How to bring your car to Hungary

polowonder wrote:

Thank you so very much fluffy2560 for all the work (research) you've done.

The Porsche is a 3.2 Carrera, 231 Horse Power, no cathalist convertor, injection (the Bosch Motronic (that gave really good numbers of pollution in those days. But it remains a sportscar, so the Cc2 must be quite high, compared to 'newer' cars.

The figures you mention are not cheap, but at least a bit more reasonable than what Spain charges.

I had all these details from other cars and imports I've made in different countries so it was easy to find the data on my computer.

The problem with the HU government car people is they don't care about the technical details.  My imported car had a full California emissions package but they didn't care about that.  They don't give a damn about discussing it.  They looked at equivalent models sold in Europe and used that for the basis of their calculations.   Californian emissions must be higher than Euro 4 at least but my import was classified as Euro 3.

I am currently looking at buying another US car just for fun.  I will be severely punished financially by the HU car people for having such horrible and radical thoughts.

fluffy2560 wrote:

polowonder wrote:

I have no problem with German. I speak 4 languages, and als (a little) bit of Spanish. But I think with English and German you can manage in HU.

Everything official is in Hungarian.  There's nothing in German in the public administration.

Day to day, English and German might be OK at the supermarket but Hungarian is unavoidable anywhere else.

Most civil servants will only converse in Hungarian (and very few can actually speak another language - just depends on the level, location and education).

Of course I will have to find a person preferably an Hungarian to assist me.

In Spain you have those 'gestorias' who help you with official business (not for free of course), and some agencies that sell property also do that for you.
Of course if you buy from a private person, you don't have have that kind of help.

polowonder wrote:

....

In Spain you have those 'gestorias' who help you with official business (not for free of course), and some agencies that sell property also do that for you.
Of course if you buy from a private person, you don't have have that kind of help.

There's a thing here which is what happens behind the scenes. 

In Spain, the gestorias aren't likely to be involved I suppose in bribery and corruption. 

But unfortunately here, there's a reasonable chance that someone has to be paid to make it go faster/correctly.

I had negative experience with local guru as well. Costs a fortune and still had to check all papers and payments myself cause was not sure if all was done legal. So, better yourself with a native friend/partner.

Alexander Spagin wrote:

I had negative experience with local guru as well. Costs a fortune and still had to check all papers and payments myself cause was not sure if all was done legal. So, better yourself with a native friend/partner.

Just to chip in here......

Some parts of the overall costs are fully documented as they are government fees easily found and even displayed on notices at the car places doing this kind of work. 

I paid 40K HUF on top of all that for someone to do the running around with the paperwork. 

I thought the 40K HUF was reasonable because of avoiding us wasting so much time and hassle.

If you receive the number plates, the window sticker and registration document, then it was legally completed.

I do have a plate and ownership paper but all in all was not fast cause my German temporary plate and insurance expired and had to order a trailer to move the car. But, next time will do myself, experience costs a lot   Not legal cause he paid some money ~10k huf (without invoice) in registration office or make papers faster.

Alexander Spagin wrote:

I do have a plate and ownership paper but all in all was not fast cause my German temporary plate and insurance expired and had to order a trailer to move the car. But, next time will do myself, experience costs a lot   Not legal cause he paid some money ~10k huf (without invoice) in registration office or make papers faster.

Yes, I reckon I paid about the same to make it go faster.  That was within the 40K HUF. It still took about 3 weeks to get it all done.   Hard to say if the guy took extra money for himself as no-one knows where the money really went - almost no paperwork.  But if you have the official papers and plates, then realistically, it's just job done and best to put it down to the cost of doing business here in HU.

Hi,
Do you know how much it costs to import an old-timer (UK car is from 1988) into Hungary ?
Thanks for any info.

Hello PKB222,
Yes, I can sort the price for you - send me the Registration Number & I should be able to get all the data I need.
I can often change the headlamps internally to suit LHD usage, and can add a left rear, or central rear fog light, if it doesn’t already have either.
You need to be aware that tyres have to be fitted in axle pairs, so the front two must match, and the rear two must match, which is not always the case with Uk cars ...,.
Bear in mind that after Brexit, any car brought to Hungary from the UK could attract ‘outside of EU’ import duties 😝
Email direct on *** if you’d like me to delve into this for you.
Thanks
Toby

Hi Angolhapsi

Thanks for the reply.

Can you send me a PM, or let me know how I can contact you.

Cheers

Hello again PKB222,
I see that not only have they deleted my email address that I sent you in the last reply, but that you still have no name on your posts, and choose not to use mine, as provided, in this thread. 😳
As I’m a Dinosaur, I can’t readily see how to PM you - I’d also have to ask why you didn’t / couldn’t PM me,  with the content of your last entry on this thread ??  We’d already be there if you had 😂
Maybe I’m misunderstanding 😉
Toby

Angolhapsi wrote:

....
As I’m a Dinosaur, I can’t readily see how to PM you - I’d also have to ask why you didn’t / couldn’t PM me,  with the content of your last entry on this thread ??  We’d already be there if you had 😂
Maybe I’m misunderstanding 😉
Toby

If you want to PM someone just click on their user name (shown at the top of a posting) anywhere in the thread and then choose Send Message.   After that it's pretty much obvious (and the same as posting a message).

So, it would be REALLY easy for somebody to PM me, if they’re looking for help, rather than asking me to PM THEM in the thread, no ??!! 😝
And add their actual name at the same time, methinks .....
#UserName
#Impersonal

Angolhapsi wrote:

So, it would be REALLY easy for somebody to PM me, if they’re looking for help, rather than asking me to PM THEM in the thread, no ??!! 😝
And add their actual name at the same time, methinks .....
#UserName
#Impersonal

It's easy for anyone to PM...... If they want to add their name, that's completely up to the member.

Absolutely!
Chose to be personable or not 😝😉

Hi, Do you know an agent that can assist me with the process of registration of a vehicle?

Noraessa wrote:

Hi, Do you know an agent that can assist me with the process of registration of a vehicle?

There are several people here in these forums who would do this as a service.

But can you give more details about the car - your profile says Canadian expat living north of Lake Balaton. 

Are you bringing the car to Hungary as a Canadian expat? Is it a Canadian or American car? How old is it? How long have you owned it?  Size of the engine and type of fuel (gasoline or diesel).   

The reason these questions are asked is because you would not only be bringing the car to Hungary, you'd be bring it into the EU.

Are you a Hungarian national with an address card?

How was it bringing a motorbike over. I am looking to buy a cheap bike (500 Euros) in Austria from a bike store and bring back to Hungary. But someone told me it would be horrendously expensive and a load of hassle. What do you think dude 😁

Action Hank wrote:

How was it bringing a motorbike over. I am looking to buy a cheap bike (500 Euros) in Austria from a bike store and bring back to Hungary. But someone told me it would be horrendously expensive and a load of hassle. What do you think dude 😁

I wouldn't do it, you won't save any money if that's your objective. 

The cost of registering it is likely be too high in relation to its cost.

A motorbike is about as easy as it gets to register.
Especially one from Austria.
I’m not sure if they let you ride away with a registration plate & insurance plate on it, as you can do in Germany, if not you’ll need a trailer to collect it & to take it to the two compulsory examinations.
As mentioned before, you have to have an address card and a tax number to register a vehicle in Hungary 😉

Angolhapsi wrote:

A motorbike is about as easy as it gets to register.
Especially one from Austria.
I’m not sure if they let you ride away with a registration plate & insurance plate on it, as you can do in Germany, if not you’ll need a trailer to collect it & to take it to the two compulsory examinations.
As mentioned before, you have to have an address card and a tax number to register a vehicle in Hungary 😉

I don't know much about motorbike imports in HU but probably can ride it in but not ride it out as they take away the number plates.   That's what they did anyway on my car. 

The costs of bringing it in and out will be expensive - hiring a bike trailer would cost maybe HUF 15K a day.  For a EUR 500 bike, unless it was a classic or special, not worth it.

For our classic car, I think we paid about EUR 3-400 for the process including some spare parts (headlights) and tips.   The actual official paperwork wasn't that expensive - 40K HUF.   The killer was the registration fees. which were well past EUR 1000 because of the non-EUR4/5 plus engine size/emissions etc.

Indeed my understanding  5 years ago (I initially had a thought to bring my own car, I just left it because of the hassle (and cost)). In Hungary you can negociate very good prices (especially now I would imagine for second hand or even new good prices can be there). Going to all kinds of authorties might even be suspended for now ( could be good or bad), if not  cancelled perhaps also not too good. (I am personally quite scared of the Corona virus)

cdw057 wrote:

Indeed my understanding  5 years ago (I initially had a thought to bring my own car, I just left it because of the hassle (and cost)). In Hungary you can negociate very good prices (especially now I would imagine for second hand or even new good prices can be there). Going to all kinds of authorties might even be suspended for now ( could be good or bad), if not  cancelled perhaps also not too good. (I am personally quite scared of the Corona virus)

I don't think cars are good value here in HU at all.   They ridiculously expensive compared to other countries (except possibly Austria which is even more expensive).   Dealers prices are high. 

My neighbour has started bringing in cars in from Czech Republic - presumably cheaper there.

I'm even considering importing my next car - probably from Germany.   Mainly I've imported cars into other countries from the UK (there are LHD cars there).   If one looks at prices from say, South Korea or USA, it's a total rip off.

fluffy2560 wrote:

hiring a bike trailer would cost maybe HUF 15K a day.  For a EUR 500 bike, unless it was a classic or special, not worth it..

Or...... Better..... Just borrow a trailer from someone you know. That is how it is mostly done in Hungary. Few people rent things. They round robin borrow from each other.

I have a trailer. I am happy to lend it out to people I know. And they lend out to me things they have I do not have. It is social, sharing, culture and country.

klsallee wrote:

fluffy2560 wrote:

hiring a bike trailer would cost maybe HUF 15K a day.  For a EUR 500 bike, unless it was a classic or special, not worth it..

Or...... Better..... Just borrow a trailer from someone you know. That is how it is mostly done in Hungary. Few people rent things. They round robin borrow from each other.

I have a trailer. I am happy to lend it out to people I know. And they lend out to me things they have I do not have. It is social, sharing, culture and country.

Yes, OK if you know someone but a bike trailer is a bit unusual.

fluffy2560 wrote:

Yes, OK if you know someone but a bike trailer is a bit unusual.

It is Hungary. Get with local reality. Bailing wire and chewing gum is what many use here because it is what they have. And they do just fine with that.

Any trailer. And some stout tie down straps will work. I have even transported off road bikes in the USA using similar. You don't need a perfectly fit, exclusive to that purpose only tool for all such endeavors. 
Seriously... My used small tractor was delivered in a similar off the cuff manner. Get with the local program....

klsallee wrote:

fluffy2560 wrote:

Yes, OK if you know someone but a bike trailer is a bit unusual.

It is Hungary. Get with local reality. Bailing wire and chewing gum is what many use here because it is what they have. And they do just fine with that.

Any trailer. And some stout tie down straps will work. I have even transported off road bikes in the USA using similar. You don't need a perfectly fit, exclusive to that purpose only tool for all such endeavors. 
Seriously... My used small tractor was delivered in a similar off the cuff manner. Get with the local program....

Rather not get with that programme.

OP wanted to transport across borders from AT and we have no idea of the actual load.

Tying it together with string and wax and being cavalier with the loads ain't gonna help with those ein, zwei, Polizei guys on the autobahn.

Hello,

I'm a dual citizen (Hungarian/US citizen)

I was thinking about shipping my 2013 Toyota Prius V from California to Holland and drive it to Hungary.

My question is: do you think it's worth it or is it too expensive and complicated.

I looked into the shipping fees from California to Holland (around $1500) not sure what other fees there are, before I can take it of the dock.

If you were to help, what are your fees.


Cheers,


Gergely

Hello Gergely,
I've been registering cars for a decade here, and, IMHO, this is TOTALLY not worth doing.
Apart from 10% duty and 27%AFA, you'd have to jump through almost endless (costly) hoops to get it registered from outside the EU.
You'd be WAY better buying a used car in Holland or Germany, that'd then be simple to register here 😁

My pleasure 😁

Toby

Oh, please, people.........

On the subject of motorcycle registration, Car related tales have NOTHING to do with motorbike registration here - I've been doing both for over a decade, the processes are similar but the details are TOTALLY different.

Let's not put people off, if we can muster the positivity 🙈

TIA 🥴

Angolhapsi wrote:

Hello Gergely,
I've been registering cars for a decade here, and, IMHO, this is TOTALLY not worth doing.
Apart from 10% duty and 27%AFA, you'd have to jump through almost endless (costly) hoops to get it registered from outside the EU.
You'd be WAY better buying a used car in Holland or Germany, that'd then be simple to register here 😁

My pleasure 😁

Toby

Hi Angolhapsi,

Buying and registering a car from the EU is only for used cars? Because I contacted a German dealership regarding a new car and they told me they cannot offer the vehicle for export as the car has to be registered in Germany.

At the moment there is a shortage in new cars so it seems that my only option will be to buy a second hand car from somewhere in the EU, please could you advise me how difficult will it be to register it here in Hungary?

Thanks in advance.

Sergio

You can import both new and old cars. Yes it would have to be registered say in Germany, then drive it to Hungary and then register it in Hungary.

SimCityAT wrote:

You can import both new and old cars. Yes it would have to be registered say in Germany, then drive it to Hungary and then register it in Hungary.

But how could I register it in Germany? I'm assuming I would need a residence permit and a permanent address. Here I haven't even been able to buy and activate a chip for a mobile number because I don't have an address card.

Everything seems too complicated that if it wasn't because the winter is almost here, I'd just buy one of those electric scooters 😅

SAR46 wrote:

....
Hi Angolhapsi,

Buying and registering a car from the EU is only for used cars? Because I contacted a German dealership regarding a new car and they told me they cannot offer the vehicle for export as the car has to be registered in Germany.

At the moment there is a shortage in new cars so it seems that my only option will be to buy a second hand car from somewhere in the EU, please could you advise me how difficult will it be to register it here in Hungary?

Thanks in advance.

Sergio

You can get a temporary German registration and plates for transit to the final destination.   Lasts say, a week,  but can be extended I believe by paying more fees by the day. Been a while since I looked into it.

In the EU, there's nothing to stop anyone buying a NEW car in another EU state.  The end price is where it will be used so here in Hungary, the price is plus the terrible 27% VAT (if new).   

There's a history of Hungary trying to tax cars against EU law but I haven't heard about them doing it again since they were ordered to stop 20+ years ago.

Hello Sergio,
This has already been acceptably answered since you asked - for me, as I do this regularly as a part of my commitment to helping expats, it's easy (if slow, due to cumbersome Bureaucracy)
I don't often visit here, due to the amount of chitter chatter / assumptions / guesswork, so please get in touch directly if you'd like some assistance.
I'm not sure what details are shown fir me here, if there's nothing 'direct' then find me on Facebook Toby Holland Jákfa or MnM Szerviz  😁

Ttfn
Toby

Angolhapsi wrote:

Hello Sergio,
This has already been acceptably answered since you asked - for me, as I do this regularly as a part of my commitment to helping expats, it's easy (if slow, due to cumbersome Bureaucracy)
I don't often visit here, due to the amount of chitter chatter / assumptions / guesswork, so please get in touch directly if you'd like some assistance.
I'm not sure what details are shown fir me here, if there's nothing 'direct' then find me on Facebook Toby Holland Jákfa or MnM Szerviz  😁

Ttfn
Toby

Toby the whole idea of the forum is to share advice, so why not share your expertise so others can benefit.

Thankyou for that SimCityAT 🙈

Every time I do, there's a host of people that poopoo or argue with what I say, or just relate old, out of date information, or just 'imagine' scenarios - ALL of which are totally unhelpful, and make it a waste of my time writing more than the bare minimum, so nobody (but, even you managed, too 🙈) questions the processes that I've spent decades refining for the benefit of those that want or need to get this done.....
I provide my knowledge and experience willingly & freely to those tgat actually need it - sadly, when amateurs and know-it-alls or busybodies meddle with what I've written, or how I've written it, it takes away the enjoyment completely. And I do this because I love it........

Added to which, EACH and EVERY case is different, according to multiple factors, applicable or not applicable to each and every vehicle - the only generic 'catch-alls' that are applicable I've already detailed previously at length - my benevolence absolutely does not extend to repeating myself indefinitely for the benefit of those that can't or won't do the legwork already provided for them.
So, thankyou for trying (poorly) to teach me to  suck eggs, but hey, no thanks.
I fully understand how best to serve those that I can help the most 🤬

I want to drive the Honda Civic that I am using through Hungary, can anyone advise me on the procedure as well as the easiest way?

Williampaul007 wrote:

I want to drive the Honda Civic that I am using through Hungary, can anyone advise me on the procedure as well as the easiest way?

Give us a clue...you want to drive it through Hungary to where?

Where is it registered?

Get on the motorway, buy your Matrica, fill with fuel & done 😁