Registering a 40 year old Lithuanian car, bought in the UK

[sgtBerbatov]

I've been after a Lada for a long, long time. And I've got the cash now to buy one as well as some money left to buy various bits of steel for the inevitable welding that will ensue. I've found one online, I've told the bloke I want it and I'll collect it at the weekend. The car comes with all the paperwork from Lithuania, and he purchased the car in March of 2018. I'll get a reciept of the purchase. The car is still on it's Lithuanian plates.

Question is, I know from considering purchasing a car from Hungary that I'll have to pay VAT on it when it comes to registering it, as well as tax etc. However, do I pay VAT on how much I've paid the guy selling it, or how much he paid for it when it was brought in to the country? As well as that, even though the car is - by the time it's on the road at least - more than 40 years old, will I still need to give it an MOT to register it for the UK? I'd get one anyway regardless, but from everything I can see online there's absolutely no mention on the procedure for importing a 40 year old/historical car.

So any help would be appreciated!

[shovelheadrob]

AFAIK as long as you do it before Brexit there's no duty or Vat to pay, it will still need to get a NOVA from HMRC showing that any taxes etc have been paid though. No MOT required. Probably easiest to call HMRC to make sure & find out how to get the NOVA form as it's usually done through the importer.

[Fast Bug]

Not sure on the VAT side of things, but there was nothing to pay when I imported a 924 from Italy 3 year or so ago.

You need to complete a NOVA (notice of vehicle arrival) when the vehicle arrives. It's a simple process and all explained on the DVLA website

www.gov.uk/importing-vehicles-into-the-uk/register...

[TriumphStag3.0V8]

Over 40 years old, should be no taxes at all to pay on a private "import"

[sgtBerbatov]

OK so I bought the car yesterday, and the situation is that the original Lithuanian owner brought the car to the country himself but never registered in about 1998. The guy I bought off bought it from another guy, who in turn bought it from the Lithuanian guy in 2016. I've receipts up to that point, and the log book and MOT certificate for the car when it was last in Lithuania.

Not sure of a way to find out whether the VAT was paid (or the car was at least declared), so I'm going to throw HMRC an email or call later and find out. If I can.

[RC1807]

May I ask you the same question I asked my Granddad when he bought a brand new pink (yes, PINK!) Lada for himself in 1999?

'WHY?!'

[RedWhiteMonkey]

Whilst my Grandad didn’t own a pink one he did have a Lada, a Yugo and an FSO. The FSO was the best one, I was particularly impressed by the cruise control system that was basically a wire that held the throttle pedal open.

[sgtBerbatov]

RC1807 said:

May I ask you the same question I asked my Granddad when he bought a brand new pink (yes, PINK!) Lada for himself in 1999?

'WHY?!'

My wife asked the same question, and I'll give you the same response I gave her: "Because I like it". I've had new cars, I've had French cars, I've had Japanese, but I've never driven a Lada and I haven't seen one in the flesh in absolute years, well over a decade. Plus it's 40 years old, so historic car status etc which isn't too bad.

RedWhiteMonkey said:

Whilst my Grandad didn’t own a pink one he did have a Lada, a Yugo and an FSO. The FSO was the best one, I was particularly impressed by the cruise control system that was basically a wire that held the throttle pedal open.

The only brand new car my Dad owned in his entire life was an FSO Polonez which he bought 2 weeks before I was born in 1987. He reckoned it was the worst car he ever had and sold it to a mate of his who he worked with. His mate kept it for 17 years without any issue.

[QBee]

One of my staff had one back in 1980, not sure if it was an FSO or a Lada, all I can tell you is it was a 1500 and it looked like a Fiat 124.
Honestly? It wasn't a bad car at all.
And the great advantage of any car built before the plastic cover generation of cars came in, you can actually work on it with TOOLS, not a bloody computer.
I would never claim to be a competent mechanic, but out of my Volvo XC90, Saab 9-5 and 1990's TVR, it's not hard to guess which is the only one where I can even get at the alternator, never mind change it (which actually took me 12 minutes).

[sgtBerbatov]

QBee said:

One of my staff had one back in 1980, not sure if it was an FSO or a Lada, all I can tell you is it was a 1500 and it looked like a Fiat 124.
Honestly? It wasn't a bad car at all.
And the great advantage of any car built before the plastic cover generation of cars came in, you can actually work on it with TOOLS, not a bloody computer.
I would never claim to be a competent mechanic, but out of my Volvo XC90, Saab 9-5 and 1990's TVR, it's not hard to guess which is the only one where I can even get at the alternator, never mind change it (which actually took me 12 minutes).

It'll be a Lada if it looked like the Fiat 124. The one I bought looks identical to it, it doesn't have the square headlights. Just the round old school lights.

I have to confess though that when I went to change the Timing Belt on my 1998 Corolla, it took me 2 weeks to remove the alternator. But I had a broken bolt and the other bolt had siezed inside it so it was a pain in the backside to get it off!

[Dog Star]

Given the age of the car I would imagine that when it was brought into the country it was essentially worth zero - the reason I say this is back when I worked in car leasing we used to get Ladas coming in on dehire at three years old and their auction values were in the order of £5 and £20 (this was early 1990s).

I'd play on this - hopefully the VAT owed will be pennies.

[TriumphStag3.0V8]

sgtBerbatov said:

OK so I bought the car yesterday, and the situation is that the original Lithuanian owner brought the car to the country himself but never registered in about 1998. The guy I bought off bought it from another guy, who in turn bought it from the Lithuanian guy in 2016. I've receipts up to that point, and the log book and MOT certificate for the car when it was last in Lithuania.

Not sure of a way to find out whether the VAT was paid (or the car was at least declared), so I'm going to throw HMRC an email or call later and find out. If I can.

So it's been in the UK since 1998 (20 years!) being driven around and passed between various people, no MOT, no tax, and probably no insurance either, and given that it wasn't registered a complete immunity to speed cameras (although, Lada) and parking tickets.

Jesus wept - how do people get away with this stuff?

Good luck registering it OP (I mean that, as opposed to sarcasm).

• Edit* This bit will be of interest:

"If you’re importing a second-hand vehicle, you will not have to pay VAT if all the following apply:

VAT has already been paid in any EU country including the UK
the vehicle has been in use for more than 6 months
the vehicle has done more that 6,000km (about 3,728 miles)"

Edited by TriumphStag3.0V8 on Friday 11th January 13:57

[Neonblau]

TriumphStag3.0V8 said:

So it's been in the UK since 1998 (20 years!) being driven around and passed between various people, no MOT, no tax, and probably no insurance either, and given that it wasn't registered a complete immunity to speed cameras (although, Lada) and parking tickets.

Jesus wept - how do people get away with this stuff?

Good luck registering it OP (I mean that, as opposed to sarcasm).

• Edit* This bit will be of interest:

"If you’re importing a second-hand vehicle, you will not have to pay VAT if all the following apply:

VAT has already been paid in any EU country including the UK
the vehicle has been in use for more than 6 months
the vehicle has done more that 6,000km (about 3,728 miles)"

Edited by TriumphStag3.0V8 on Friday 11th January 13:57

I wondered about that too, it's been through several owners. I've imported a few cars, some went smoothly, some less so but teh receipt/bill of sale from whichever country it came from was always critical in the registration process.

Let us know how you get on OP.

[sgtBerbatov]

TriumphStag3.0V8 said:

sgtBerbatov said:

OK so I bought the car yesterday, and the situation is that the original Lithuanian owner brought the car to the country himself but never registered in about 1998. The guy I bought off bought it from another guy, who in turn bought it from the Lithuanian guy in 2016. I've receipts up to that point, and the log book and MOT certificate for the car when it was last in Lithuania.

Not sure of a way to find out whether the VAT was paid (or the car was at least declared), so I'm going to throw HMRC an email or call later and find out. If I can.

So it's been in the UK since 1998 (20 years!) being driven around and passed between various people, no MOT, no tax, and probably no insurance either, and given that it wasn't registered a complete immunity to speed cameras (although, Lada) and parking tickets.

Jesus wept - how do people get away with this stuff?

Good luck registering it OP (I mean that, as opposed to sarcasm).

• Edit* This bit will be of interest:

"If you’re importing a second-hand vehicle, you will not have to pay VAT if all the following apply:

VAT has already been paid in any EU country including the UK
the vehicle has been in use for more than 6 months
the vehicle has done more that 6,000km (about 3,728 miles)"

Edited by TriumphStag3.0V8 on Friday 11th January 13:57

Well there's plenty of Romanian cars around in Birmingham that will have been there for over a year or two and they haven't registered. I don't like it, but when you consider the Police here can't check the plates on EU cars (but the EU can check British plates) it's endemic. Probably will change after Brexit when it kicks in, any EU car gets pulled over etc.

I will say though that today the guy who bought the car from the Lithuanian in the first place got in touch with me today, so I've been asking him a few questions about it. He reckons the duty has been paid, but again how do you check? So I'd sooner have the letter from HMRC saying it's been paid, or hasn't been paid, or I owe them a tenner.

Thank you for the good luck bit, needless to say I haven't told the wife that bit yet. As she already hates me for buying it.

I've seen that, the thing you've shared. The way I read that was if I had gone to the EU, brought the car in myself that'd apply. But the car was already here, unregistered, and has changed hands a few times before it got to me. I think that if the MOT thing wasn't a requirement that this Lada would've been registered. But I'll let you all know, I've the letter here to send off (the NOVA1 form) to HMRC and the documents to go with it.

[AlexS_LDN]

RedWhiteMonkey said:

Whilst my Grandad didn’t own a pink one he did have a Lada, a Yugo and an FSO. The FSO was the best one, I was particularly impressed by the cruise control system that was basically a wire that held the throttle pedal open.

My first car was a 1986 Yugo 513 (UK spec) same shape as this 511

based on the Fiat 128... went through 3 clutch cables and two radiators. Small car / big engine meant taking it easy on the motorway where it could crack a ton Still I got £50 when it went for scrap...

Edited by AlexS_LDN on Sunday 13th January 14:27

[Cyberprog]

AlexS_LDN said:

My first car was a 1986 Yugo 513 (UK spec) same shape as this 511

based on the Fiat 128... went through 3 clutch cables and two radiators. Small car / big engine meant taking it easy on the motorway where it could crack a ton Still I got £50 when it went for scrap...

Edited by AlexS_LDN on Sunday 13th January 14:27

And according to this page: https://www.howmanyleft.co.uk/vehicle/zastava_yugo... there are none on the road currently (and only 2 on SORN!)