Should You Sell Your Car Before Moving Overseas

Moving overseas is a big deal in every sense, but what do you do with your family car? Importing it with you can be a complex issue with a ton of rules, regulations, and red tape.

There is a lot of paperwork to be done, too. Unless your car has some serious personal value or is a vintage classic, it could well be better to leave it behind.

Taking Your Car with You

Image by birsu.fanel via Flickr

This could be your first option, but it’s a complex one. Firstly, you will need the right import approval permits for the country you are emigrating to. Next, you will need to calculate the value that is used to determine the duty on your car. You can do this in a few ways, such as:

• Landed value – this could be as much as 50% of the market value, but it can vary greatly so you should check this route very carefully
• Original purchase price – depreciation is usually added to help determine the actual value of the car

You’ll then need to think about luxury car tax if the car you want to import is greater than $57,466. This tax is an added amount to all the other charges.

Consider Selling the Car

Selling your car is probably the easiest and cheapest option, and it will give you cash-in-hand when you need it most moving overseas. The first step is to find out how much your car is worth with car valuations from Sell My Car.

Once you have found a buyer for your car and have been paid for the car, there are a few essential bits of paperwork you will need to take care of, including:

• Write out a receipt and make two copies – one for the buyer and one for you. Include the price, date, make and model, registration number, and both you and your buyer’s contact details.
• Make a separate note of the buyer’s contact details for your records
• Give the new owner your car’s handbook, the service logbook, the keys along with any duplicate sets, and any receipts you have. Also hand over the MOT certificate and any other old maintenance receipts you may have kept.

Don’t Get Caught Out

Getting ready to move overseas is hugely stressful, and a rather vulnerable time, but you still need to be aware of fraudulent buyers. A few scams to look out for include:

• Text messages that express an interest in the car, but you get charged a premium rate for responding by text or phone.
• A buyer who asks to pay by cheque and then takes the care before the cheque has cleared, but the cheque then bounces a couple of days later as it was a fake.
• Some poses as a car exporter but says you will need to transfer the shipping fees to their overseas buyers (it’s a scam and it would probably work out cheaper for you to take your car with you anyway).

Overall, selling your car is a lot less hassle than trying to import it with you. You can get cash right away that you can put towards the car you want when you move overseas.