Portugal DAV and imported-car registration: documents and steps

The order of the steps

AT’s official flowchart sets this sequence for a used car from another EU country:

1. Documents and homologation: the foreign registration documents, proof of purchase and the certificate of conformity (or the car’s national homologation).
2. Inspection for registration at an authorised category-B inspection centre.
3. DAV on the Portal das Finanças, within 20 working days of the car entering Portugal.
4. ISV payment; the Portuguese registration number appears on the DAV.
5. IMT registration request (Modelo 9).
6. Ownership registration at the vehicle registry, and the registration certificate.
7. Plates, insurance and the first IUC.

Some government pages describe the order differently; we follow AT’s flowchart and the Código do ISV.

Before you buy: documents and homologation

You need the foreign registration certificate (all its parts: for a German car, Teil I and Teil II), the invoice or a declaration of sale from a private seller, and the certificate of conformity (CoC) where there is one.

If there is no CoC, use IMT’s free homologation record search (Consulta de Registos de Homologação) before buying. It looks for the national homologation that matches the car and needs fields K and D.2 of the foreign registration certificate to be filled in. If those fields are empty, IMT asks for a CoC. IMT also describes alternatives (manufacturer confirmation, or an IMT homologation process) for cars with neither; sort this out before you start the tax steps.

Step 1: bring the car into Portugal

Drive it in on valid foreign (export or temporary) plates with insurance for the whole route, or have it transported. Keep the CMR consignment note from a transporter: customs uses its delivery date as the date the car entered Portugal (DAV field 66), and the DAV deadline runs from that date.

Step 2: inspection for registration

Book an inspeção para atribuição de matrícula at an authorised category-B vehicle inspection centre (CITV). The inspection checks the car’s identity, technical characteristics and conformity with the safety requirements. Fee in 2026: €76.03 plus VAT, €93.52 in total at the mainland rate. You receive the inspection certificate (modelo 112), which you need for the DAV and for IMT. IMT gives its validity as 90 working days; the law says 90 days. The official sources disagree, so confirm the expiry with IMT and do not assume the longer period.

Step 3: the DAV

The Declaração Aduaneira de Veículo is filed electronically on the Portal das Finanças, in the customs services area (Serviços Aduaneiros). You can file it yourself; a customs representative is optional.

• Deadline: 20 working days after the car enters Portugal (Código do ISV, art. 20.º n.º 1 a)). Filing late can lead to a fine.
• Attach the foreign registration document, the invoice or sale declaration, the CoC or homologation proof, the inspection certificate and, if it applies, the CMR.
• Deposit the original foreign registration document with IMT within 10 days of filing the DAV (art. 20.º n.º 6).

Step 4: pay the ISV

Customs assesses the ISV from the DAV and issues a payment document (DUC, Documento Único de Cobrança) in your area of the Portal das Finanças. Pay within 10 working days of notification of the assessment, by Multibanco, home banking or at a tax office. For a new means of transport subject to ISV, customs collects the VAT here too; for a fully electric car, which pays no ISV, the VAT must be paid before registration.

After payment, the Portuguese registration number appears on the DAV. The payment document with that number serves as temporary proof for driving for 60 days from the number’s assignment.

If you think the ISV is too high, you can ask, before the payment deadline, for the alternative calculation based on the car’s commercial value. See the ISV guide.

Step 5: IMT registration request

Submit the pedido de atribuição de matrícula on Modelo 9 IMT within 30 days of customs validation, with:

• the Modelo 9 form and your ID,
• the original foreign registration document or a copy certified by customs,
• proof of the tax regularisation (the DAV),
• the inspection certificate (modelo 112),
• the CoC or the alternative homologation documents.

Fee: €45 with a CoC or a national homologation; €165 without either (Portaria 1165/2010).

Step 6: ownership registration

Request the registo inicial de propriedade at the vehicle registry within 60 days of the Portuguese number being assigned. Fee: €55 at a registry desk. Online, through Automóvel Online, the fee is 15% lower, but applications with scanned documents must be submitted by a lawyer, notary or solicitor. The certificado de matrícula (also called the Documento Único Automóvel, DUA) is issued afterwards.

Step 7: plates, insurance and IUC

• Number plates are made by approved manufacturers with the assigned number; there is no official price.
• Insurance (compulsory third-party cover) must be in place before the car is driven, including to the inspection.
• IUC, the yearly road tax: the first payment is due within 30 days after the end of the 60-day registration period. For a used car from the EU, the original first-registration date counts for the IUC, not the import date.

Deadlines at a glance

Doing it yourself or with a despachante

Everything above can be done by a private person. A despachante or legalisation service saves time and handles the forms for a fee; ask which official charges their price includes so you do not pay them twice. The cost guide lists all official fees.