Guide to Driving in France

1. Driving Offences and Penalties
2. Importing and Registering a Vehicle
3. Vehicle Registration Process & Transfer of Ownership
4. Vehicle Registration Taxes
5. MOT Vehicle Tests
6. Obtaining a French Driving Licence
7. Use of Vehicle Accident Forms
8. Crit'Air Emissions Sticker
9. Grants for Electric Cars
10. Scrapping a Vehicle

2. Importing and Registering a Vehicle in France

VEHICLE IMPORTATION SERVICE: In collaboration with our partners, we offer a service to those wishing to import a vehicle to France, including classic cars. We may not be able to assist in all cases, but if you may be interested send your enquiry to us at [email protected].

VEHICLE REGISTRATION SERVICE: We also offer a comprehensive and accredited vehicle registration service, which you can find by clicking on Demande Carte-Grise. You can find customer reviews of the service, on a website certified by the French standards agency AFNOR, at Avis Vérifié.

2.1. Who Must Register a Vehicle?

French law requires that if you are staying in France for longer than six months (in any twelve months), then the vehicle must be formally registered in France and plated with a French registration number.

The fact that some expatriates drive around in France on foreign plates that they should have changed is a failure of enforcement, not of law. To do so is a huge risk, as if the vehicle is involved in an accident it is possible the insurer will refuse any claim. In addition, particularly for those with UK plated vehicles travelling to the UK, you risk impoundment of your vehicle by the customs authorities, who will require you to complete importation formalities before they will return it to you. We are aware of several such cases.

Article R322-1 of the code de route states that you need to have you
a residence in France to be able to register a car in France, as follows : *Tout propriétaire d'un véhicule à moteur ....... et qui souhaite le mettre en circulation pour la première fois doit faire une demande de certificat d'immatriculation en justifiant de son identité. Le propriétaire doit également pouvoir justifier..............De son domicile, siège social ou établissement d'affectation ou de mise à disposition du véhicule.*​

On that basis those with a holiday home in France who wish to import their foreign registered car and keep it in France should be able to do so. Nevertheless, in practice the process is not always clear cut, and we are aware of some cases where the application has been refused as the applicant was not resident in France. Sometimes it is simply a game of chance. Check also that you will be able to insure the vehicle.

Trailers with a load capacity of +500kg must be registered.

The following guidance applies to the importation of a vehicle; if you are merely seeking to register an existing France registered vehicle you should refer to our Guide to Vehicle Registration in France.

The administrative requirements for registration are set out in:
Arrêté du 9 février 2009 relatif aux modalités d'immatriculation des véhicules.

2.2. Certificate of Conformity

One of the most important documents you will need is a certificate of conformity (certificat de conformité/attestation d'identification) that the car complies with technical standards in France.

On older cars you will need to obtain this certificate from the manufacturer. The correct place to get such a certificate is from the manufacturer’s base in France. Expect to pay €100/€300, although prices do vary.

A manufacture is not obliged to issue a certificate, and the level of the service and charges do vary; some take a long time about it, and a few are reluctant to do it. So before you even consider bringing a car to France, you should contact the manufacturer and establish that they are willing to assist. A certificate of conformity is acceptable in an language of the EU, in accordance with EU regulations. It does not need to be translated.

You may also find that your local prefecture are able to assist, so check out their website to see if they are able to do so. You will need to send them the existing registration certificate.

There are some private companies that offer to obtain a certificate of conformity (at a price), but there are many fake websites around and we would strongly recommend that you use only the manufacturer in France. A number of our readers have been caught out by fraudsters or have paid hundreds of euros for a certificate that is not valid.

We do regularly hear of problems owners have with obtaining such a certificate, particularly from older or modified cars/vehicles/special types, so you may wish to do some research before you move to France, particularly if you want to bring an older or modified vehicle into the country.

Modified vehicles, in particular, may well be required to go through an inspection by the registration authorities in France, and you will need to produce supporting documentation from the manufacturer that it is still within their specification limits. Camper vans can be tricky; they require a gas check and for older models you may be required to undertake additonal safety works eg vents.

In the event of a delay in obtaining a certificate of conformity, it is possible to apply for provisional registration, called certificat provisoire d'immatriculation (CPI). The CPI allows you to drive in France for 1 month. Our vehicle registration partners below may be able to assist you with such a certificate.

Those importing a car from outside of the EU will find that it may need to be inspected in France, for which your prefecture will provide you with forms to complete, an issue of greater relevance now to UK nationals, particularly if the car is not of European origin.

On newer cars from within Europe it should be EC certified to be valid in France and elsewhere in Europe. If the prefecture refuses to accept the EC certificate, then you may wish to politely draw their attention to EU Directive 1999/37/EC, which provides for the harmonisation of practice throughout the EU. However, we cannot guarantee they will have ever heard of it or respect it!

You may also find that on a newer car the manufacturer's certificate is included in the service manual.

It is sometimes the case that the certificate of conformity is rejected by the licencing authority (eg COC for right-hand drive vehicle), in which case you will be required to have the vehicle approved (RTI - Réception à titre isolé) by the local prefecture (DREAL - Direction Régionale de l'Environnement, de l'Aménagement et du Logement ) or DRIEE in the Ile de France, who will require submission of a form, together with previous documents submitted to the licencing authority, who will then undertake an inspection of the vehicle. The process is a substantial one. You can best make contact through the local prefecture website. A variable fee is payable.

If you are importing a vintage car to France you would be best advised to contact Fédération Française des Véhicules d’Epoque for a certificate of authenticity. If you seek assistance, contact us at [email protected]. We considered the topic in our France Insider article at Owning a Vintage Car in France.

2.3. Proof of Ownership

The vehicle registration document in your name will suffice, but if you have only recently purchased the vehicle, and it has yet to be registered in your name, you will need an invoice with the details of the seller on it.

2.4. VAT/Customs

i. Within EU

No VAT is payable or customs declaration necessary if you are bringing your existing car/vehicle into France from within the EU.

Only where it is a new car (defined as being owned less than six months or under 6,000km), being imported is there a potential VAT implication in France:

• If you are non-resident (but becoming resident) and you import a new car on which no VAT has been paid (you purchased tax-free with a view to registration in France) then you will need to pay VAT (20%) in France. If you have paid VAT in the country of origin, you will need to seek reimbursement from them.

• If you are already resident in France you will pay VAT in France on new car purchased elsewhere in the EU. You need to ensure you buy 'tax-free' in the country of origin.

Nevertheless, you will need to obtain a tax certificate from your local tax office in France confirming VAT tax clearance for the vehicle.

The certificate is called a 'quitus fiscal'.

You will need to produce:

• your existing vehicle registration certificate,
• passport,
• proof of address (such as utility bill) in France, and
• purchase invoice (or similar evidence).

If the vehicle is already registered in your name you should be able to get away with not having to produce a sales invoice to obtain a tax certificate. It depends on how the local official wishes to interpret the regulations.

If your tax office is insisting on a sales invoice, and you do not have one, you should draw their attention to clause 1.E.1, of Arrêté du 9 février 2009 relatif aux modalités d'immatriculation des véhicules, which states that a sales invoice is only required where there has been a change of ownership:

'Le justificatif de vente n'est réclamé que s'il y a eu changement de titulaire du certificat d'immatriculation.'

The relevant decree can be found at Arrêté du 9 février 2009 relatif aux modalités d'immatriculation des véhicules.

The clause is open to interpretation, but if you are merely relocating with a vehicle you have had in your ownership for several years a cooperative tax office should issue a tax certificate stating 'Déménagement' (Relocation).

If they still refuse, you should contest any refusal with the Conciliateur Fiscal, based in the tax office, quoting the above, but not before you have put your own case in writing to the tax office and you have received a written refusal.

Some tax offices have put the process on-line, and do not receive members of the public to obtain them, so you will need to check with them. There is no charge for this document.

The process of obtaining a certificate is gradually been put on-line by the government, although progress to date is limited.

ii. Outside EU

For the importation of a non-commercial vehicle from outside of the EU (applicable to UK nationals from 1st Jan 2021) you will need to obtain customs clearance.

Normally, no customs duties or VAT will be payable, provided:

• you have owned the vehicle for at least 6 months,
• that all duties and taxes have already been paid and
• that you are importing the vehicle within twelve months of becoming resident in France.

Outside of these parameters you are likely to pay around 10% customs in addition to VAT at 20%. Mixed use vehicles up to 22% customs plus VAT. If an historic vehicle (at least 30 years old) you can get complete exemption of customs plus a lower rate (5.5%) of VAT. If not accepted by the customs authority you will need to get it registered with the the Fédération Française des Véhicules d'Époque and make a retrospective claim. You would be best advised to make contact with the FFVE as part of the importation process.

The value used as the basis for the taxes will be the invoiced price, although for a used vehicle you can obtain a current valuation from the French car valuation website 'L'argus', which will normally be accepted.

You should include your vehicle on the inventory of possessions being brought to France.

You will need to complete two copies of Déclaration d'entrée en France en franchise de biens personnels en provenance de pays tiers à l'Union Européenne , which you should send to your local customs office by recorded delivery. A link to a directory of local offices is available on the above link. There is not a great deal on the form to complete.

You need to provide proof of former residence in your home country, proof of your new residence in France, the registration certificate of the vehicle and the purchase invoice.

You will be issued with a Certificat de dédouanement No 846A, which you use for registering your vehicle in France, which you must do within 4 months of obtaining the certificate.

You do not also need to supply a 'quitus fiscal'.

2.5. Certificate of Road Worthiness

If the car is under four years old, no MOT test of road-worthiness is necessary.

Otherwise, you will need to take the car to a registered garage for a contrôle technique, which must have taken place within six months of registration.

You will also need to change the headlights for right hand dipping, although some garages do accept stickers.

Motor-cycles do not need an MOT, but that will change in 2023 when it will be introduced.

2.6. Proof of Identity

You will need to produce:

• your passport;
• a utility bill giving proof of your address.

2.7. Insurance Certificate

You will need proof of insurance.

2.8. Fiscal Rating

In order to obtain registration you need to calculate the 'fiscal rating' of the vehicle as this needs to be entered on the application. This information is not on a foreign registration card, although it is possible it might be included on the certificate of conformity.

The fiscal rating of the vehicle is derived from the fiscal engine capacity of the vehicle, called the 'puissance fiscal' (PF), when it is then expressed as the administrative chevaux fiscaux/cheval fiscal. It is calculated using the following formula:

PF = (CO₂/45) + (P/40)^1.6.

Where:

• PF = Puissance Fiscale
• CO₂ = Carbon Emission (gr/km)
• P = Horsepower (1 hp = 0,736 kW)

The calculation method takes into account the CO₂ emission expressed in g/km, and the maximum engine power (P), which is expressed in kilowatts (kW).

If you do not have the kilowatt figure, do a check on-line or convert the horsepower (HP) to kilowatts using the equivalence rule 1HP = 0.736 kW. Thus, if the engine power of your vehicle is 115 HP, the kilowatts is 115 x 0.736 = 84.65 kW (rounded to 85kW).

The French energy agency ADEME also offers an on-line simulator where you can establish the CO₂ emission level of your vehicle. See also below for simulator.

As an example of calculating the fiscal rating, assuming your car is 75HP, giving a kilowatt rating of 54kW, and the CO₂ ​emission is 127 g/km, the puissance fiscal of the vehicle is: 127/45 + (54/40) 1,6 = 4 CV (chevaux fiscaux).

To do the calculation you can merely paste the formula into Google (or on-screen calculator in Windows) with the values inserted, as follows: (CO₂/45) + (P/40)**1.6

It is also generally possible to find the fiscal rating by a simple Google search of the relevant terms using vehicle type, although be careful of the results you find.

Motorcycles are only charged half of the regional taxes (fiscal power x regional tax unit / 2) on their engine capacity. If you are using our registration partner below, they can advise you.

2.9. Costs/Taxes

Several taxes and charges are payable, although some only apply to particular types of vehicles.

The taxes depend on a number of factors, notably engine size and emission rating. They can be very substantial.

You can read about the taxes in our section on Vehicle Registration Taxes.

You can obtain an estimate of the taxes payable using the simulator at Simulateur du coût du certificat d'immatriculation .

2.10. Registration Process

Once you have all these documents, as well as your existing registration certificate, then you should complete a request for a vehicle registration document - a Demande de certificat d'immatriculation, also known by its former name of carte grise.

This process can only be undertaken on-line at Agence nationale des titres sécurisés via prior registration with France Connect.

This relatively new government website has suffered major technical failures and shortcomings, with many hundreds of thousands of vehicle owners either unable to access the system or finding that their application cannot be processed.

Even the government have admitted in a parliamentary answer given in December 2019 that it does not work properly for vehicles being imported, stating: 'Dans le cas d'importations ou de modifications, le système n'est pas adapté'.

Using the system is no easy matter, even for the French, and we have received many mails from readers who have been completely baffled and frustrated by it.

There is also a very particular problem for those who have recently relocated to France, in that the ANTs system is only available if you have a 'secured identity' in France. That is to say, for instance, that you have made an income tax declaration or you have a social security number.

Not surprisingly, therefore, many vehicle owners have resorted to using one of several on-line private companies accredited by the government to process their application. These companies have access to a separate but linked registration system that is only available to professionals. There are also accredited local offices around the country that can do the registration. Only automobile professionals that hold an authorisation from the Ministry of the Interior are permitted to offer the service, although there are inevitably illegal offers around from those with no authorisation certificate.

One of the tasks these companies need to undertake is to calculate the taxes that will be payable on registration of the vehicle on a change of ownership or importation to France by using several key elements of information contained on the existing registration document, which is then entered into an automatic calculator.

However, in tests we carried out with these calculators the results were not always consistent. With several of the calculators we used the taxes payable were assessed to be higher than the figure provided by the official simulator, which we used to compare results.

As a result of our experiences and the problems faced by readers we are able to offer a professional registration service provided in the an English language. Since starting the service in 2019 we have carried out hundreds of registrations. The company do not, however, handle the importation process, merely the registration in France.

You can use the service at Demande Carte-Grise.

You can find customer reviews of the service, on a website certified by the French standards agency AFNOR, at Avis Vérifié.

If you wish to use this English language speaking service you need to use the above dedicated link, and not make an application through the main portal. Only applications made through this link are routed to an English language speaking advisor. If you start the process, but end it before completion, you will need to restart it again via the link.

When you arrive on the page click the 'Select Language' button at the top-left of the page, or use in the French language original. The translation is not 100%, but should be sufficient to complete the process.

Thus, some peculiarities in the translated version are:

• The term 'carte grise' is translated as 'Card Gray'.
• 'Mark' is the brand name of the vehicle.
• 'Kind' refers to private vehicle, utility vehicle, scooter etc
• 'Release' is the date of first registration expressed as eg, 09/05/2010
• There is no need to enter the country code of your telephone number.
• Be careful with 'fiscal power', which is not the horsepower of the vehicle but the puissance fiscal, not shown on a foreign registration document.

Once all the information has been entered a screen display will show you a complete breakdown of the taxes and the fee payable.

If you are having problems, the sum payable can be adjusted:

For a vehicle imported from abroad, the fiscal power and/or the CO2 are not always known. Specify the values that you think are correct. Once the amount of the tax precisely determined by the Administration, an adjustment will be made with you if necessary.

You will need to produce all of the documents necessary for registration, as set out above; the company are not able to obtain these documents for you. The service is required by the government to retain original documents, so keep a copy of everything you send, and ask for a 'permanent export receipt', which can be provided foc.

Prior to commencing the process there is also a telephone number you can ring during working hours - 0892882300 - but it is at a premium rate so be careful of the charges you may incur. In order to get transferred to an English language speaking advisor state you are ringing as a French-Property.com reader and you seek the English language service. An elementary understanding of French is required to get transferred.

Once the application is submitted you will receive an e-mail confirmation from an English speaking advisor, which will also contain on it a free direct line telephone number. Any further queries you have, or errors that may have been made with the application, can be dealt with at this stage, including any refund if you have miscalculated the fiscal rating.

The process of obtaining registration for an imported vehicle can take several weeks, but the we are able to obtain temporary registration in urgent cases.

The service is only available to those who have an address in France, to take receipt of delivery of the registration document.

Do continue to let us have your feedback on this service. You can contact us at [email protected].