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Registering cars abroad must become as simple as at home

Date

18 Mar 2014

Sections

Justice & Home Affairs
Transport
Moving cars between the Member States of the European Union is closer to become much easier than it is today after an agreement was concluded in the European Parliament's Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection.
 
"Registering cars abroad must become as simple as at home", stated Othmar Karas MEP, Vice-President of the European Parliament.
 
As is the case today, car registration offices in the different Member States often ask for intricate additional certificates of type approvals, extra circulation taxes, customs procedures, recycling fees or renewed technical inspections the very moment a citizen moves to another country in the EU and wants to bring the car along.
 
The problems with moving vehicles around in the Member States are so big and so numerous that the issue has been identified as one of the 20 main concerns faced by European citizens in their daily lives.
 
"We have to put an end to this bureaucratic maze. Some national authorities behave as if one is trying to register a moon buggy when all one wants is to register a completely normal car which has been registered in another EU country before", added Karas.
 
The new rules adopted are the result of the first reading in the Parliament and they still have to be agreed with the Council in negotiations at a later stage.
 
"But I strongly encourage the Council to follow the line adopted in the Parliament as it would show that we're able to achieve important and tangible results which would make the daily lives of European citizens easier", Karas concluded.
 
Citizens who move from one EU country to another are expected to particularly benefit from the new rules when they take their cars with them. Moreover, it will be easier for repair and logistics companies to have professional registration certificates recognised across Member States. To prevent fraud and tax avoidance, international companies will not be allowed to register all their vehicles in one country while using them in another country. According to the European Commission, these simplifications will lead to substantial reductions in administrative burdens for businesses, citizens and registration authorities, leading to savings of at least €1445m a year.
 
The EPP Group is by far the largest political group in the European Parliament with 274 Members from 27 Member States.
 
MEP Contacts
Othmar KARAS
BRU - Tel: +32 (0)2 2845627 Fax: +32 (0)2 2849627
STR - Tel: +33 (0)3 88 175627 Fax: +33 (0)3 88 179627
 
Press Contacts
Daniel Köster
Phone: +32 487 38 47 84
Lars Ole Loecke
Phone: +32 470 47 48 38

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