Yet Another Car Import Question

[Rik325i]

Hi all

i have researched car importation rules,costs etc on the forum and understand that it is veeery costly to import cars to thailand.

my question is, would it be possible for me to strip her down to a shell and send the parts over the span of say a year with different transportation methods according to package sizes ?? as opposed to sending a whole car

i will be moving to thailand eventually so i will have the time to do this

i know it may sound daft to many people but ive worked on this car for many years and have become very attatched to the old girl

[Crossy]

How do you intend registering the beast if you get it all here?

[Rik325i]

I havnt got any info on registering yet, my ladyfriend and her brother in law are looking into it for me

its going to be a while before i move over possibly 1 or 2 years so at the moment im just trying to find a possible way to get the car over

[arthurwait]

Yes you can do that but as like posted above you can't get a registration without proof of the tax being paid.

Forget it or develop powerful enough contacts to help you dodge it. If your wife doesn't already have these contacts you will never develop them.

There is no way around it otherwise.

I don't know if anyone ever worked out what the new law was , but I think it was something about no imported secondhand parts can be on cars that apply for new registrations. So again no.

[Crossy]

IF you can find the same shell here with a valid registration it may be possible to get it legal, but to be honest I don't think any piece of metal will be worth the hassle.

Does it have aircon?

[Jitar]

Before shipping the parts, read

Particularly the second line "The ban also aims to prevent or minimise the smuggling of parts used to assemble vehicles that cab then be sold as new"

This maybe one more poorly enforced law, or it could be a really expensive increase in the cost of the "contacts" mentioned above.

[Rik325i]

Hi all

i got a message from my lady friend in thailand today telling me about the bans on second hand car parts being imported to thailand so its looking like if at all, im going to have to ship the car over and pay the tax

i have already scoured the internet ads, old and new for second hand bmw in thailand but i havnt seen a single old 3 series estate, maybe they were never sold in thailand ??

i did think of doing the cut and shut bit with the vin numbers of a thai registered bmw but i dont know how accurately these old cars are recorded with reference to estate and saloon cars ?? and the car is going to be noticed at any registration or mot type tests

i wonder what kind of worth customs officers would put on a 1990 bmw 325i estate bought for £1600 way back in 2001 ? my ladyfriend is trying to find that out but with no success so far

Thanks for all your help so far

Rik

[TommyTucker]

Rik,

Before you even dream of having your "pride and joy" over here in Thailand, think very very very carefully.

Unless you yourself have contacts very high up in all three of the following: (a) Customs, ( Ministry of Commerce and (d) Ministry of Transport - forget it you have no chance of importing your vehicle into Thailand.

You might be able to bring the vehicle into Thailand without a permit, but you will not be able to register it, tax it or sell it etc etc and if stopped by the BIB then wave goodbye to the vehicle.

The only way for a complete vehicle to come into Thailand is for the Ministry of Commerce to issue an Import Permit.

The Import Permit MUST be issued before the vehicle is loaded onto the vessel/leaves the country of lading.

If the vehicle belongs to a Thai National and that person is returning to live in Thailand having lived for at least 18 months living abroad in the relevant country then the following rules apply:

(1) The Thai National must have owned the said vehicle for over 18 month's - Original and copies of V5c, Insurance Certificates, Tax/SORN Reminders etc in their name etc must be supplied proving this.

(2) The Thai National must has lived in that country for over 18 months, since owning the vehicle - Copies of their Passport showing all entry/exit stamps will be required and checked. If they have returned to Thailand before the 18 month's then they will have to go back and stay in that country until 18 month's have passed before an Import Permit will be issued.

(3) The Thai National must have held a valid FULL driving licence for over 18 months in that particular country for that particular vehicle.

(4) The Thai National will have to go in person to the Ministry of Commerce and present all their paperwork and be interviewed and will be asked about the vehicle.

Even if you were able to meet all this criteria, they might not issue an Import Permit.

The vehicle is not allowed to be sold/transferred for 3 years, it will have to remain in the Thai National's name. If you get stopped by the BIB then you will be required to show paperwork permitting you to drive that vehicle with the owner's permission etc and you will also have to prove that all the Import Taxes have been paid.

If you do not have that paperwork on you when you are stopped by the Police they could/will confiscate the vehicle and demand huge amount of money for it to be released. There are posts of Thaivisa detailing how Members have lost their vehicles to the local Police ChIef etc.

Also insurance on old vehicles can be very hard to obtain, you will not be able to get 1st Class (Comprehensive), it will probably only be 3rd Party, no fire, no theft!

Do NOT even think about "i did think of doing the cut and shut bit with the vin numbers of a thai registered bmw but i dont know how accurately these old cars are recorded with reference to estate and saloon cars ?? and the car is going to be noticed at any registration or mot type tests" - you will end up in jail!

So just to point out that if you know a Thai National who you can trust 100% with your vehicle you MIGHT able to import it, regsiter it, tax it, insure it etc etc, if not sell your vehicle it where you live and buy a vehicle over here with a green book that has been regsitered correctly etc etc.

[StefanBBK]

Is there a market in thailand for second hand iimports? I know dealers import new cars all the time, but dors anyone do second hand?

In that case one could approach such dealer to handle the import and then buy the car from him.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[arthurwait]

Rik,

Before you even dream of having your "pride and joy" over here in Thailand, think very very very carefully.

Unless you yourself have contacts very high up in all three of the following: (a) Customs, ( Ministry of Commerce and (d) Ministry of Transport - forget it you have no chance of importing your vehicle into Thailand.

You might be able to bring the vehicle into Thailand without a permit, but you will not be able to register it, tax it or sell it etc etc and if stopped by the BIB then wave goodbye to the vehicle.

The only way for a complete vehicle to come into Thailand is for the Ministry of Commerce to issue an Import Permit.

The Import Permit MUST be issued before the vehicle is loaded onto the vessel/leaves the country of lading.

If the vehicle belongs to a Thai National and that person is returning to live in Thailand having lived for at least 18 months living abroad in the relevant country then the following rules apply:

(1) The Thai National must have owned the said vehicle for over 18 month's - Original and copies of V5c, Insurance Certificates, Tax/SORN Reminders etc in their name etc must be supplied proving this.

(2) The Thai National must has lived in that country for over 18 months, since owning the vehicle - Copies of their Passport showing all entry/exit stamps will be required and checked. If they have returned to Thailand before the 18 month's then they will have to go back and stay in that country until 18 month's have passed before an Import Permit will be issued.

(3) The Thai National must have held a valid FULL driving licence for over 18 months in that particular country for that particular vehicle.

(4) The Thai National will have to go in person to the Ministry of Commerce and present all their paperwork and be interviewed and will be asked about the vehicle.

Even if you were able to meet all this criteria, they might not issue an Import Permit.

The vehicle is not allowed to be sold/transferred for 3 years, it will have to remain in the Thai National's name. If you get stopped by the BIB then you will be required to show paperwork permitting you to drive that vehicle with the owner's permission etc and you will also have to prove that all the Import Taxes have been paid.

If you do not have that paperwork on you when you are stopped by the Police they could/will confiscate the vehicle and demand huge amount of money for it to be released. There are posts of Thaivisa detailing how Members have lost their vehicles to the local Police ChIef etc.

Also insurance on old vehicles can be very hard to obtain, you will not be able to get 1st Class (Comprehensive), it will probably only be 3rd Party, no fire, no theft!

Do NOT even think about "i did think of doing the cut and shut bit with the vin numbers of a thai registered bmw but i dont know how accurately these old cars are recorded with reference to estate and saloon cars ?? and the car is going to be noticed at any registration or mot type tests" - you will end up in jail!

So just to point out that if you know a Thai National who you can trust 100% with your vehicle you MIGHT able to import it, regsiter it, tax it, insure it etc etc, if not sell your vehicle it where you live and buy a vehicle over here with a green book that has been regsitered correctly etc etc.

I think that rule was scrapped not too long ago.

[Spoonman]

Rik,

Before you even dream of having your "pride and joy" over here in Thailand, think very very very carefully.

Unless you yourself have contacts very high up in all three of the following: (a) Customs, ( Ministry of Commerce and (d) Ministry of Transport - forget it you have no chance of importing your vehicle into Thailand.

You might be able to bring the vehicle into Thailand without a permit, but you will not be able to register it, tax it or sell it etc etc and if stopped by the BIB then wave goodbye to the vehicle.

The only way for a complete vehicle to come into Thailand is for the Ministry of Commerce to issue an Import Permit.

The Import Permit MUST be issued before the vehicle is loaded onto the vessel/leaves the country of lading.

If the vehicle belongs to a Thai National and that person is returning to live in Thailand having lived for at least 18 months living abroad in the relevant country then the following rules apply:

(1) The Thai National must have owned the said vehicle for over 18 month's - Original and copies of V5c, Insurance Certificates, Tax/SORN Reminders etc in their name etc must be supplied proving this.

(2) The Thai National must has lived in that country for over 18 months, since owning the vehicle - Copies of their Passport showing all entry/exit stamps will be required and checked. If they have returned to Thailand before the 18 month's then they will have to go back and stay in that country until 18 month's have passed before an Import Permit will be issued.

(3) The Thai National must have held a valid FULL driving licence for over 18 months in that particular country for that particular vehicle.

(4) The Thai National will have to go in person to the Ministry of Commerce and present all their paperwork and be interviewed and will be asked about the vehicle.

Even if you were able to meet all this criteria, they might not issue an Import Permit.

The vehicle is not allowed to be sold/transferred for 3 years, it will have to remain in the Thai National's name. If you get stopped by the BIB then you will be required to show paperwork permitting you to drive that vehicle with the owner's permission etc and you will also have to prove that all the Import Taxes have been paid.

If you do not have that paperwork on you when you are stopped by the Police they could/will confiscate the vehicle and demand huge amount of money for it to be released. There are posts of Thaivisa detailing how Members have lost their vehicles to the local Police ChIef etc.

Also insurance on old vehicles can be very hard to obtain, you will not be able to get 1st Class (Comprehensive), it will probably only be 3rd Party, no fire, no theft!

Do NOT even think about "i did think of doing the cut and shut bit with the vin numbers of a thai registered bmw but i dont know how accurately these old cars are recorded with reference to estate and saloon cars ?? and the car is going to be noticed at any registration or mot type tests" - you will end up in jail!

So just to point out that if you know a Thai National who you can trust 100% with your vehicle you MIGHT able to import it, regsiter it, tax it, insure it etc etc, if not sell your vehicle it where you live and buy a vehicle over here with a green book that has been regsitered correctly etc etc.

Ive seen high end cars (Lambo LP640 and Aston DB9) prepped for flight to Thailand (from the UK), both had Thailand number plates fitted and had the tax disc and book in the glove box before their delivery to the Thai Air flight they came in on.

You gots the coin anything is possible.

[BSJ]

The main problem as I see it, is that not every Thai person is stupid or corrupt. So, with all your scheming and planning to avoid paying the correct import costs your still likely to encounter an honest person at Land Transport who will not allow your import to be registered. Which makes it's value the scrap metal price. So my question to you is: Why bother?

[arthurwait]

The simply matter is hundreds if not thousands of farangs and Thais have wanted to do this and researched it before you there is no way around it without whats already been posted and then if those contacts ever get done the proverbial could well hit the fan with you.

If it was possible the secondhand market place would have a lot more interesting cars as every secondhand car dealer would be selling them and not just a couple of 20 year old MX5 and mr2s at 20-30 times what they cost in the UK.

Do you think rich Thai kids would be paying 3.5 million baht for an new RX8 and no Thai secondhand dealer or high end importer hasn't looked on Ebay and seen early models selling for less than 50,000 baht and shipped them over for the huge market wanting them ? Same with the MX5 toyota mr2, audi tt's etc etc plus all the classic cars that other asian countires go mad for ? Think how many middle class girls and hi so wannabes that like hello kitty would be driving round in those awful CC things shipped in from the UK.