Shipping a Car When Moving Abroad

On a roll-on roll-off ship, often shortened to RoRo, the vehicle is driven on, secured on a vehicle deck and driven off at the other end, much as on a car ferry but on a ship built to carry vehicles as cargo. It suits a car, van or motorbike that starts and drives. Pricing usually follows the space the vehicle takes up, so a long motorhome isn’t treated like a hatchback, and this is normally the method with the strictest rules about what may be left inside.

In a container the vehicle is driven or winched in and secured with straps or blocks. A container to yourself is closed at collection and opened at the other end, which suits a vehicle you want shielded or one that can’t be driven. A shared container carries several vehicles, or a vehicle alongside other customers’ goods, and divides the cost, but it depends on the shipping company filling the space, so the departure date is less certain. Our guide to sea freight when moving abroad explains how containers are used for household goods.

Open and covered describe how exposed the vehicle is, and the question mostly arises on the road. An open transporter carries cars on racks in the weather. An enclosed one carries them under cover, and is the usual request for a classic or a high-value car. A container is covered by nature, and on a RoRo ship vehicles are carried on the ship’s decks, so the choice then concerns the road legs to and from the port. If yours is a classic or high-value vehicle, say so in your request and ask what protection is possible.

Within Europe a vehicle may never go on a ship of its own. A road transporter carries it, or a driver delivers it, and the Channel is crossed by ferry or the Channel Tunnel. A transporter can collect from and deliver to an address, so the vehicle can go door to door, but it is usually shared with other cars and leaves when it is loaded. Flying a vehicle is possible but unusual, and a shipping company will say if it is worth raising.

Expect to be asked to hand over the vehicle with very little fuel. There is no single published limit: a May 2026 safety note from a ship insurer (opens in a new window) says the rules don’t set an explicit maximum, that industry practice is to load vehicles with only the minimal fuel needed for loading and discharge, and that a full tank is a significant departure from safe practice. So don’t fill up on the way to the port, and ask what level the shipping company wants.

Shipping companies usually want the vehicle empty. That is the norm on RoRo ships; some container services allow a few items, and many things are still restricted, so your shipper’s own rule applies. The spare wheel, jack and tools that normally live in the car are the usual exception. Your belongings go with your removal company, and the FAQ below explains why.

Wash the vehicle first, then photograph all four sides, the roof, each wheel, the interior and the dashboard showing the mileage, with the date stamp on if your phone adds one. At collection a condition report is made; check that it records the marks you know about, and keep a copy. When the vehicle arrives you compare it with that report before you sign for it. Without a starting record, a damage claim has little to stand on.

Say at the outset that the vehicle is electric or hybrid, and mention any battery damage, warning light or accident repair. Ferry guidance already points that way: the Maritime and Coastguard Agency’s guidance for passenger ferries (opens in a new window) suggests that drivers declare at booking whether a vehicle is pure electric or hybrid, and says a vehicle with possible battery damage should be inspected by a competent person before it is carried.

The rules for carrying vehicles on ships are also changing. The International Maritime Organization (opens in a new window) adopted amendments to its dangerous goods code in May 2026 that cover battery cargoes and electric vehicles, with entry into force on 1 January 2028. A shipping industry body, ICHCA (opens in a new window), reported in November 2025 that a new provision (special provision 980) would bar unsafe vehicles from being offered for carriage and put the safety check on whoever offers the vehicle, with voluntary use from January 2027. In practice, the shipping company may ask you for details or a declaration about the battery and may set its own conditions. The charge level to arrive with is for the shipping company to tell you.

A shipping company will usually ask to see the V5C log book and some identification, and the purchase invoice if you bought the vehicle recently. The V5C matters twice. The DVLA needs part of it if the vehicle leaves for good, and the rest is normally what you register the vehicle with abroad. GOV.UK (opens in a new window) says to get a replacement before you leave if you don’t have one, because the DVLA can’t post it to an address outside the UK.

If the vehicle is on hire purchase or conditional sale, the lender may still own it. Citizens Advice (opens in a new window) says that under hire purchase you don’t own the goods until you’ve paid in full, and that you aren’t allowed to sell or dispose of them without the lender’s permission. Its page doesn’t cover taking a vehicle abroad, so the answer sits in your agreement and with the lender. Ask in writing, before you book, whether it will agree to the vehicle leaving the UK and for how long. A leased or contract-hire vehicle belongs to the leasing company, so ask it the same question in writing.

Say which applies when you ask for a quotation. The shipping company can tell you what lenders usually want to see, but it can’t give permission on a lender’s behalf.

The length of the absence changes the UK steps. GOV.UK says you must tell the DVLA when a vehicle leaves the UK for 12 months or more, which it calls permanent export, and that this includes the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and Ireland. The FAQ on the DVLA, below, sets out the steps. For under 12 months, GOV.UK’s guidance (opens in a new window) expects the vehicle to stay taxed in the UK with a current MOT and UK insurance, and says to carry the V5C. Duty may still apply at the destination, and for non-EU countries that charge it, a CPD carnet allows temporary entry. A vehicle moving with you for good is a different case from one on a long visit, so tell the shipping company which yours is.

GOV.UK’s guidance on personal goods (opens in a new window) (published December 2021) is written for goods you carry or drive out of the country yourself. It says private vehicles that have been in the UK before count as personal goods and don’t normally need a formal declaration, and that a new vehicle that has never been in the UK follows separate guidance. It doesn’t say how a vehicle sent as cargo is treated, so ask the shipping company which export papers it files and what it needs from you. The household side of the UK export papers is on what the UK side of customs asks for.

The VAT route that GOV.UK describes for exporting is the Personal Export Scheme (opens in a new window), which is for buying a new or used vehicle in order to take it abroad, with conditions on how long you will be away. The pages on taking a vehicle out of the UK set out no VAT step for a car you already own, beyond the DVLA notification. If you’re buying a vehicle to export, ask the seller about the scheme before you pay.

Countries commonly give a relief to people who move home and bring a vehicle they already own, and charge in full when a vehicle arrives for any other reason. The European Commission (opens in a new window) says that if you move to the EU from outside it, you should normally not have to pay duty or VAT on a car imported as a personal possession, but you will have to re-register it and pay any registration or road taxes, and it points you to your new country’s authorities for the detail. Registration tax is not harmonised across the EU, and Your Europe (opens in a new window) says countries are free to levy it when a car is first registered on their territory.

GOV.UK (opens in a new window) shows the same pattern for Great Britain: no VAT or customs duty if you qualify for relief when moving to the UK with your vehicle or returning an exported one, and VAT and duty for any other reason. The conditions for a relief are set by each country and often turn on whose name the vehicle is registered in, how long you’ve owned and used it, and what you do with it afterwards. Don’t assume yours qualifies. Ask the destination’s customs office, or the shipping company’s agent there, before you book. Cyprus, for one, ties its relief to one car per person and six months of earlier use, as our guide to taking a UK car to Cyprus sets out.

Most countries want evidence that an imported vehicle meets their safety and environmental standards before they register it, and what counts as evidence differs. If you are bringing a vehicle to Great Britain, or back to it, GOV.UK shows how one destination decides. Its import steps (opens in a new window) for a shipped vehicle are an import declaration, VAT and duty, telling HMRC within 14 days, vehicle approval, registration with the DVLA and insurance, and GOV.UK warns that you can be prosecuted for using the vehicle on a public road before they are done, apart from driving to a pre-booked test.

The approval route there (opens in a new window) depends on where the vehicle was registered. A vehicle not registered in the EU needs individual vehicle approval, or motorcycle single vehicle approval for two- and three-wheelers, while one registered in the EU needs a European Certificate of Conformity from the manufacturer and, if it is left-hand drive, a conversion approval. A vehicle first registered or made more than 10 years ago may be exempt. A vehicle that was previously registered in the UK and comes back (opens in a new window) needs no approval. Other countries have their own sequence and deadlines.

A right-hand-drive car arriving where traffic drives on the right may need changes, such as to its headlamps, and some countries ask for a local roadworthiness test before registering a vehicle and don’t accept a UK MOT in its place. Our guides to taking your car to Germany, taking a UK car to Spain and taking a UK car to Portugal show how inspection and registration look in three countries.

Many European cities run low-emission zones. The European Commission (opens in a new window) says access usually depends on the vehicle type, its emission class and the payment of fees. Before you commit to shipping an older diesel, find your vehicle’s emission standard from the manufacturer or the vehicle documents, and look up the rules for the town where you’ll live.

Moving between Great Britain and Northern Ireland is handled differently from moving abroad. GOV.UK’s import guide says UK residents can move a vehicle registered in either place freely between them if it is for personal or household use and not for sale, and that you tell the DVLA about a change of address. Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man count as abroad for the permanent export rule. Ireland’s own import and registration rules are for the Irish authorities and your shipping company to explain.