Importing a car from Germany:
step-by-step guide for Belgium and the Netherlands
22 July 2026 · 8 min read
Anyone seriously hunting for an estate, a diesel or a youngtimer eventually hits the same wall: the Belgian and Dutch supply is small. Across the border lies the biggest car market in Europe. Buying a car in Germany and importing it yourself sounds complicated, but within the EU it is mostly paperwork. This is the complete step-by-step guide for 2026, for Belgium and the Netherlands separately, including costs and pitfalls.
Why buy a car in Germany?
Germany is simply a much bigger market. Where you find three examples of a specific trim in Belgium, dozens are online in Germany. That means more choice in colour, equipment and service history and therefore a stronger negotiating position.
Certain segments are also structurally better represented there: large estates (Kombis), six-cylinder diesels, youngtimers and generously equipped premium models from BMW, Mercedes and Audi. Many German cars are also typical motorway cars: high mileage, but constant speed, a warm engine and often a meticulously stamped service book. For some segments prices are noticeably lower too, though that is not a law of nature: always add up the full import cost before you compare.
Where to search: Mobile.de and AutoScout24
Mobile.de is by far the biggest German car site, with both dealers and private sellers. If you want to buy on Mobile.de, filter straight away on "Privatanbieter" for private supply: that is where the sharpest prices are, but also the shortest reaction windows. AutoScout24 is also big in Germany itself, with supply that partly differs from Mobile.de.
Search with focus: exact model, generation, equipment, maximum mileage. Compare five to ten examples before you hit the road and check per listing whether the service book ("Scheckheftgepflegt") and the TUV history are mentioned. How to judge a private seller and which questions to ask is covered in our checklist for buying from private sellers: it applies in Germany exactly the same way.
Step-by-step: importing to Belgium
1. Purchase and Kaufvertrag. Always sign a written sales contract (Kaufvertrag), even with a private seller. Standard forms are available online. Have the chassis number, mileage, price and "gekauft wie gesehen" (or, instead, warranty agreements) explicitly included. Ask for all vehicle documents: Zulassungsbescheinigung Teil I and II, inspection reports and the service book. Negotiating is allowed, in Germany too: our negotiation guide works just as well there.
2. COC document. The Certificate of Conformity proves the car meets European standards. For most cars from the 2000s onwards it comes with the vehicle documents or you request it from the manufacturer (sometimes for a fee). Without a COC, homologation in Belgium becomes a longer and more expensive procedure, so arrange this before you pay.
3. Drive home or transport. Either you have the car transported or you drive it yourself on German export plates (Kurzzeitkennzeichen or Ausfuhrkennzeichen, briefly valid and including insurance, requested at a German Zulassungsstelle). Driving on the seller's old German plates is a bad idea: as soon as the car is deregistered, you are uninsured.
4. Customs and VAT. Within the EU there are no import duties and no customs formalities. VAT only comes into play for a car that counts as new for tax purposes: younger than 6 months or fewer than 6,000 km. In that case you pay Belgian VAT in Belgium. A regular used car is bought including German VAT or under the margin scheme and nothing gets added.
5. Inspection, DIV and taxes. The car goes through the technical inspection before registration. Then you register it with the DIV (via the pink form, usually handled through your insurer). Next you pay the registration tax (BIV) and the annual road tax. Those rates differ per region (Flanders, Brussels, Wallonia) and depend on CO2, power, age and euro standard. They also change regularly: calculate your concrete case in advance with the Flemish tax authority or the competent regional service.
Step-by-step: importing to the Netherlands
The first three steps (Kaufvertrag, COC, export plates or transport) are identical. After that, the Dutch route runs through the RDW and the tax office.
RDW inspection and licence plate. You book the car in for an import inspection at an RDW test station. The RDW checks identity and technical condition and then issues a Dutch registration (kenteken). Plan that appointment early: you cannot drive around indefinitely with an imported car without Dutch registration.
BPM: the big cost item. On import you pay BPM, calculated on the car's CO2 emissions, with a depreciation discount based on age and market value. For an economical ten-year-old car it stays limited, for a young car with high emissions it can run into thousands of euros and eat the entire saving. So run this calculation before you buy, not after: the Dutch tax office has a BPM calculator on belastingdienst.nl. Rules and rates change regularly, so trust the current figures there and on rdw.nl, not last year's forum posts.
What does importing from Germany cost? (indication 2026)
| Cost item | Indicative amount |
|---|---|
| Transport or collecting yourself (trip + fuel) | 300 - 800 EUR |
| German export plates incl. short-term insurance | 100 - 250 EUR |
| Inspection (BE: pre-registration inspection / NL: RDW) | 50 - 150 EUR |
| Registration and licence plates | 50 - 150 EUR |
| BIV (Belgium, one-off) | Differs per region and per car |
| BPM (Netherlands, one-off) | 0 to thousands of EUR, based on CO2 |
Indicative amounts (2026). Rates and rules change: always verify your concrete situation with the official sources (DIV and regional tax authorities for Belgium, belastingdienst.nl and rdw.nl for the Netherlands) before you buy.
- 01Search and compare on Mobile.de and AutoScout24 DE, filter on private supply
- 02View the car, check TUV reports and service book, sign a Kaufvertrag
- 03Secure the COC document and all vehicle documents (Teil I and II)
- 04Drive home on export plates or have the car transported
- 05Inspection: pre-registration inspection (BE) or RDW import inspection (NL)
- 06Register with the DIV and pay BIV (BE) or request a kenteken and pay BPM (NL)
The pitfalls: where German bargains go wrong
Odometer fraud. Odometers get rolled back in Germany too. Always ask for the old TUV reports (the mileage is recorded at every inspection) and the full service book and check that the readings increase logically. A two-year gap without paperwork on a car with suspiciously few kilometres is a reason to walk away.
Accident cars. Part of the cheap supply consists of repaired accident damage ("Unfallwagen"). Ask explicitly and in writing whether the car is accident-free and look at paint thickness, overspray and panel gaps. When in doubt: have a pre-purchase inspection done at a German garage or inspection organisation before you sign.
Deposits to strangers. Never transfer a deposit to a private seller you have never met, however convincing the story sounds. You pay at handover, against keys and documents.
Too-good prices. A car listed thousands of euros below market price, with a seller who is "abroad" and offers transport, is almost always a fake listing. Real bargains exist, but they are sharply priced, not absurdly priced and above all they go fast.
Why speed matters on Mobile.de too
The German market is big, but so is the competition. Well-priced private cars on Mobile.de get dozens of reactions within hours, certainly in the sought-after segments Belgian and Dutch importers hunt in. Whoever sees the listing the next day calls a seller who already has three viewings booked.
That is why Autoflip monitors Mobile.de with the All-in package, alongside 2dehands.be, Marktplaats.nl and AutoScout24 BE+NL. You set your filters once (brand, price, year, mileage, fuel) and get a Telegram alert within seconds as soon as a matching private listing goes online in Germany. For anyone importing to resell, that is the difference between taking the deal and reading about it: how that maths works is covered in our guide to flipping cars in Belgium and the Netherlands.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to import a car from Germany?+
On top of the purchase price, expect 300 to 800 EUR for transport or collecting the car yourself, 100 to 250 EUR for German export plates with insurance and 50 to 150 EUR for the inspection. Then come the registration taxes: in Belgium the BIV (differs per region), in the Netherlands the BPM (calculated on CO2 emissions, it can run into thousands of euros). Rates change regularly, so check the current amounts with the regional tax authority, the DIV or the Dutch tax office.
Do I have to pay BPM on a car imported from Germany?+
Yes, in the Netherlands you pay BPM when registering an imported car. The amount is calculated on CO2 emissions, with a depreciation discount for used cars. For an economical older car it stays limited, for a young car with high emissions it can run into thousands of euros. Use the BPM calculator on belastingdienst.nl before you buy, so you are not caught off guard.
Do I have to pay import duties or VAT on a car from Germany?+
No, within the EU there are no import duties. You only pay VAT if the car counts as new for tax purposes: younger than 6 months or fewer than 6,000 km on the clock. A regular used car is bought including German VAT or under the margin scheme and nothing is added on import. Do check the current rules with the Belgian FPS Finance or the Dutch tax office, because the details matter.
Is buying a car in Germany cheaper?+
Not always, but often for certain segments. The German market is much bigger, so especially for estates, diesels, youngtimers and well-equipped premium models the supply is wider and prices are sharper. Always add transport, inspection and registration taxes (BIV or BPM) to the purchase price before comparing though: for small cheap cars the advantage rarely outweighs those costs.
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