Registering a foreign vehicle in France

1- Obtain the tax clearance certificate (quitus fiscal) or, where applicable, the 846A customs certificate

The quitus fiscal is a tax clearance certificate issued by the French tax office covering the buyer's home address. It confirms that VAT has been paid somewhere in Europe, and is only issued for vehicles bought in an EU country. You can request it from your local tax office, or ask us to handle it for you — feel free to contact us by phone or email.

The 846A certificate is issued by French Customs once VAT and customs duties have been paid. It applies to vehicles bought outside the European Union.

2- Obtain the COC (European certificate of conformity)

In most cases, the COC is essential to register your vehicle in France. Its price varies by manufacturer — each carmaker has a homologation department you can contact directly, or we can handle the request for you (€40 + the manufacturer's COC fee (varies by brand)).

If the vehicle was not built for the European market and therefore cannot obtain a certificate of conformity, an individual approval (RTI — Réception à Titre Isolé) is possible: the file is submitted to your nearest DREAL (regional environment and transport authority), which will invite you to an inspection of the vehicle. If your vehicle is more than 30 years old, we can obtain an FFVE attestation instead, which avoids the whole DREAL process.

3- Once all the documents are together, we can start the registration

Send us your complete file by post and, if you wish, by email or through your client account. If anything is missing, we will get back to you straight away. A dedicated phone line lets you reach us at any time to follow up on your file.

When do you need to register a foreign vehicle in France?

You are a French resident and bought a vehicle abroad

or

You are moving to France from abroad: registration is compulsory if you declare your main residence here, and must be completed within one month of settling in. The proof of address to provide is your French address — it will appear on the carte grise. Depending on your country of origin, there may be formalities to complete back home (for example, returning your old number plates to the local authorities). Check with your home country's consulate in France.

Documents required to register a vehicle brought into France from abroad

• The complete foreign registration certificate (in some countries such as Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany, it comes in several parts)
• The foreign purchase invoice if you bought from a dealer, or a transfer declaration if you bought from a private individual
• Note: if you bought the vehicle from an automotive professional in France, they must give you their own proof of purchase abroad
• The tax clearance certificate (quitus fiscal) or the 846A customs form
• The signed registration certificate application (stamped for companies) (Cerfa form 13750*05)
• The authorisation mandate in your name (Cerfa form 13757*03)
• The COC (European certificate of conformity) if required — €40 + the manufacturer's COC fee (varies by brand)
• A roadworthiness test less than 6 months old if the vehicle is subject to it (two-wheelers and vehicles under 4 years old are exempt) — European roadworthiness tests are accepted, except those from Monaco
• Proof of address less than 6 months old showing your full address
• Valid national ID card, passport or residence permit
• A driving licence matching the category of the vehicle to be registered (for example, registering a 1000 cc motorbike requires the full motorcycle category on your licence)
• A valid certificate of insurance

How much will it cost to register your vehicle?

You can use step 2 of the procedure or our tax calculator to work out the cost. You will need the following information:

• The date of first registration
• The fiscal horsepower (puissance fiscale)
• The CO2 emissions rating
• The fuel type
• The vehicle category
• Your French department of residence

If you are hosted by a third party

• A signed accommodation certificate from your host
• Your host's proof of address

If there is a co-owner

• The co-owner's photo ID

If the vehicle is registered to a company

• Kbis extract (French company registration certificate)