Buying From Ireland/Belfast

[T5R+]

Never having bought a car from Belfast, unsure if anything at all is different as per buying from England/Scotland/Wales?

Some basic questions

1. will any insurers classify it as an import
2. if old enough for a MOT, will Irish MOT be valid in the UK
3. any duties/taxes/charges that I need to be cognisant of

[oldmanbm]

Take a look at your passport! Still part of the United Kingdom and MOT stricter here than elsewhere. Our vehicles are registered through Swansea and registration is the same as the rest of the UK. Most DVLA transactions can be completed online too.

[ZX10R NIN]

You'll have no issues.

[Earthdweller]

Erm ... it’s part of the UK

It’s no different from buying a car in Brighton or Bridlington

Belfast is not in a foreign country

But having said that, NI cars don’t need an MOT until they are four years old, rather than 3 on the mainland so if It’s between 3-4 years you’ll need to MOT it

I think you can change the reg to a mainland one rather than a NI one if you want to when you re-register it with Swansea, although a lot of cars in NI have mainland plates anyway

[dhutch]

Presumably the Republic of Ireland is then different again to Northern Ireland, but yes, NI is part of the UK.