Announcement:

On March 22 2019, the legislation related to Excise Duties on motor vehicles was amended by the Law No. 39(I)/2019, which was published in the Official Journal of the Republic of Cyprus No. 4693. As from that date, no Excise Duties are imposed on motor vehicles that are transported or imported to the Republic of Cyprus.

A. Union Status of the Vehicle

Goods in free circulation in the European Union (EU) move from one member state to another without payment of further customs import duty. Proof of Union status of the goods must be provided, in order for the goods to be exempted from import duty when transported to the Republic of Cyprus. Persons transporting a motor vehicle to the Republic of Cyprus from another EU member state, for private or commercial use, may prove its Union status by producing:

• T2L or Τ2LF document; or
• the number plates and the original vehicle registration document issued by the previous member state.

The T2L or Τ2LF document can be obtained from the previous EU member state Customs Service or through your vehicle supplier or shipper.

In case of failure to provide proof of the vehicle’s Union status, the vehicle will be classed as having arrived from a country outside the EU and will be liable to import duty and VAT.

B. Procedure on arrival of the vehicle in the Republic of Cyprus

After receipt of the vehicle from the port or airport of entry, the customs clearing procedure must be completed at any District Customs Office within 10 working days after the verification of the vehicle’s Union Status. It is noted that any Customs Duties due for the vehicle must be paid during this procedure (i.e. V.A.T. for new motor vehicles – See Section C, below)

Upon clearance of a used motor vehicle from Customs the original registration certificate for the vehicle from the previous EU member state must be presented to Customs.

In the case of new motor vehicles a EC Certificate of Conformity must be presented.

In the event that persons transferring their motor vehicle from another EU member state, do not wish do clear it from Customs, they must, within the duration of the 10 working days limit:

• place the vehicle in a customs warehouse;
• transport it to another EU member state; or
• export it to a country outside the EU.

C. V.A.T.

Only “New Means Of Transport” (NMOT) that are transported to the Republic of Cyprus from other EU member states are subject to V.A.T. upon arrival in the Republic.

A motor vehicle is considered as “used” when transported to the Republic of Cyprus from another EU member state if both of the following two conditions are met:

(a) The period from the date of its first entry into service (date of first registration) up to the date of delivery for the purposes of its acquisition in the Republic of Cyprus (date of purchase for the purpose of its transport to the Republic of Cyprus) is more than six months; and

(b) Up to the date of its acquisition, the vehicle has travelled more than 6,000 kilometers.

If either (or both) of the above conditions are not met, then, the vehicle will be considered as new upon entry into the Republic of Cyprus and will be liable for payment of V.A.T., regardless if V.A.T. has previously been paid in the previous member state.

V.A.T. for NMOT is calculated on the vehicle’s purchase price at a rate of 19%.

It is specified that, for persons registered in the V.A.T. registry, the provisions of the VAT legislation regarding intra-Community acquisitions (new and used vehicles) apply. More information regarding V.A.T. on motor vehicles is available on the website of the Tax Department of the Republic of Cyprus which you can visit through the following link: www.mof.gov.cy/ird

D. Motor Vehicle Registration in the Republic of Cyprus

After a vehicle is cleared from Customs it must be registered before it can be licensed for road tax purposes. The competent authority for matters of motor vehicle registration and circulation fees is the Department of Road Transport of the Republic of Cyprus. Contact links for the Department are provided below:

Email: roadtransport@rtd.mcw.gov.cy

Website: www.mcw.gov.cy/mcw/rtd/rtd.nsf/index_en/index_en?OpenDocument

E. Further Information

For more information, you may write to the following address:

The Director,
Department of Customs and Excise
Corner M. Karaoli and Gr. Afxentiou, Nicosia

Postal address:

Customs Headquarters
1440, Nicosia

Fax no: 22302031
E-mail: headquarters@customs.mof.gov.cy

For oral inquiries you may call any of the following telephone numbers of the Valuation Section at Customs Headquarters: 22601746 or 22601748.