Registering cars abroad to become as simple as at home

European Parliament wants to simplify cross-border registration of cars

"We have to put an end to this bureaucratic maze", said Othmar Karas MEP, Vice-President of the European Parliament, on the current EU rules for registering cars which have already been registered in another EU Member State. "Some national authorities behave as if one is trying to register a moon buggy when all one wants is to register a completely normal car which has been registered in another EU country before", said Karas.

Depending on the Member State, car registration offices ask for intricate additional certificates of type approvals, extra circulation taxes, customs procedures, recycling fees or renewed technical inspections. "Registering cars abroad must become as simple as at home", stressed Karas after today's vote in Parliament's Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection.

The new rules, which still have to be approved by the plenary of the Parliament and by national governments, do not only reduce the formalities for re-registering cars in another EU country, but also bind Member States to recognise the last technical inspection of a car which was carried out in the original country. In addition, data exchange between the car registration offices must be done electronically.

For Karas, it is "a question of common sense and service provision that cars which are the same can be registered in the same way all over the EU". Karas is the EPP Group spokesman for the legislative dossier.

Citizens who move from one EU country to another are mainly expected to benefit from the new rules when they take their cars with them. To prevent fraud and tax avoidance, international companies will not be allowed to register all their vehicles in one country while using them in another country. According to the European Commission, these simplifications will lead to substantial reductions in administrative burdens for businesses, citizens and registration authorities, leading to savings of at least €1445m a year.

"This is another example of how the internal market makes life easier for citizens", concluded Karas.