Moving back to the UK with your car
Coming home after a few years in Australia, or making the move for the first time. How to bring the car without paying import tax, and how to time it around everything else.
Many of the people bringing a car over from Australia are moving here, and plenty of them are coming home. Some have been away for a couple of years, some for twenty. Either way, the car is usually the one thing they did not want to sell, and with the right paperwork it can come over with no import duty and no VAT.
Transfer of Residence, in plain English
Transfer of Residence relief lets you bring your belongings, the car included, when you move your home to the UK. HMRC sets the conditions. The two that catch people out are dates:
- You have lived outside the UK for more than 12 months
- You have owned and used the car for more than 6 months before you move
Put your own dates in and see where you stand:
Check your dates
- Living outside the UK for more than 12 monthsAdd the dates above.
- Owning and using the car for more than 6 monthsAdd the dates above.
A guide to two of HMRC’s conditions, worked out on this device. You also need to be making the UK your main home, and not sell, lend or hire out the car for 12 months after it arrives. HMRC makes the decision when you apply.
Apply before the car ships
You apply online through GOV.UK. You will need proof that you lived in Australia, proof that you are moving here, and proof that the car is yours and that you have used it. When HMRC approves it, you get a reference number. We present that to customs when the car lands, and that is what lets it through without tax.
Leave it late and the car can arrive before the reference does, which means waiting. Our moving page goes through the application in more detail.
The 12-month rule after it lands
Once the car is here under Transfer of Residence, you cannot sell it, lend it, hire it out or hand it on for 12 months. If you do, the duty and VAT become payable. Keep it, drive it, and after a year it is just your car.
Timing it around the move
The car and you will travel on very different timetables. It takes around 10 to 16 weeks from collection to UK plates, most of it at sea. Booking it a few weeks before you fly usually works well: you are not without a car in Australia for long, and it is not far behind you here. Our timing guide has a planner that turns a collection date into rough arrival dates.
Bringing belongings in the car
As a transferring resident, you can pack personal belongings inside the car. List everything on a valued inventory and secure it so nothing shifts on the voyage. If there is more than a boot’s worth, ask about a dedicated 20ft container, which gives you room for the car and your things together.
When you land
- Your driving licence. Australia is one of the countries whose licences can be exchanged for a UK one. Check GOV.UK for the current rules and time limits.
- Insurance. The car is covered by our marine insurance at sea. You will need your own UK insurance before you drive it away.
- Collection or delivery. Once it is registered, collect it from us in Castle Donington, or we can deliver it anywhere in the UK.
If you are still deciding whether the car is worth bringing at all, our ship it or sell it guide has a calculator for exactly that.
Quick answers
I am a British citizen. Do I still need Transfer of Residence?
Yes. Relief is about where you have been living, not your passport. If you have lived in Australia for more than 12 months and are making the UK your home again, you apply like anyone else.
Can I pack things in the car?
Yes, if you are a transferring resident. Make a valued inventory of everything inside and secure it so nothing moves. If you have a lot to bring, a dedicated 20ft container gives you room.
When should the car leave Australia?
It takes around 10 to 16 weeks door to door. Booking it well ahead of your flight keeps the gap as short as it can be.