Importing a Car to Portugal

Last verified: October 2026.

Who this is for

• You are moving to Portugal and want to bring a car or motorcycle you already own.
• You are coming from another EU country, or from outside the EU, such as the UK, the US, or Brazil.
• You already live here and want Portuguese plates for a car bought abroad.

Not for you if: you want a car that already has Portuguese plates. Read Buying a Used Car in Portugal instead.

Updated October 2026. In February 2026, customs published a new list of which office handles your car, by your tax address. From 1 January 2027, the annual road tax (IUC) moves to fixed payment dates.

Once you live in Portugal, a car on foreign plates must get Portuguese plates. That means a customs declaration, an inspection, and paying the one-off vehicle tax, ISV (Imposto sobre Veículos), unless you qualify for the change of residence exemption. If you lived abroad for six months and owned the car there for six months, the tax can be zero. You file the customs declaration within 20 working days of the car entering Portugal. Without the exemption, ISV can run into thousands of euros.

Do you have to register your car here?

This applies to anyone who makes Portugal their normal home.

• Visitors. If you do not live here, you can keep an EU-registered car in Portugal for up to six months, in a row or in total, in any 12 months, without paying ISV.
• Residents. For this tax, you are resident if you live here at least 185 days a calendar year because of personal or work ties. Residents cannot use the visitor rule without customs' permission.
• The deadline. You must file the customs declaration within 20 working days of the car entering Portugal. If the car was here under the visitor rule, you have 10 working days after that rule stops applying to you.

Registering the car is a separate job from your driving licence. See Exchanging a Foreign Driving Licence in Portugal for that.

Can you bring your car tax free?

This applies to people aged 18 or over who move their normal home to Portugal from any other country, EU or not. Nationality does not matter.

The change of residence exemption (isenção por transferência de residência) removes ISV completely. You must meet every condition below.

About you

• You lived in the country you are leaving for at least six months.
• If that country limited how long you could stay, periods can be added together. Each period must be at least 183 days in a calendar year, and a consulate certifies the total.
• Time abroad only to study, do an internship, or work on a fixed assignment of up to two years does not count.
• You are now moving your normal home to Portugal.

About the car

• It was yours in that country for at least six months before you moved. The six months count from the date on the ownership document. For a car on a finance lease, they count from the date of the lease contract, and your name must appear on the car's papers.
• You bought it in the country you are leaving, or in another country where you lived, with all local taxes paid.
• It got no tax refund when it was sent or exported to Portugal.
• It is coming in because you are moving.

Limits

• One car or one motorcycle per person, once every ten years.
• You must apply within 12 months of moving your residence to Portugal.

If your car comes from outside the EU

This applies to anyone bringing a car from the UK, the US, Switzerland, Brazil, or any other non-EU country.

A car from outside the EU can face three charges:

1. Customs duty, under the EU's common customs tariff.
2. Import VAT (IVA), at 23% on mainland Portugal.
3. ISV, worked out as for any other car.

The ISV exemption above removes only ISV. Duty and VAT are covered by a separate EU relief for people moving their home from outside the EU. That relief has stricter rules:

• You must have lived outside the EU for at least 12 months in a row, not six.
• You must have owned and used the car at your old home for at least six months before you left.
• You must bring it in within 12 months of settling in Portugal.
• For 12 months after import, you must not lend, hire out, sell, give away, or pledge it without first telling customs. Doing so makes the duty and VAT payable.

The Portuguese consulate in the country you are leaving issues a baggage certificate (certificado de bagagem) for this relief. Private cars can be listed on it. You need proof of the dates your residence began and ended, proof you used the goods for six months, and a list of what you are bringing. See Moving Your Household Goods to Portugal.

Non-EU cars also go through import clearance at the port or airport before the steps below. Many people use a customs broker for this part.

What ISV costs if you do not qualify

ISV is paid once, when a car first gets Portuguese plates. For an ordinary car it has two parts:

• An engine part, based on engine size in cubic centimetres.
• An environmental part, based on CO2 emissions. Diesel cars pay more.

For a used car with plates from another EU country, both parts are reduced by the car's age:

Age runs from the car's first registration anywhere to the deadline for your customs declaration. The law gives this reduction only to cars on definitive plates from another EU country.

If you think the table overstates the tax for your car, you can ask the customs director to use a formula based on the car's real market value. You must ask before the payment deadline.

Some cars pay less or nothing:

• Fully electric cars are outside ISV altogether.
• Plug-in hybrids with at least 50 km of electric range and official emissions under 50 g/km pay 25% of the normal tax. Under the newest emissions standard (Euro 6e-bis) the emissions limit is 80 g/km.

Before you ship anything, run your car through the ISV simulator on the customs pages of the Portal das Finanças. Use the exact engine size, CO2 figure, and first registration date from the car's papers.

Documents to gather before you start

For the car:

• The foreign registration certificate.
• The Certificate of Conformity (COC) from the manufacturer. Get one before you move if you do not have it.
• Proof you own it, such as the purchase invoice or ownership title.
• The transport document and receipt, if the car does not arrive under its own power.
• A CO2 measurement from an approved test centre, if the CO2 figure is not on the COC.

For the exemption:

• An official residence certificate from the country you are leaving. It must show your entry on the residents' register and the dates your residence began and ended. Where no such register exists, the consulate can certify the end date.
• Everyday documents that prove you lived there, such as rent receipts, water or electricity bills, payslips, or health and pension contributions.
• Your consent for customs to check that your tax and social security are up to date, or certificates showing this.
• Your tax number (NIF). See Getting a NIF (Tax Number) in Portugal.

Customs may ask for translations of foreign documents. See Getting a Certified Translation in Portugal.

Step by step: getting Portuguese plates

1. Ask IMT for a national approval number. IMT (Instituto da Mobilidade e dos Transportes) is the transport authority. If you have a COC, you apply online. If you have no COC, ask the manufacturer's representative in Portugal to confirm on IMT form Modelo 9 that your car matches an approved type. If it does not, IMT must approve it first.
2. Take the car to an inspection for registration. Use an inspection centre licensed for this type of inspection (category B). The centre gives you an inspection sheet (Modelo 112). It stays valid for 90 working days.
3. File the customs declaration and the exemption request. You file the vehicle customs declaration (DAV, Declaração Aduaneira de Veículo) online in the customs area of the Portal das Finanças. The exemption request goes on form Modelo 1460.1. Both go to the customs office for your tax address. Attach the documents above, the COC, the Modelo 9, and the Modelo 112.
4. Hand in the foreign registration certificate. Leave the original with IMT within 10 days of filing the declaration.
5. Pay the ISV, or get the exemption confirmed. If tax is due, you pay within 10 working days of the assessment. Customs then gives you the Portuguese number and passes the details to IMT.
6. Finish at IMT. Hand in the file at the IMT office for your area and pay the IMT fee.
7. Register ownership. Register the car in your name with IRN, online or at a vehicle registry. IMT issues the registration certificate after this.
8. Fit plates and insure the car. Any licensed plate maker can make the plates once you have the number. Insure the car on its Portuguese plates. See Getting Car Insurance in Portugal.

If customs grants the exemption, you must file the declaration that uses it within six months of being told. Otherwise the exemption lapses.

Which customs office handles your car

You file with the customs office for your tax address. Some examples from the 2026 list:

• Braga: the districts of Braga, Vila Real, and Bragança, and some municipalities of Viseu district.
• Freixieiro: Porto district.
• Viana do Castelo: Viana do Castelo district.
• Jardim do Tabaco: Lisbon, Amadora, Cascais, Mafra, Odivelas, Oeiras, and Sintra.
• Faro: the districts of Faro and Beja.

The customs pages of the Portal das Finanças have the full table and contact details.

Driving while the paperwork is in progress

• While customs decides on the exemption, it can authorise you to drive the car. Only you, your spouse or partner, or parents or children who live with you may drive it.
• If you are paying ISV, you may drive on valid foreign plates until the payment deadline. Carry a copy of the declaration. Only you or your spouse or partner may drive.
• Once the Portuguese number is assigned, you may drive for 60 days on the customs paperwork showing the number, until the registration certificate arrives.
• Check with your insurer that the policy covers the car while you live in Portugal.

Rules you must keep after the exemption

This applies to anyone who imported a car tax free.

• For 12 months from the date the car gets its Portuguese number, you must not sell it, give it away, rent it out, or lend it.
• You must keep your normal home in Portugal.
• Breaking either rule means the full ISV becomes due, and you may face a fine or criminal charges.
• You cannot use the exemption again for ten years.

What it costs

Other costs to budget for:

• Shipping or driving the car here.
• A COC from the manufacturer, if you do not have one.
• A customs broker, if you use one.

Road tax (IUC) after registration

Once the car is on Portuguese plates, you pay IUC every year. The amount depends on the car's engine, emissions, fuel, and age. Fully electric cars are exempt. See Paying Road Tax (IUC) and Passing the Inspection (IPO) for amounts and inspection dates.

The payment calendar is changing:

• In 2026, in the year of registration, you pay within 30 days after the deadline for registering the car. In later years, you pay by the end of the registration month.
• From 2027, the owner on 1 January pays for the year. In the year you register the car, you still pay within 30 days after the registration deadline, with a reduction for the full months before registration.
• In 2027, bills up to €500 are paid in October, and larger bills in July and October.
• From 2028, bills are paid in April. Bills over €100 can be split between April and October. Bills over €500 can be split into April, July, and October.

Check the Portal das Finanças for your payment reference, or set up direct debit.

Common mistakes

• Filing the customs declaration late. The 20 working days start when the car enters Portugal, not when you are ready.
• Buying a car just before moving. Under six months of ownership rules out the exemption.
• Selling within 12 months. The full tax becomes due.
• Using a car that got an export tax refund. It does not qualify.
• Assuming a UK car is duty free. The ISV exemption does not cover customs duty and VAT. You need the separate relief too.
• Forgetting the IUC. Check the Portal das Finanças each year.

When a customs broker helps

A customs broker (despachante oficial) can file the declaration, deal with IMT, and chase documents for you. Ask for a fixed quote. A broker is most useful if:

• Your car comes from outside the EU.
• Your car has no COC and needs individual approval.
• Your Portuguese is limited.

For a simple move from another EU country with a COC, you can file yourself. You file online with your Portal das Finanças login.

When importing is not worth it

• You do not qualify for the exemption, and the car is large, recent, or diesel.
• Your car is from outside the EU and you cannot claim the duty and VAT relief. It also gets no age reduction on ISV.
• Your car is right-hand drive. It is legal, but harder to drive and sell here.

In these cases it may be cheaper to sell before you move and buy here. A car already on Portuguese plates has had its ISV paid.

This guide is general information, not tax or legal advice. Rules and fees change; check the official source before you act.

Sources

This guide is written from official sources and, where relevant, organisations' own websites.

• Tax and Customs Authority, ISV exemption on transfer of residence (FAQ index and answers 01 to 11): https://info-aduaneiro.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/informacao_aduaneira/Veiculos/isencao_res/Pages/faq-isv-isen-res.aspx (who qualifies, six months, 183-day periods, studies and assignments, car conditions, one vehicle every ten years, 12-month deadline, customs office by tax address under Despacho n.º 1782/2026 of 12 February 2026, Modelo 1460.1 and documents, 12-month restriction, driving during the process, 60 days, six-month lapse), checked 1 October 2026
• Tax and Customs Authority, tax regularisation of vehicles (FAQ answers 06 and 09 to 13): https://info-aduaneiro.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/informacao_aduaneira/Veiculos/regularizacao/Pages/faq-isv-reg-descricao.aspx (ISV simulator and tables, 20 working days, DAV documents, CO2 measurement, foreign certificate to IMT within 10 days, 10 working days to pay, driving until payment, 60 days after the number), checked 1 October 2026
• Tax and Customs Authority, Código do Imposto sobre Veículos (Lei n.º 22-A/2007, as amended to Lei n.º 73-A/2025): https://info-aduaneiro.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/legislacao_aduaneira/codigos_aduaneiros/Documents/CISV.pdf (electric cars excluded under article 2, plug-in hybrid 25% under article 8, age reduction table and valuation formula under article 11, 20 and 10 working days under article 20, temporary admission and 185-day residence under article 30), checked 1 October 2026
• Tax and Customs Authority, VAT Code article 18: https://info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/informacao_fiscal/codigos_tributarios/civa_rep/Pages/iva18.aspx (23% standard rate), checked 1 October 2026
• IMT, registration of used vehicles: https://www.imt-ip.pt/veiculos/matricula/matricula-para-veiculos-usados/ (steps, Modelo 9, Modelo 112 valid 90 working days, €45 and €165, certificate after ownership registration), checked 1 October 2026
• IMT, types of inspection: https://www.imt-ip.pt/veiculos/inspecao-de-veiculos/tipos-de-inspecoes/ (€76.03 plus VAT for the inspection for registration, category A or B centres), checked 1 October 2026
• Tax and Customs Authority, annual road tax (IUC): https://info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/apoio_ao_contribuinte/Cidadaos/Veiculos/IUC/Paginas/default.aspx (30 days after the registration deadline in the first year, end of registration month later, electric cars exempt), checked 1 October 2026
• Diário da República, Decreto-Lei n.º 161/2026, of 4 August: https://files.diariodarepublica.pt/1s/2026/08/14900/0001000015.pdf (owner on 1 January, first-year rule and reduction, 2027 transition, 2028 instalments, in force 1 January 2027), checked 1 October 2026
• Portal das Comunidades Portuguesas (Ministry of Foreign Affairs), baggage certificate: https://portaldascomunidades.mne.gov.pt/pt/atendimento/no-estrangeiro/servicos-consulares/certificados/certificado-de-bagagem (duty and VAT relief, private cars included, six months' use, documents), checked 1 October 2026
• EUR-Lex, Council Regulation (EC) No 1186/2009, articles 3 to 8: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32009R1186 (customs duty relief: 12 months outside the EU, six months' possession and use, 12-month window, 12-month restriction), checked 1 October 2026
• EUR-Lex, Council Directive 2009/132/EC, articles 3 to 8: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32009L0132 (import VAT relief on the same conditions), checked 1 October 2026

Last verified October 2026. Rules and fees change; check the official source before acting.