Shipping Cars to Australia

The Australian economy is doing quite well these days and so this nation-continent is getting much attention in tourism and international trade. Its neighboring country, too, New Zealand, is more popular than before. More and more Americans desire to visit these two nations across the world and potentially a very good place to retire.

There are also good-paying jobs in Australia that have lured in the best professionals from all over the world. Life in Australia is easy, but shipping cars to Australia has its challenges.

As your car reaches the country, you need to secure a Vehicle Import Approval from Customs. Then it goes through more inspections, to quarantine, and registration. It should pass the safety requirements and then have valid car insurance before you can finally drive it around Australian roads. In most cases, modification is necessary because Australian traffic drives at the other side of the road and is very strict. Before going through this tedious process, it would be helpful if you have read the “Guide to the Importation of Privately Owned Motor Vehicles or Motor Cycle."

About the Vehicle Import Approval, you can apply for this at the Department of Transport and Regional Services, Vehicle Safety Standards Branch. Work on this permit before transporting your car to Australia since the approval process normally takes around 21 days. Your car cannot leave the port without it. You are sure to be issued a Vehicle Import Approval permit anyway as long as you have a valid visitor visa and the original overseas registration. The only problem here is timing so you have to do this before shipping your car.

Without the Vehicle Import Approval, you would need to pay Customs a special duty amounting to $1,200. Otherwise, you would only need to pay regular levy and importation fees. If you are importing a vehicle manufactured in Australia, you won’t need to pay any Customs duty.

Also, if you are visiting and staying in Australia not longer than 12 months, you are exempt from paying Customs duty. However, you have to present cash or bank security and valid documents stating the details of your car such as registration number, model, make, color, seating arrangement, engine capacity, value and name of owner.

Inspections at the arrival port include quarantine, a thorough check of possible poisonous weeds, insects, or illness on board. Your car would need to pass through steam cleaning. Australia is particularly very strict in making sure that your car doesn’t bring in dirt from the originating country.

Also, your car will be checked whether it passes the safety and emissions standards of Australia or not. Makes sure that all your headlights, tail lights, wipers, breaks, child restraints and seatbelts are properly working, and that there no oil leaks. If your car doesn’t pass the standards, you must get it modified. Also, you have to know that air conditioning CFC gas is now banned in Australia.

Your best chance of avoiding any hassles is to make sure you hire a professional car transporter with a good amount of experience in shipping cars to Australia. Find more news about car shipping companies here.