. Because of that, I'd be more likely to try and store it somewhere till I got back.

Export a car - focussed

The process for registering a car in France imported from a non EU country has got even more complicated and expensive since the UK left the EU.

The advice on this website is helpful.

www.frenchentree.com/living-in-france/importing-a-...e

As the OP indicated that he was intending to live in France for two years consider renting a car on long term rental - quite cheap in France, from 5 euros per day for a 24 month contract including insurance, assistance incl 1000 km per month included etc for a tiddly little Twingo.

www.ulocation.com/accueil/la-location-longue-duree...l

Export a car - S40 Man

Someone here mentioned it already but driving a rhd car in France for 2 years might be a bit of a ball ache.

I also imagine it would be more dangerous, due to worse visibility and the risk of setting of on the wrong side of the road.

If you buy abroad you will lose the depreciation on it when you resell but this will be offset by any import costs, registration, taxes, plates etc. If you take your own car.

That would be my thinking.

Export a car - Mike H

Someone here mentioned it already but driving a rhd car in France for 2 years might be a bit of a ball ache.

Not at all. We moved to Austria in 2009 and took our RHD Saab with us. It was no problem, we only replaced it with a locally bought car in 2015 due to it reaching the end of its economic life.