Is it possible to bring a car to Cambodia ?

[balo]

Does anyone have experience in bringing a car to Cambodia, get rid of the Thai plates and register it as import ?

[CharlieH]

Better ask in the MOTORS forum

MOVED

[PoorSucker]

You do know that Cambodia drives on the right side and your steering wheel is going to be on the "wrong" side.

[Ace of Pop]

Thats why i said Rent there if poss.

[stevenl]

Thats why i said Rent there if poss.

That was in a different thread, different OP, where somebody enquired about taking a rental car across the border. The question here is about import.

Edited November 24, 2014 by stevenl

[balo]

Yes I am aware the steering wheel will be on the wrong side, but lets say you can get Cambodian plates on it for 2-3 years , then drive it back to Thailand when we move back. Or is it easier just to keep the Thai plates on it in Cambodia , but then it would be a problem with tax and insurance.

[Tomtomtom69]

I only know about temporary import, which, unofficially at least is possible, especially if you enter at the "right" borders. However, for permanent import all I can say is that at least 5% of all cars you see in Phnom Penh have RHD, with Cambo plates (generally Phnom Penh) of course, and I would imagine that nearly all of these originally came from Thailand, legally or otherwise. In western Cambodia as many as 1 in 3 vehicles may have RHD so it seems to be possible to import a vehicle from Thailand and re-register locally despite what the official law may say.

[WarpSpeed]

You do know that Cambodia drives on the right side and your steering wheel is going to be on the "wrong" side.

Seems to be possible to drive on the correct side in Myanmar with opposite side steering and not too much drama, how does one do it in Europe with a British lump I wonder when you drive into Europe or vice versa?

[Sviss Geez]

You do know that Cambodia drives on the right side and your steering wheel is going to be on the "wrong" side.

Seems to be possible to drive on the correct side in Myanmar with opposite side steering and not too much drama, how does one do it in Europe with a British lump I wonder when you drive into Europe or vice versa?

Very simple, with Great Britain being a member of the European Union you just drive wherever you want as long as you're insured. It doesn't matter whether the car is LHD or RHD.

[WarpSpeed]

You do know that Cambodia drives on the right side and your steering wheel is going to be on the "wrong" side.

Seems to be possible to drive on the correct side in Myanmar with opposite side steering and not too much drama, how does one do it in Europe with a British lump I wonder when you drive into Europe or vice versa?

Very simple, with Great Britain being a member of the European Union you just drive wherever you want as long as you're insured. It doesn't matter whether the car is LHD or RHD.

Exactly, so no reason for the drive side difference to be such a problem there either.. Drivers adjust, so will the governments.

[nitnoymoy]

If driving on thai no plates be prepared to pay a lot of tea money to the police,we visited a few years back and where stopped twice in 15 minutes by snooky police after funds ,apparently tinted window film is illegal in Cambodia??? they wanted money to let us proceed,we paid 20 dollars ,later learnt we should have give 2 dollars by some local friends. If I went again I would be tempted to take front no plate off the car so it not so noticeable that its a thai car, most local cars had no number plates fitted incuding newish looking lexuses

[stingray]

If driving on thai no plates be prepared to pay a lot of tea money to the police,we visited a few years back and where stopped twice in 15 minutes by snooky police after funds ,apparently tinted window film is illegal in Cambodia??? they wanted money to let us proceed,we paid 20 dollars ,later learnt we should have give 2 dollars by some local friends. If I went again I would be tempted to take front no plate off the car so it not so noticeable that its a thai car, most local cars had no number plates fitted incuding newish looking lexuses

That was 10 years ago. Now they have all license plates. RHD cars can't be registered there anymore. BTW in Cambo you can buy cars for half of the price, what they cost over here.

[balo]

If driving on thai no plates be prepared to pay a lot of tea money to the police,we visited a few years back and where stopped twice in 15 minutes by snooky police after funds ,apparently tinted window film is illegal in Cambodia??? they wanted money to let us proceed,we paid 20 dollars ,later learnt we should have give 2 dollars by some local friends. If I went again I would be tempted to take front no plate off the car so it not so noticeable that its a thai car, most local cars had no number plates fitted incuding newish looking lexuses

That was 10 years ago. Now they have all license plates. RHD cars can't be registered there anymore. BTW in Cambo you can buy cars for half of the price, what they cost over here.

Are you sure RHD can't be registered ? So what you suggest is to sell the car and buy in Cambo ? This is only for 1 year so we rather want to keep the thai plates.

[WarpSpeed]

So have an agent renew them in Thailand for you, or make a quick trip back, it's not like it's going to Europe or back to Aussie land.

[WarpSpeed]

If driving on thai no plates be prepared to pay a lot of tea money to the police,we visited a few years back and where stopped twice in 15 minutes by snooky police after funds ,apparently tinted window film is illegal in Cambodia??? they wanted money to let us proceed,we paid 20 dollars ,later learnt we should have give 2 dollars by some local friends. If I went again I would be tempted to take front no plate off the car so it not so noticeable that its a thai car, most local cars had no number plates fitted incuding newish looking lexuses

That was 10 years ago. Now they have all license plates. RHD cars can't be registered there anymore. BTW in Cambo you can buy cars for half of the price, what they cost over here.

So what do you think the chances of exporting some LHD cars from the states or even from China over there might be as a business? China requires that you retire any cars over 10 years old, you may sell it just before it runs out and they can drive it until it quits but they can't resell them after 10 years. I believe Japan has a similar law which is why so many parts come from there but that is RHD. In China there is a huge market of older VW's mostly Jetta's/ Vento's I'd like to break into that have been mostly used as taxi's from new and are now being retired but many still have good life left in them.

[Tomtomtom69]

If driving on thai no plates be prepared to pay a lot of tea money to the police,we visited a few years back and where stopped twice in 15 minutes by snooky police after funds ,apparently tinted window film is illegal in Cambodia??? they wanted money to let us proceed,we paid 20 dollars ,later learnt we should have give 2 dollars by some local friends. If I went again I would be tempted to take front no plate off the car so it not so noticeable that its a thai car, most local cars had no number plates fitted incuding newish looking lexuses

That was 10 years ago. Now they have all license plates. RHD cars can't be registered there anymore. BTW in Cambo you can buy cars for half of the price, what they cost over here.

Are you sure RHD can't be registered ? So what you suggest is to sell the car and buy in Cambo ? This is only for 1 year so we rather want to keep the thai plates.

RHD CAN be registered. Officially, since 2001 they can't be but in reality what the law says and what is actually happening are two different things. Take a look around even Phnom Penh streets stingray. One in 20 or so vehicles have RHD there, with many of them being newer Isuzu pickups and Nissan Micras. They mostly appear to be around 5-10 years old, but they all have Phnom Penh plates. Some "State" vehicles even have RHD. After walking out of my hotel near the Thai Embassy not 3 minutes later I spotted 3 RHD vehicles. One of them was a Toyota VIGO with State plates, another was an Isuzu with Phnom Penh plates, followed by a Micra with Phnom Penh plates.

On a bus from Ho Chi Minh to Phnom Penh I also counted about 13 RHD vehicles out of a total of 120 vehicles travelling over the twin bridges over the Mekong in the direction of Bavet, so RHD is still very common in Cambodia.

Even more such vehicles are found in western provinces, as well as older cars originally from Thailand that make up totally around 1 in 3 vehicles driving around western Cambodia.

Edited December 14, 2014 by Tomtomtom69

[Tomtomtom69]

If driving on thai no plates be prepared to pay a lot of tea money to the police,we visited a few years back and where stopped twice in 15 minutes by snooky police after funds ,apparently tinted window film is illegal in Cambodia??? they wanted money to let us proceed,we paid 20 dollars ,later learnt we should have give 2 dollars by some local friends. If I went again I would be tempted to take front no plate off the car so it not so noticeable that its a thai car, most local cars had no number plates fitted incuding newish looking lexuses

That was 10 years ago. Now they have all license plates. RHD cars can't be registered there anymore. BTW in Cambo you can buy cars for half of the price, what they cost over here.

So what do you think the chances of exporting some LHD cars from the states or even from China over there might be as a business? China requires that you retire any cars over 10 years old, you may sell it just before it runs out and they can drive it until it quits but they can't resell them after 10 years. I believe Japan has a similar law which is why so many parts come from there but that is RHD. In China there is a huge market of older VW's mostly Jetta's/ Vento's I'd like to break into that have been mostly used as taxi's from new and are now being retired but many still have good life left in them.

It seems that about half the cars on the roads in Cambodia are LHD imports from the USA. They are purchased either new or near new (although there are also older models), then they are shipped to Cambodia and re-registered there.

When I first saw all the Californian and occasional Texas, Oklahoma and other plates in Cambodia around 2010-2011 I mistakenly thought I was seeing foreigners (or expat Cambodians) driving around Cambodia for their holidays in their American plated cars as part of a trans-Asian driving holiday but what I was actually seeing where cars that were permanently imported from the States to Cambodia for permanent use there. The Cambodian government doesn't have a problem with American plates being used for up to a year after which the switch to Cambodian plates needs to be made.

In more recent times I'm seeing fewer American plates but there's been no slowdown in the number of American cars such as Toyota Camrys, Tundras, Tacomas, Ford F-150s, Lexuses and other largish SUVs, pickup trucks and sedans being exported to Cambodia.

I suppose there would be nothing stopping you from exporting Chinese sedans from China to Cambodia either. You don't see a large number yet, but Chinese taxis are appearing in Phnom Penh, in the same color scheme as their Chinese counterparts. Some of them appear to be older VWs probably from China, while others are newer Hyundais that have been re-painted in green, just like taxis are in China.

[Tomtomtom69]

If driving on thai no plates be prepared to pay a lot of tea money to the police,we visited a few years back and where stopped twice in 15 minutes by snooky police after funds ,apparently tinted window film is illegal in Cambodia??? they wanted money to let us proceed,we paid 20 dollars ,later learnt we should have give 2 dollars by some local friends. If I went again I would be tempted to take front no plate off the car so it not so noticeable that its a thai car, most local cars had no number plates fitted incuding newish looking lexuses

That was 10 years ago. Now they have all license plates. RHD cars can't be registered there anymore. BTW in Cambo you can buy cars for half of the price, what they cost over here.

Are you sure RHD can't be registered ? So what you suggest is to sell the car and buy in Cambo ? This is only for 1 year so we rather want to keep the thai plates.

I think it was Phuketrichard (correct me if I'm wrong) that mentioned how he spent 6 months in Cambo driving around on Thai plates. I think if you're only going to be in Cambo for a year, then keep the Thai plates but treat your Thai vehicle in Cambodia as a temporary import for tourism purposes. Mind you, I'm not sure that keeping it inside the country for a year at a time will work, but you can try. Since there is currently no proper system and they don't give you any paperwork on the Cambo side it should be OK. The Thais might get a bit more worked up because after 30 days outside of the country you're supposed to pay a fine as normally Thai customs only permits a Thai car to remain outside of the country for 30 days at a time (unless things have been arranged in advance for staying away longer). Not sure why they have such a ridiculous law, but you could always circumvent it by driving back to Thailand once every 30 days then re-entering Cambodia. That way no fines upon re-entering Thailand as you would have complied with the law.

Also note that since Cambodia and Thailand do not currently have an agreement to cover the temporary admission of private vehicles into each other's territory, the customs authorities at each border set their own conditions.

There are currently 3 border checkpoints that freely allow cars from each other's country to pass, but with the following conditions:

1. Chong Chom (Surin) to O'Smach (Oddar Mencheay) --> Thai cars can enter and proceed to anywhere in the country.

2. Ban Pakkard (Chantaburi) to Prom (Pailin) --> Thai cars can enter, but are not supposed to leave the province of Pailin. In reality, there is nothing stopping you from going further and you can do so. Just don't let customs know - just agree with whatever they say and you'll be fine.

3. Hat Lek, Khlong Yai (Trat) to Cham Yeam (Koh Kong) --> Thai cars can enter and are supposed to remain in the border province meaning travel up to Sre Ambel, 150km away, is permitted according to customs. In reality, you can proceed to wherever you like though as there is nothing stopping you from going further inside the country. Koh Kong customs will ask for 100 Baht a day, depending on how long the car remains in the country.

In all 3 cases no insurance is offered at the border, but interestingly, Thai customs can offer insurance for Cambodian cars heading in the other direction. There is a similar ruling in Thailand's case whereby Cambo vehicles can travel all around Trat province but not further. Indeed I've spotted Cambo vehicles all over Trat including Koh Chang, as well as one near the provincial boundary with Chantaburi but once in Chantaburi the only ones I saw where spotted near the Ban Pakkard border or in the parking lot at Ban Laem having come across those borders.

Maybe you can arrange third party insurance through a Phnom Penh based insurer but this can't be done at the border, only in Phnom Penh.

Other borders are problematic and entry with a vehicle (especially a car) might be difficult if not impossible, especially if it hasn't been arranged in advance. Leaving Cambodia at almost any crossing with Thailand (and the one crossing with Laos) after having entered elsewhere should be fine though. Vietnam is virtually impossible for private Thai or third country foreign registered vehicles. Cambo vehicles often get through, but not always either.

By AEC 2015, things might have changed and I would expect a proper system to be in place in Cambodia soon after it's entry into force or possibly a little earlier.

[Tomtomtom69]

Yes I am aware the steering wheel will be on the wrong side, but lets say you can get Cambodian plates on it for 2-3 years , then drive it back to Thailand when we move back. Or is it easier just to keep the Thai plates on it in Cambodia , but then it would be a problem with tax and insurance.

I think it's worthwhile answering this question separately.

Unless things change as a result of the AEC 2015 integration, as it stands I think you would encounter more difficulties bringing the car back into Thailand permanently, if Cambodian registered at that time, than keeping it Thai registered and as a temporary import into Cambodia in the meantime. That's because if you attempt to re-register the vehicle as a Thai vehicle upon returning to Thailand, I think you would need to pay a lot of import tax as it would be treated as any foreign import, never mind the fact the vehicle may have been built in Thailand and once registered here. Otherwise, make sure the vehicle is kept in the name of a Thai spouse in Cambodia and prove the vehicle has been registered overseas in that person's name for I think 1.5 years and then it can be re-imported tax free once said Thai citizen spouse returns to the country.

The only other way would be to unofficially keep both Thai and Cambo registration, by hiding the Cambo registration from the Thais once you return permanently. But then the Thai registration, including road tax etc. should be kept updated in the meantime, though if it's not all you would have to do is pay for the backdated amounts once returning, so that's not a big deal. More of a big deal would be how customs treats the vehicle depending on how long it's been gone (preferably no more than 30 days at a time, which is fine. Otherwise a fine is levied). Or ask Thai customs about taking your vehicle out temporarily for 6-12 months, file the paperwork and you will probably be OK coming back in tax free. No idea what the conditions are, you'd have to ask them.

I know that Thai vehicles CAN be insured through Cambodian insurers, at least third party as I've seen Thai buses on the Bangkok-Phnom Penh and Bangkok-Siem Reap runs insured in that way (through CAMINCO). But it's quite possible that anything more than the most basic coverage will be impossible unless the vehicle is locally registered. Road tax too would also only be possible if the vehicle were locally registered.

[balo]

Thanks for the advice , yes I think its a good idea to meet with Thai customs and try to ask for a temporarilly permission to bring the car to Cambo for up to 12 months. Or else I could pay a heavy fine and maybe get in too much trouble .