1. Verification of the age of the motorcycle is necessary
This can be done by means of a dating certificate obtainable from :-
Roy Bacon Dating Services
PO Box3
Ventnor
Isle Of Wight
PO38 2AS.
This currently costs £15.00
If you are a member of a club for the make of bike, they may have their own system.
If original documents are available from the country of origin, a dating certificate should not be necessary.
2. Forms V55/5 and VAT 413, 414 or 415 must be completed
- V55/5 - application for registration of a used vehicle
- VAT 415 - HMRC form for new vehicles (< 6 month old, < 6,000kms)
- VAT 413 or 414 - HMRC form for used vehicles
Any bike from inside the EU, no duties or VAT will be due. If the bike is from outside the EU it will need paperwork to prove that Import Duties and VAT have been paid.
3. The bike has to be MOT’d and Insured
Insure using the frame number. Pre-book your MOT. Then you can ride to and from the MOT station. The MOT man may have trouble with the new computerised MOT system if he is not used to dealing with imports - but there is a way through using frame number. DVLA will amend the MOT and issue a fresh certificate when a Registration Number is issued.
4. To Register the bike
Send all the above documents along with a detailed receipt for the bike to your nearest DVLA office with £38.00 plus the price of Road Tax. Include any other documentation you might have supporting its identity/age i.e. old tax discs or photocopies of original log books etc.
5. DVLA will usually then request an inspection of the bike
This is to check numbers etc and to check that the bike is what you say it is.
If the bike is less than 10 years old, and from outside the EU, it will have to go through an SVA test (single vehicle approval). You can ride to/from a pre-arranged inspection.
Less than 10 years old, from within the EU, there should be a 'reciprocal agreement' for this make/model to cover Type Approval and Construction and Use Regs. Make the vendor convince you this is so for the bike you are looking at, or you will be doing SVA.
6. A registration number is usually issued within a couple of days
Note that this information is based on my own experience and is a summary of the process - not a definitive statement of the law and/or procedures as they may change from time to time. You should check the current situation on DVLA 'Importing a Vehicle' - from where you can download many of the forms you require.
This article is based on an article by and © Paul Morgan, UK Bikes Ltd.
UK Bikes Ltd imports parts and bikes direct from Italy. They offer a fast mail order service and have extensive knowledge of Aprilia and Cagiva models. You can call Paul on 07778 794860 or visit UK Bikes Ltd