Certificate of conformity (COC): type approval for France

What the European certificate of conformity is

The European certificate of conformity (COC) is a manufacturer document. It states that this vehicle, identified by its VIN (identification number, NIV, serial number), was built to a type already approved at European level.

Without that proof, France Titres (formerly ANTS) and the SIV cannot fill the technical fields of the registration certificate — the carte grise — on a first French registration of a foreign vehicle.

The COC is not a circulation title. It carries neither a French plate, nor a keeper, nor an address. It is the “type-approval” brick of the import file.

Certificate of Conformity and everyday wording

In English the document is the Certificate of Conformity. Garages, importers and forums say COC, CoC, EU certificate of conformity, manufacturer CoC, sometimes “Euro cert”.

The administration talks about conformity to an approved type, European category, and type / variant / version. Those three levels describe the homologated model: a version gap (engine, body, masses) is not cosmetic.

Keep the keyword pair: European certificate of conformity + COC. The rest of the vocabulary (e-COC, duplicate COC, identification attestation, RTI) stops you ordering the wrong paper.

What the COC is not

The COC is not the carte grise, not the quitus fiscal, not the 846A, not temporary WW plates, not an FFVE attestation. Mixing these papers is the first reason files come back incomplete.

Type approval and registration: two files

Type approval answers: is this vehicle allowed to exist as built on the European market? Registration answers: who is the keeper in France, at which address, with which taxes?

You can hold a perfect COC and still be blocked without a quitus, a complete foreign title or a roadworthiness test. Conversely, a quitus in the right name never replaces the certificate of conformity.

This page sells and explains the COC. The full foreign-vehicle registration journey, taxes included, lives on its own landing.

e-COC, paper COC and duplicate COC

The e-COC is the electronic Certificate of Conformity, sent through manufacturer systems. A paper COC remains common, especially as a duplicate for a vehicle already registered abroad.

A duplicate COC is not a “fake”: it is the same document, reissued because the original did not follow the car. For a used import, that is the usual case.

A new vehicle leaving the factory for the EU market often carries the COC in the delivery pack. That is not a universal rule, and it is almost never true for a used vehicle already titled abroad.

EU type approval, type, variant and version

European type approval (today often under EU regulation 2018/858 for motor vehicles) authorises a family of vehicles on the market. The COC ties a precise VIN to that family.

The type / variant / version fields, the European category (M1 car, N1 van, L3e motorcycle, and so on), masses, power and CO2 then feed the SIV and the tax calculation.

An “EU-spec” car that looks like a French model may still carry a version not intended for France (lighting, limits, towing mass). The COC shows it; a foreign title alone does not.

Who issues the COC: the manufacturer, not ANTS

Only the manufacturer, or its official representative / importer in France, issues the certificate of conformity. The brand’s type-approval desk handles the request from the VIN.

France Titres, ANTS, an SIV-authorised provider or a carte grise website do not “print” a COC. We send the file to the right manufacturer contact, chase it, and hand you the document.

Be wary of handsome PDFs sold without going through the brand: a COC that did not come from the manufacturer will not survive instruction.

What the certificate of conformity contains

A readable COC carries at least: manufacturer identity, VIN, trade name, type / variant / version, European category, masses (unladen, GVW, sometimes towing), power, CO2, seating, and often the manufacturer’s address.

Those fields are not decoration. They populate the carte grise (D, P, F, V) and the Y.1 schedule. A wrong power or CO2 figure costs tax or a rejection.

Compare VIN, date and body type with the foreign title and the invoice before you order. A one-character gap blocks everything else.

VIN, NIV, WMI, manufacturer plate and cold stamping

The VIN (Vehicle Identification Number), also called NIV or serial number, has 17 characters. The first three (WMI, World Manufacturer Identifier) name the maker and the plant origin.

On the vehicle, the VIN is read on the manufacturer plate and, on many cars, as a cold stamping on the body. Photos of both supports stop you ordering a COC on a mistyped number.

A recoded VIN, an unreadable plate or a stamping that does not match the foreign title: the manufacturer refuses, or the SIV refuses later. Better to know before you pay the brand fee.

When the COC is required

As soon as a vehicle never registered in France must enter the SIV, proof of conformity is asked. For a relatively recent European-market model, the COC is the direct path.

When you do not need a COC

A vehicle already registered in France, bought used, does not need a new COC for a change of ownership. The SIV already knows the characteristics.

A duplicate carte grise, a change of address, a transfer declaration: no COC. Ordering a certificate of conformity “just in case” only pays the manufacturer for nothing.

Beyond thirty years, the FFVE attestation often replaces an unobtainable COC. It is not the same document, not the same price, not the same page.

COC, identification attestation, RTI or FFVE

Four proofs circulate in import files. Competitors often glue them into one sentence. They are not interchangeable.

CE-type identification attestation

The attestation of identification with a CE type (sometimes a national type) is a French manufacturer paper that says: this VIN matches an already identified type. DREAL offices distinguish it from an import COC.

It mainly concerns vehicles already in the French representative’s databases. It is not the duplicate COC of a car bought in Germany or Belgium.

If the manufacturer offers an attestation rather than a Certificate of Conformity, we explain it before billing the brand fee: what matters is that the SIV accepts the paper, not the acronym at the top.

Factory-new, used import, duplicate

EU new: the COC often leaves with the vehicle. Check it is complete, on the right VIN, and keep the original. A blurry PDF does not always replace the manufacturer copy.

Used import: the original has usually vanished. You need a duplicate COC from the type-approval desk, with the foreign title and the VIN.

A “0 km” car titled for three days in Germany is still used for the French SIV: likely a duplicate, plus quitus, plus an import file — not a simple change of keeper.

Price: €40 agency fee and the manufacturer tariff

Two separate lines. At Office Carte Grise the accompaniment fee is €40 incl. VAT (€40 + the manufacturer's COC fee, which varies by brand). It is paid online when you order.

The document price is set by the manufacturer. It varies by brand, age, channel (e-COC or paper) and sometimes the plant country. A common order of magnitude is €100 to €300, sometimes more; some requests exceed €1,500.

We do not publish a frozen Peugeot / Renault / BMW list: those grids move and are not official. After the VIN is identified, we tell you the brand amount before you pay it.

Brands, type approval and long-tail pricing

Peugeot, Citroën, Renault, Dacia, Volkswagen, Audi, Škoda, Seat, BMW, Mini, Mercedes-Benz, Smart, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Toyota, Honda, Mazda, Ford, Opel, Volvo, Hyundai, Kia: each type-approval desk has its delays and forms.

Premium groups and small series (Alpine, Lotus, some factory specials) charge more. A van, a coach-built motorhome or an HGV does not use the same counter as a city car.

There is little point comparing a “BMW COC price 2024” on a comparison site: the quote that counts is the French representative’s, for your VIN, this year.

How we order the certificate of conformity

You pay the agency fee, then upload ID, proof of address and the complete foreign registration certificate. We read the VIN, the brand and the body type.

We query the type-approval desk (or the e-COC channel). As soon as the manufacturer tariff is known, we send it to you. No surprise: the document is ordered only with your agreement on that amount.

Start at step 2 of the procedure as soon as the foreign title and VIN are readable. A blurry scan of the manufacturer plate wastes more time than the payment itself.

How long the COC takes

The delay depends on the manufacturer, not ANTS. Some brands answer in a few working days; others take several weeks, especially for a paper duplicate or when the e-COC is not in stock.

VIN photos, the manufacturer plate and a full foreign title speed things up. A wrong VIN, a model off the list or a saturated representative stretch them.

Ordering the COC the day you buy abroad avoids freezing the rest of the file (quitus, roadworthiness, WW). The definitive title never leaves before conformity.

When the manufacturer refuses

The manufacturer typically refuses: a VIN unknown in its databases, a vehicle off European spec, unlisted modifications, USA / Japan / specific national origin, or a model too old for an e-COC.

A refusal is not the end of the import. Two classic exits: isolated type approval (RTI / PVRTI) at the DREAL, or, at 30 full years, the FFVE attestation.

We do not “force” a COC. A clear refusal and an RTI / classic orientation beat a worthless PDF.

Modified vehicles: ethanol, derestricting, lighting, tow bars

The COC describes the vehicle as it left the factory. An unapproved ethanol kit, derestricting, non-EU lights, a tow bar not on the document, an engine or body swap: the original paper can become unusable.

In those cases the path is no longer a duplicate COC; it is often RTI, with a list of upgrades and possibly UTAC tests.

Tell us about modifications before you order. A COC paid for a vehicle already converted is money lost.

Cars, motorcycles, mopeds, vans, motorhomes and HGVs

The Certificate of Conformity exists for almost every approved category: M1 (car), N1 (CTTE, van), L (two-wheelers, motorcycle, moped depending on the approval), chassis-based motorhomes, sometimes HGVs.

An EU-approved motorcycle is ordered like a car: VIN, foreign title, type-approval desk. An old moped without European approval usually swings to FFVE or RTI.

Motorhomes and VASP: check the COC covers the conversion (habitation, GVW). An approved chassis-cab is not enough if the cell is not in the type / variant / version.

USA, Japan, Canada imports: often no EU COC

A vehicle designed for the United States, Japan or Canada generally has no European type approval. There is then no €150 COC to “unlock” the SIV.

The real path: customs (846A), then RTI / DREAL, conformity work (lights, speedo, emissions, belts), sometimes UTAC. Budget and calendar have nothing in common with a German import.

Rare exception: a world model already EU-approved, sold elsewhere. Only the VIN decides, not the US plate or the Japanese title.

United Kingdom, Brexit and island spec

Since Brexit, a UK vehicle in practice follows a non-EU import: 846A, then conformity. A British or incomplete COC (right-hand drive, lighting, limits) is not always enough for the French SIV.

Many “UK-spec” models need RTI even if a Certificate of Conformity exists for the EU-LHD version. The Brexit import article dates that shift; the registration file stays on the foreign-vehicle page.

An old UK vehicle over 30 years often takes the FFVE attestation rather than a manufacturer COC that no longer exists.

RTI, PVRTI, DREAL, UTAC and Octave2

Isolated type approval (RTI) produces a report (PVRTI). The file is lodged with the DREAL (or regional equivalent). Octave2 is the telematic service often used to instruct it.

If the vehicle is not compliant at inspection, the DREAL lists the changes and may send you to UTAC for tests. It is neither quick nor cheap.

This page is not a second DREAL encyclopedia. Takeaway: RTI is plan B when a COC is impossible. We guide; the summons remains an administrative act.

Classics, 30 years and the FFVE attestation

At 30 full years, in period configuration, the FFVE attestation often stands in as proof of conformity. It is not a duplicate COC: another body, another fee, another status (classic mention).

A collector who insists on a manufacturer COC for a 1988 205 loses weeks. Conversely, a 2018 sports car does not enter FFVE.

Photo, Cerfa and classic-mention detail live on the classic registration and FFVE attestation pages. Here the message is only: do not order a COC by habit if age opens the FFVE route.

Quitus fiscal, 846A and the foreign title (PRA, Teil, etc.)

The quitus fiscal (EU purchase) and the 846A (outside the EU) speak about VAT and customs. The foreign title (German Teil I/II, Belgian parts, Italian libretto and PRA, Dutch kenteken) speaks about vehicle and seller identity.

None of those papers is the COC. They often travel in the same import pack. Order them in parallel, on their pages, rather than waiting for the certificate of conformity to finish before starting the quitus.

Cerfa and tax-office detail live on the tax-clearance landing. Here: open both workstreams the same day.

Y.1 taxes: figures come from the COC, not the foreign title

Regional tax Y.1, any malus and fiscal horsepower are set from the approved characteristics: power, CO2, energy, body type, date of first registration.

Those figures are read on the COC (or the PVRTI), not on a foreign carte grise whose units, rounding or fields differ. An incomplete COC skews the registration cost calculator and the tax calculator.

Estimate afterwards with the registration cost calculator, the tax calculator and the 2026 fiscal horsepower rates — after, not instead of, the certificate of conformity.

Documents to send us for the COC

The core file is short. The rest (hosted applicant, co-keeper, company) follows the same rules as other carte grise procedures.

• Valid photo ID (national ID card, passport or residence permit)
• Proof of address less than 6 months old (the address that will appear on the future carte grise)
• Complete foreign registration certificate (every part)
• Clear VIN photos: manufacturer plate and, if visible, cold stamping
• Invoice or bill of sale, useful if the title is thin on characteristics

Pitfalls that get the file refused

VIN copied by hand, an O instead of a 0. Incomplete foreign title (only one Teil). COC ordered for a vehicle already French. COC ordered for US-spec. Hidden modifications. A “COC” PDF from a non-manufacturer broker.

Quitus in the foreign seller’s name, taxes calculated on the local title, WW expired on the SIV filing day: those are import traps, not COC traps, but they arrive the same month.

We re-read VIN, brand and body type before committing the manufacturer fee. If in doubt, write to us rather than paying twice.

ANTS, SIV, authorised provider: who does what

The manufacturer issues the COC. The SIV then records the vehicle. France Titres runs the system. A professional authorised by the Ministry of the Interior transmits the registration file; they do not sign the Certificate of Conformity in the brand’s place.

Office Carte Grise is authorised and approved by the Public Treasury. On this service we are the COC intermediary (€40) then, if you continue, the operator of the definitive title.

No private site “is” ANTS. The manufacturer document only leaves the brand.

Order the COC and continue the import

ID, French address, readable foreign title: start at step 2 of the procedure. We order the European certificate of conformity from the manufacturer, tell you the brand price, then you can chain tax clearance, temporary WW plates and foreign vehicle registration.

The dated 2026 article tells the framework. This page is the order file, the tables and the on-page FAQ. Off-spec case, unreadable plate, converted motorhome: contact us before you pay.

If you are a minor or hosted by a third party (parents, a friend, etc.)

• Accommodation certificate signed by your host (download the template)
• Your host's proof of address less than 6 months old
• Your host's valid photo ID: national ID card, passport or residence permit

If there is a co-owner on this vehicle (2 buyers)

• The co-owner's valid photo ID: national ID card, passport or residence permit

If you are a company

• Kbis extract (French company registration certificate)