# Dubai car registration and customs | Individual approval Registering a car imported from Dubai: what matters is not where it was bought but whether it is EU, GCC or US spec. Customs duty and VAT, registration tax, full-service administration. Forrás: https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/countries/united-arab-emirates/ --- Mon–Fri 8:00–18:00 · Sat 10:00–14:00 [+36 70 755 5705](tel:+36707555705) [+36 70 775 5557](tel:+36707755557) [Contact](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/contact/) [HU](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/orszagok/egyesult-arab-emirsegek/) / EN / [DE](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/de/laender/vereinigte-arabische-emirate/) [HU JH·26 Vehicle Registration](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/) - **[Calculator](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/car-import-cost-calculator/)** — [Services](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/vehicle-registration-prices/) — [Vehicle types](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/motorcycle-registration-hungary/) — [Countries](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/import-car-from-germany/) — [Knowledge base](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/knowledge-base/) [+36 70 755 5705](tel:+36707555705) [Shop](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/vehicle-documents-shop/) [Home](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/) / Countries / United Arab Emirates Not an EU member · a customs procedure is required # Registering and licensing a car from the United Arab Emirates Full Hungarian administration for a vehicle imported from the United Arab Emirates. We tell you what it costs, which papers you need and how long it takes. Request a quote [Call](tel:+36707555705) Instant answer ## What to watch out for when importing a Dubai car The United Arab Emirates is not an EU member, so a **customs procedure is mandatory** . The vehicles are **GCC-spec** : they were not built under European type approval, so **there is no CoC for them** and none can be obtained later. The export document ( **Export Certificate** ) is indispensable — without it the vehicle cannot lawfully leave the country. Every Dubai case is individually assessed. - **CUSTOMS PROCEDURE** — Not an EU member — Both customs clearance and the tax office procedure are required. - **NO CoC** — GCC version — No European type approval — a CoC cannot be obtained afterwards either. - **INDIVIDUAL PRICING** — There is no template for it — Every Emirati case is assessed individually. ## Which documents are needed for a car imported from the United Arab Emirates? | Hungarian name | United Arab Emirates equivalent | | --- | --- | | Registration certificate (with title) | Vehicle Registration Card (“Mulkiya”) | | Export certificate | Export Certificate | | Proof of the sale | Bill of Sale / original invoice | | Customs decision | proof that the customs duty was paid | Plus, in every case - bilingual sales contract or original invoice - the owner’s personal documents - for a company, a company extract and specimen signature [Powers of attorney for authorities If you are not acting in person, a downloadable power-of-attorney template helps. View →](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/documents/power-of-attorney/) ## Is customs duty payable? **Yes.** The United Arab Emirates is not an EU member, so a customs procedure is required and VAT arises alongside the duty. In a dutiable case the burden is 39.7% (duty and VAT together). The vehicle’s specification decides: an EU-spec car needs no detour, but a GCC- or US-spec car needs German or Czech registration first. The technical registration of a GCC-spec vehicle is an individual procedure because there is no CoC — which is why we give no template price for it. ## How much does it cost to register a car from the United Arab Emirates? Always **individually priced** , depending on the exact data — a template approach does not work for a GCC-spec vehicle. Send over the vehicle’s documents and photos of the vehicle, and our adviser will handle the case individually. [+36 70 755 5705](tel:+36707555705) Send the documents → ## How does it work? Send photos of the Mulkiya and the Export Certificate, plus pictures of the vehicle. Our adviser will handle the case individually. Send documents and photos → [+36 70 755 5705](tel:+36707555705) ## Customs and origin verification For this country the registration fee alone is not the whole picture, because it does not include the customs procedure. In a dutiable case the burden is **39.7%** (customs duty and VAT together), and the official fee for origin verification is **14.715 Ft** . The fee for the customs procedure depends on the details of the case; we can go through it precisely by phone. On lead time the distinction matters: the **30–60 day wait for origin verification applies to directly imported, third-country vehicles** . If the vehicle is not EU-spec and arrives via German or Czech registration, it does not get this. [Discuss the customs cost by phone](tel:+36707555705) In detail What matters is not where it was bought, but which market it was built for The three specifications Why a GCC-spec car costs more than it looks The registration tax trap Customs duty and import VAT Which documents are needed Returning resident + GCC spec — two separate questions How much does it cost? ## What matters is not where it was bought, but which market it was built for Most Dubai cases stand or fall on this. In the United Arab Emirates you can buy **EU-spec, GCC-spec and US-spec** cars — and the three mean entirely different procedures. Where it was bought therefore tells you nothing. The vehicle’s **specification** is what decides whether the case is simple or complicated. ## The three specifications | Specification | What it means | The DE/CZ detour | | --- | --- | --- | | EU spec | a vehicle built for the European market and later exported to Dubai | not needed | | GCC spec | a vehicle built for the markets of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries | required | | US spec | a vehicle built for the US market and later imported into Dubai | required | For the USA and Canada, German or Czech registration is *always* required. For Dubai, only if the vehicle is not EU-spec — because EU-spec cars are also sold in the Emirates. ## Why a GCC-spec car costs more than it looks A European and a GCC model that look identical are **not the same vehicle** to the authorities. With a GCC-spec version it may be that: - there is no European CoC - there is no EU type approval for that version - the emission approval is different - the European emission class **cannot be proven automatically** What you must not assume “The same model is Euro 6 in Europe, so the Dubai one must be too.” That argument does not hold: emissions approval applies to the specific version, not to the model name. The version built for the GCC market was approved differently. ## The registration tax trap This is the most concrete financial risk with a Dubai car. If the environmental class **cannot be evidenced by suitable documents** , the vehicle may be given a less favourable Hungarian class — **and that raises the registration tax** . The difference is not a few thousand forints. That is why the expected registration tax must be checked **before you buy** , not when the car is already sitting at the port. This is the most common Dubai surprise The purchase price and the transport can be worked out. The registration tax, though, turns on the classification, and the classification on the documentation — and if that is missing, the tax comes from the worse band. Send us the VIN before you buy and we will tell you what to expect. ## Customs duty and import VAT The United Arab Emirates is not an EU member, so a customs procedure is required, and import VAT arises alongside the duty. For a used passenger car the duty rate is, as a main rule, 10% and import VAT 27% — together, in a simplified example, a burden of around **39.7%** . This is an example, not a price list: the vehicle’s customs origin, the assessed customs value and the costs included in the VAT base all affect it. Customs clearance does not mean registration This is the most common misunderstanding. The fact that a car has been cleared through customs does **not automatically earn it a Hungarian plate** . Customs clearance is about the vehicle entering free circulation in the EU in customs terms; Hungarian registration is a separate official procedure with its own technical and documentation requirements. ## Which documents are needed - **Vehicle Registration Card (“Mulkiya”)** — the local registration certificate, which also proves the owner - **Export Certificate** — the export certificate; without it the vehicle cannot lawfully leave the country and no customs procedure can start - Bill of Sale or original invoice - proof of payment supporting the customs value - documentation supporting the vehicle specification (for EU spec, the CoC if any) - the owner’s personal documents; for a company, a company extract and specimen signature ## Returning resident + GCC spec — two separate questions These two are often confused, although they have nothing to do with each other: | Question | What it depends on | | --- | --- | | Exemption from customs duty and VAT | on the conditions for returning residents | | Technical eligibility for registration | on the specification of the vehicle | A returning resident’s GCC-spec car can therefore be duty-free while its Hungarian registration still requires a separate technical procedure — including the DE/CZ route. As a returning resident, free of customs duty and VAT Anyone moving home from outside the EU customs territory may, under certain conditions, import their own vehicle free of duty and VAT. Four separate conditions, three separate periods — and they must never be conflated: - at least 12 months of continuous normal residence outside the EU customs territory - the vehicle was in your possession AND use for at least 6 months at the previous residence - the import within 12 months of transferring normal residence - a vehicle released into free circulation duty-free cannot be transferred for 12 months - it does not apply to trucks or commercial transport equipment The exemption is determined by the authority, not by us — the detailed conditions, the circumstances examined by the tax authority and the legislation cited are on the returning-resident pillar page. [Customs and VAT exemption for returning residents — details →](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/case-types/returning-resident-vehicle/) 12-month transfer restriction A vehicle released duty-free into free circulation may not, for **12 months** . If you sell, lend, rent out or pledge it during that time, the duty and VAT become payable retrospectively. ## How much does it cost? A Dubai case is **individually priced** . The total depends on whether the vehicle is EU-spec — because that decides whether German or Czech registration is needed and what conversion work arises. If the vehicle is not EU spec, we handle the first European registration from EUR 2,500. Before you buy ## Send us the VIN and the documents — before you buy From the 17-character VIN and photos of the papers we can tell you before you buy what lies ahead: whether duty is payable, whether conversion is needed, and what the expected total cost of getting it on the road in Hungary is. Asked afterwards, it is a far more expensive question. [+36 70 755 5705](tel:+36707555705) Send the VIN and the documents → ## Frequently asked questions about cars from the United Arab Emirates **Is there a CoC for a Dubai car?** There is none. A vehicle built for the GCC market was not made under European type approval, so it has no CoC and none can be obtained later. **What is an Export Certificate?** The export certificate issued when the vehicle is de-registered. Without it the vehicle cannot lawfully leave the country and no customs procedure can start. **What is a Mulkiya?** The local registration certificate (Vehicle Registration Card), proving both the owner and the vehicle data. **How much does registering an Emirati car cost?** Always individually priced — there is no usable range. Send us the documents and photos, and our adviser will deal with it personally. Request a quote ## Bringing home a car from the United Arab Emirates? Send us photos of the documents and we will give a fixed quote within 24 hours. 01 - **You send the documents** — Registration certificate, title, sales contract — photos are enough. 02 - **A quote within 24 hours** — An itemised, fixed amount, not an estimate. 03 - **We handle it end to end** — You receive the finished registration certificate and the plate. Prefer the phone? [+36 70 755 5705](tel:+36707555705) *(Ajánlatkérő űrlap közvetlenül kitölthető ezen az oldalon: név, e-mail, telefonszám, jármű típusa, származási ország, üzenet, dokumentum-feltöltés.)* ## What we handle for a car imported from the United Arab Emirates Registering and licensing a car from the United Arab Emirates is one single process with us: from the import to the Hungarian plate we handle every step. [Registering a car from the United Arab Emirates The whole registration process: identity check, official procedure, government office. Details →](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/registering-a-foreign-car-in-hungary/) [Registering a car from the United Arab Emirates First Hungarian registration: moving a car from the United Arab Emirates onto Hungarian plates. Details →](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/full-service-vehicle-registration/) [Car import from the United Arab Emirates Car sourcing, on-site inspection and transport home, if you need help buying as well. Details →](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/vehicle-sourcing-and-import/) [Technical inspection and testing Registration inspection or full technical inspection — with the authority’s 2026 fees. Details →](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/technical-inspection-hungary/) [Bilingual sales contract A downloadable bilingual contract template — no certified translation needed. Details →](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/vehicle-documents-shop/) [Returning resident’s vehicle Customs and VAT exemption when moving home: the conditions, the deadlines and the full process. Details →](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/case-types/returning-resident-vehicle/) [Registration tax Calculating the registration tax and the whole tax office process, including age-based depreciation. Details →](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/registration-tax-2026/) [SOS registration, priority appointment If you do not want to wait 2–3 months for an inspection slot. Details →](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/priority-appointment-budapest/) [Customs clearance Customs duty and VAT, origin verification, customs decision — full customs service. Details →](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/customs-clearance-and-origin-check/) Bringing a car from another country? [USA Not an EU member](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/import-car-from-usa/) [Canada Not an EU member](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/countries/canada/) [Switzerland Not an EU member](https://jarmuhonositas.hu/en/import-car-from-switzerland/) HU JH·26 Vehicle Registration Alba Prémium Otthon Kft. 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