ID, residency, ARMS and car registration tetris puzzle

"To get your name on the ARMS bills it seems you need both an ID card and a residency certificate " - ID cards no longer issued to foreigners - its now the eResidency document, which covers both

cobradd wrote:

The solution, and question here, is could we register the car before we drive it over and, therefore, before we get the ID card and residency certificate sorted?

No, the car needs to be in  Malta if you are claiming exemption from the import tax as the vehicle has to be inspected by TM as part of the import process. However the process can take up to six months but the car will be OK to drive once you submit the application as they give you a covering letter.
So bring it over and start the process to claim exemption and apply for your E residency at the same time.

Terry

There's a slight wobble in the process mentioned above.
To register the car (claim exemption) one needs an e-residency document BUT because of the requirement to be in Malta to get an appointment for e-residency and the extended wait to attend the actual appointment, this could take months. We still don't know whether MT will start the process of registering our car without us producing an E residency document. We have been told by bloggers that they think all we need to do is present the appointment letter to MT and they will proceed, but this hasn't been proved by anyone actually doing this.

rooikat wrote:

because of the requirement to be in Malta to get an appointment for e-residency

you don't need to be in Malta to apply by email for an appointment

As already mentioned in various posts we are not getting any reply to our requests by email for an appointment! We have emailed 5 times since February and the only reply we get is 'mail returned - box full' Any other suggestions would be welcome, other than paying a lawyer to set one up as suggested by someone

When I sent my email, I then copied the initial email and in the Subject put a hyphen Email number whatever it was, after 2 emails we received our appointment, this email was sent to us at 7:25 pm one evening

rooikat wrote:

the only reply we get is 'mail returned - box full'

In that case they haven't received your email - what time of day are you emailing ? They often seem to reply on Sundays, so might be worth emailing on Sundays

Thanks guys, we will give it a go and let the bloggers know if we have success

PS  We will be arriving in Malta on approx 13/4. Our household goods are being containerised on 3/4 and we'll be leaving London on 6/4 and driving through France, stopping off for a few days with friends beyond Paris and then to Genoa, ferry to Palermo and last leg through Sicily & then ferry to Malta, arriving approx 13/4. We have managed to find a great unfurnished flat in Qormi as a result of a blogger putting us in touch with someone that was looking for a tenant. We were in the right place at the right time (which doesn't always happen!) Our planning and putting all our 'ducks in a row' has taken about 3 years, but we are nearly there

You do not need your E residency to start the process of claiming exemption. The form asks for either ID card number OR passport number. You can apply two months before moving to Malta or up to 30 days after your move, its all on the form. Just look on the TM website under exemptions.

Terry

good point Terry

Thank you tearnet - it appears we can use our passport.

But:- 'You can apply two months before moving to Malta or up to 30 days after your move, its all on the form.'
Would you mind posting the link that you read the above comment on as all I can find is:

A vehicle is to be declared for exemption not earlier than two months before the date on which applicant becomes normally
resident in Malta and not later then twelve months
following that date. (Not 30 days)

A vehicle is to be declared for exemption not earlier than two months before the date on which applicant becomes normally resident in
Malta and not later then twelve months following that date.
A vehicle that has already arrived in Malta, the application has to be made by the person transferring his residence within 30 days from the arrival of
the vehicle in Malta.

'A vehicle that has already arrived in Malta, the application has to be made by the person transferring his residence within 30 days from the arrival of the vehicle in Malta.'

I find the above very confusing - although I have located it on their site.

Somehow it does not make sense. If I am able to drive my car into Malta as a tourist and I then decide after the first two months that I want to remain in Malta as a resident, does that mean I have to take the car out of Malta, come back in again and that starts the clock ticking for 30 days to avoid paying the daily Euro fine for non registration? It's almost as if they are punishing you for wanting to become a resident (together with your car)

Any ideas on the logic behind this?

I suspect its something to do with the requirement to have owned the vehicle in your name for two years PRIOR to arriving in Malta.
Without this you could in theory buy the car in the UK and drive to Malta and delay registering it by pretending to be a tourist and driving it in and out of Malta until the two years is up!
They are just covering all bases, however remember that when you come to dispose of the vehicle you still need to pay the import fee.

Terry

Hi rooikat!
We are doing the exact same journey arriving in Malta on 13/04! We are leaving Genoa on 11/04 would be lovely to meet up for a chat on the long 20 hour journey down to Palermo !

terry - thanks for all the input,we would have been in line for heavy fines as we were not totally aware (as in taking cognisance)of the 30 day factor

sfenkata - what a coincidence! We speak Afrikaans - a derivative of Dutch & German, but we will have those conversations in English on that loooong trip     Have you booked the Genoa ferry yet?

Yes we have booked and suddenly time seems to be speeding up! We are travelling up from Cornwall so all in all a very long journey;)

as I read in the historic vehicle forum it seems that the vintage board of TM is out of duty - or at least they run on a minumum basis "until the new guidelines regarding the registration tax are clarified" ... whatever that means. Rumors are saying that the reg. tax might fall ?
Same as MEPA seems to have stopped building evaluations since the permit rules might change ...

it was in the last budget - vintage cars will no longer have registration tax

georgeingozo wrote:

it was in the last budget - vintage cars will no longer have registration tax

coool, that's good to hear :-)

What are requirements to classify a car as a "vintage" and exempt of registration tax?

This is from the TM website:

1. Registration and Licensing of New and Used Vehicles, Certified as Classic, Vintage or Veteran Vehicles by the Vintage Classification Committee.



The Registration of all Motor Vehicles is regulated by the Motor Vehicles Registration and Licensing Act (Cap. 368).



A vehicle is deemed to be a classic, vintage or veteran vehicle if it has an age of 35 years or more from year of manufacture and which has been classified by the vintage classification committee.



The vintage vehicle classification committee is a committee appointed by the Authority (Transport Malta), all of whom possessing the necessary technical competence and their function shall be to -



(a) Classify vehicles as vintage or classic or veteran vehicles in accordance with pre-established criteria; and



(b) Calculate the registration value of any such vehicles for the purpose of calculating the registration tax.





2. Registration of Foreign Registered vehicles



2.1          The following is the procedure required to apply for a vehicle to be classified as Classic, Vintage or Veteran by the Vintage Classification Committee:



2.2          Customer will call at the Land Transport Directorate in Hall C and submits the following application forms.



•VEH 15 – Application for the Certification of Motor Vehicles as Classic, Vintage or Veteran Vehicles.


•VEH 01  - Registration Declaration Form


•VEH 05 -  Inspection form for Used Non-EU Vehicles


• Foreign Registration Certificate (Log book)

also the annual road tax for classic vehicles 35+ is muuuuch cheaper and for vehicles 50+ the road tax is ZERO ... maybe Malta will become the new Cuba

it's not really big, but worth to see: http://www.classiccarsmalta.com/
check this: http://vimeo.com/56247984

New rule for 2013:
"A vehicle is deemed to be a classic, vintage or veteran vehicle if it has an age of 30 years or more from year of manufacture ..."

So, vehicles only Need to be 30 years to be able to Register as classic !

Take care: Some of the public servants at TM still do not know this !!! Why should they, it's only their job ...