UPDATE NOVEMBER 2018

France  now uses the ANTS portal (Agence nationale des Titres Sécurisées)  for car registrations. ANTS is responsible for issuing and updating French car registration documents

Once you have collected together all the documents below, you should  go to the ANTS website and log onto “Mon Espace” (“My Space”).
Log in using a France Connect account,  a new initiative from the French government   to simplify your connection to online services. You will need either  your login details for the tax website, the Améli website, the La Poste website, or your French mobile phone number. Note that if you are not tax resident, don’t have a Carte Vitale (health insurance card), or a French mobile number, you may need to approach a garage or third party who can register the car for you, without  a France connect account.

CLICK HERE FOR DETAILED INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO GO ABOUT THE REGISTRATION

Updated 2015

The procedure for reregistering a British car is as follows.

Registering a British car in FranceContact the Customer Service Dept for the make of your car and ask for a Certificate of Conformity (attestation d’identification) which proves the car complies with required standards in France.

The cost will vary depending on manufacturer. Newer vehicles may include this in the documentation

Send off the maroon part of your Registration Certificate to the DVLA to say that you have exported your car, giving them your French address.

If you do not do this, you may receive a fine for not paying your road tax in Britain.

*NB If you are unable to obtain a Certificate of Conformity, you may obtain an attestation de conformité (certificate stating that your car conforms to French road standards) from the DRIRE (Direction régionale de l’industrie,de la recherche et de l’environnement) car registration centre, who will issue you with a form which you will be required to fill in with your car details and send back, along with your registration document and a cheque, (67€)

Start off at the Hotel des Impots
Take with you…..
cherry_PNG3090 (1) Registration papers
cherry_PNG3090 (1) Certificate of conformity
cherry_PNG3090 (1)Contrôle technique (CT) If the car is older than four years, this proof of  roadworthiness must be no older than 6 months .
cherry_PNG3090 (1) Any other paperwork relevant to your car – this IS France!

They will give you a Quitus Fiscal form to complete and hand in at the next stage which is the nearest prefecture or Sous Prefecture, Céret, Prades, Perpignan, or the town hall.

At the Prefecture, local Sous Prefecture, or Mairie, have the following paperwork ready, in order to obtain the French registration (‘carte grise’).
English registration papers
Certificate of conformity
Passport
Utility bill or some other proof of address
All forms issued and filled in
Any other paperwork relevant to your car!!

Your registration document is particularly important as they need to know the puissance fiscale (the car power category) which does not exist in England. Finding it can sometimes be a problem with less common makes or models of car but looking in the Argus – (the new and second-hand car price guide available in most newsagents) is a good place to start.)

In the past, you might have been asked to  take your vehicle to the DRIRE technical centre in Rivesaltes, so that they could  check that the vehicle numbers tally with the information on the form; but this time consuming process appears to have been phased out.

The whole process  is actually much less complicated than it used to be.

You do NOT pay road tax in France. It is included in the price of your ‘carte grise’

Taking out insurance

If you wish to take out french insurance for your British-registered vehicle, you will need to set the wheels in motion to apply for French registration and the carte grise (registration document). Most French insurance companies will NOT insure you with a British registration. There are British insurance companies who will insure you in France with your British registration (but not many) but they do tend to be very expensive compared to the price that you would pay in France.

Beware! Whilst you still have British number plates you are obliged to have a British road tax disc unless of course your vehicle is off the road) In the case where your vehicle is off the road, you need to fill in a statement of SORN or Statutory Off Road Notification. You will be able to do this when you receive your road tax reminder as there is a SORN section on the form.

To insure your car with a french insurance company, you will also need official proof of:
a) the termination of your british insurance policy.
b) your no-claims certificate (Your french insurer will take this into account)

Comments


  1. hi i have a car in France from the uk it is locked away in a garage and has been so for the last few years i would like to register it in France but i don’t live in France i only use my property as a holiday home are there any uk companies that will carry out the relevant paperwork

    many thanks jeff Elver

    1. Hello Jeff,
      If you refer to our Facebook page HERE you will see that there are many answers to your query. Hope they help.

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