How to import a car from Germany to Portugal, step by step

In short

1. Check the car and the paperwork before you pay: both parts of the German registration certificate, the certificate of conformity (CoC), how VAT is shown on the listing.
2. Pay against an invoice or a signed purchase contract and collect the original documents.
3. Move the car: by truck, or drive it on German export plates with export insurance.
4. In Portugal: inspection for registration, then the vehicle customs declaration (DAV) within 20 working days of arrival, then pay the ISV.
5. Register it: IMT registration request, ownership registration and plates.

Germany charges no tax for taking the car out of the country (export plates have their own fees). In Portugal you pay ISV (unless the car is fully electric) and the registration fees. Whether Portuguese VAT applies depends on the car’s VAT status, the buyer and the delivery arrangements; see the VAT guide.

Is it cheaper in Germany?

Often, for many models, but compare like with like. The table shows the median dealer asking price of the most listed models in Germany and in Portugal, from today’s data. German asking prices include the VAT due (19%, or only on the dealer’s margin for margin-scheme cars) and no registration tax; Portuguese asking prices already include ISV and VAT. A lower German median is only a saving if the car is still cheaper once ISV, transport and fees are added.

Median dealer asking prices for the most listed models, all years and mileages together. Gross prices, VAT included as advertised in each country. Data as of 3 Nov 2026. The like-for-like index compares groups with the same year, mileage band and fuel, against the pooled eight-country market (= 100). Differences in specification and condition can remain. Raw medians mix different groups and do not show the saving on an individual car.

To place one specific German listing in its market, use Check a listing. For the full picture of one model, open its price page from the table.

What it costs: a worked example

The ISV here is small because the car is a 1.5 petrol with moderate CO₂ and is over five years old. A large diesel or a high-CO₂ petrol car can pay several thousand euros; an electric car pays none. The cost guide lists every item and the ISV guide explains the tax.

Step 1: check the car and the documents before paying

Ask the seller for photos or scans of these documents and check that the VIN matches the car:

• Zulassungsbescheinigung Teil I (the old Fahrzeugschein): the registration certificate used for driving.
• Zulassungsbescheinigung Teil II (the old Fahrzeugbrief): the document that shows who may dispose of the car for registration. It is not conclusive proof of ownership. Portugal needs the originals of both parts.
• Certificate of conformity (CoC, Übereinstimmungsbescheinigung): makes the Portuguese registration simpler and cheaper. If there is none, check whether IMT can find the car’s homologation with its free homologation record search; it needs fields K and D.2 of the registration certificate. Since 5 July 2026 manufacturers may supply an electronic CoC instead of paper, so ask how you will get it.
• Latest roadworthiness report (HU-Prüfbericht): required for export plates, and a good indicator of the car’s condition.

Check how VAT is shown, because it decides what you pay:

• “MwSt. ausweisbar”: the dealer sells under normal VAT (19%) and can show it on the invoice. As a private buyer of a used car you still pay the gross price; there is nothing to reclaim.
• “Differenzbesteuerung” (§ 25a UStG): margin scheme. The dealer pays VAT on its margin; no VAT is shown and none can be reclaimed.
• Private seller: no VAT.

Germany’s official vehicle register is not an open history service: access to another keeper’s records needs a legal basis. Check for open recalls in the KBA recall database and ask the manufacturer to confirm for the VIN.

Step 2: pay and collect the paperwork

Pay against a dealer invoice (Rechnung) that states the VAT treatment, or a signed purchase contract (Kaufvertrag) for a private sale, with the VIN, price, mileage and handover date. Collect the original Teil I and Teil II, the CoC and the keys. The invoice or contract is one of the documents for the DAV.

If the car counts as a new means of transport (6 months or less since first registration, or 6,000 km or less), tell the dealer it goes to Portugal: the sale is then exempt from German VAT and you pay VAT in Portugal. The dealer may ask for a deposit the size of the German VAT until you prove the Portuguese registration.

Step 3: bring the car to Portugal

By truck. A car transporter collects the car and hands you a CMR consignment note. Keep it: for the DAV, the date of entry into Portugal is the delivery date on the CMR, and the 20-working-day deadline runs from there. Transport is a market price, so get quotes.

Driving it home on export plates (Ausfuhrkennzeichen). The German registration office issues them for the period covered by export insurance, at most one year. The next roadworthiness inspection (HU) must fall after that period. In Berlin the administrative fee starts at €33.20; the plates themselves, the export insurance and German vehicle tax (at least one month) come on top. Applicants without a German address need someone there to receive official letters. Check that the plates are recognised, and the insurance valid, in every country on your route, Portugal included.

German short-term plates (Kurzzeitkennzeichen) are generally not valid outside Germany, so do not plan the trip on them.

Step 4: inspection, DAV and ISV in Portugal

1. Inspection for registration (inspeção para atribuição de matrícula) at an authorised category-B inspection centre: €93.52 including VAT (mainland rate) in 2026. You get the inspection certificate.
2. DAV on the Portal das Finanças (customs services), within 20 working days of the car entering Portugal. You can file it yourself; attach the German registration documents, the invoice or contract, the CoC or homologation proof, the inspection certificate and, if it came by truck, the CMR. Deposit the original German registration document with IMT within 10 days of filing the DAV.
3. Pay the ISV with the payment document (DUC) within 10 working days of notification of the assessment. The Portuguese registration number then appears on the DAV.

The DAV and registration guide has every step, document and deadline.

Step 5: Portuguese registration and plates

• IMT registration request (Modelo 9) within 30 days of customs validation: €45 with a CoC or national homologation.
• Initial ownership registration at the vehicle registry within 60 days of the Portuguese number being assigned: €55 at a desk. The registration certificate (certificado de matrícula) follows.
• Number plates from an approved manufacturer, insurance before you drive, and the first IUC within 30 days after the 60-day registration period.

Documents checklist

Worked examples are calculated by the same engine as the calculator, for registration on 1 Dec 2026.