Are you taking a car or motorcycle (official motor vehicle) with you to the Netherlands? Please note that after three months, you will need to register/import that car in the Netherlands. Check below how to import and register your foreign car with the Tax Authority (Belastingsdienst).
If you are a Dutch resident and are driving a motorised vehicle with a foreign registration on the Dutch public highway, you are required to pay passenger car and motorised vehicle tax (belasting van personenauto’s en motorrijwielen, BPM) and motor vehicle tax (motorrijtuigenbelasting, MRB).
Moving to the Netherlands
Are you moving to the Netherlands from a country that is not a member of the European Union? In that case, your car or motorcycle is considered part of your removal goods. You will not usually be required to pay import duties to bring along your vehicle or motorcycle. Find out more at the website of the Tax Authority. Are you moving to the Netherlands from another country within the EU? Use the form: BPM exemption for removal goods (only available in Dutch).
For detailed information about importing a vehicle go to Importing a Vehicle on the RDW website.
Not planning to live in the Netherlands
Are you not a resident of the Netherlands? And are you entering the Netherlands with a car, motorcycle, trailer or caravan with valid licence plates for the country where you live? In that case, you do not need to report to Customs. You can use your car, motorcycle, trailer or caravan for 6 months in the Netherlands without being liable for tax. For more information, see: Cars and motorcycles on the Tax Authority website.
Two weeks exemption
If you are driving a motor vehicle that was rented, borrowed or leased in another country and is registered outside the Netherlands on the Dutch public highway, then it is possible to get an exemption, for a maximum period of 2 weeks, from passenger cars and motorised vehicle tax and motor vehicle tax. In order to get short-term exemption from these taxes, you will have to register online using the following form (available only in Dutch).
Exemption
If you can prove that you have lived in another EU country for more than 12 months, and that the car has been in your possession for more than six months, then the vehicle can be considered part of your removal goods. Fill in the exemption application form to claim the vehicle as part of your removal goods. If your application is approved, you will receive a confirmation for paying BPM.
Any specific questions?
Do you have any specific questions about cars and motorcycles? If so, call the Tax Information Line for Cars.
