Car Shipping to Australia
car shipping to Australia

Car shipping to Australia and importing to Australia 

When car shipping to Australia, it’s so important to ensure you can legally import your car before you purchase or decide to ship. Australia is highly regulated and has strict laws in place to stop as much car importing as possible. We ship cars to all main Australian ports including Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney and Fremantle. YFT Logistics make it easy, offering a wide range of services including pick up & delivery while looking after Customs and port authorities. Above photo is a job where we sent a Caravan and 2 cars to Brisbane for a customer in Australia. 

Importing your car into Australia 

When importing a car, motorhome, caravan or motorcycle into Australia, the first requirement is that you’re an Australian permanent resident or plan to be. For example if you’re in United Kingdom and moving to Australia, they will not give you final import approval until you’re in Australia and have the immigration stamp in your passport.

To qualify for a Personal Import Approval the following restrictions apply:

• Only one car per person.
• Vehicle owners must have long term residency.
• The vehicle must have been owned and used in the overseas country for a minimum period of 12 consecutive months immediately before the applicant(s) arrive in Australia.
• The application must be made within 6 months of the applicant’s arrival in Australia.

You need to apply for an import permit before the car leaves the country at a cost of $50 AUD.

Documentation we need

V5 (Licence Document) for your vehicle – we do not need the original.
Copy of your Passport Photo page.
commercial invoice 
We offer a collection service if required.

Preparation for Quarantine inspection 

Before your vehicle is shipped you should make sure that it is well cleaned. On arrival in Australia all vehicles are inspected by the Australian Department for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) for ‘cleanliness’. Typical areas that are frequently over looked when cleaning a vehicle for shipment are Wheels and mud flaps. Most customers clean the car there selves as 9 time out of 10 Australian customs will want it cleaned again / fumigated. 
Port and shipping line charges
When your vehicle arrives at destination there will be charges payable to the shipping line/receiving agents for handling your vehicle at the port. There are also standard costs in relation to clearing your vehicle with the Australian customs and quarantine services.

Import tax or GST when importing cars to Australia are the following

The Luxury Car Tax (LCT) is a tax within the Australian taxation system. Collected by the Australian Taxation Office on behalf of the Australian Government. LCT is charged in addition to the Goods and Services Tax (GST). It is not payable on the full price of the vehicle. LCT is only payable at the rate of up from 25 % as of 1 July 2008. Though no senate approval for this increase was obtained) of the value of the GST-inclusive value which exceeds the LCT threshold. The LCT threshold is currently $60,316.00 AUD (for the 2013-14 financial year). An increased threshold of $75,375.00 AUD applies to fuel efficient. Cars that have a combined fuel consumption rating not exceeding 7 litres per 100 kilometres (based on a combined test cycle rating under (ADR81) (Australian Design Rules).
The customs value applied to a vehicle by an approved assessor is far less than the price of similar vehicles being sold on Australian market. The tax can be as little as 50% of the Australian ‘market value’. An indication of market values can be found by searching for similar vehicles on websites such as www.autotrader.com.au

The Australian Design Rules (ADRs)
Vehicles manufactured for sale in countries other than Australia are generally barred from import to Australia unless they are brought into compliance with applicable ADRs and the conversion work is inspected and certified by an authorised compliance engineer. The Australian Design Rules (ADRs) are national standards for vehicle safety, anti-theft and emissions. The ADRs are generally performance based and cover issues such as occupant protection, structures, lighting, noise, engine exhaust emissions, braking and a range of miscellaneous items. For more information 

https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/vehicles/imports/ 
Cleaning the Undercarriage
To safeguard against importation of dangerous pests. The Australian Department of Agriculture requires that the undercarriage of imported cars be free of foreign soil. Have your car steam-sprayed or cleaned thoroughly before shipment.
The customs value applied to a vehicle by an approved assessor is far less than the price of similar vehicles being sold on the Australian market and can be as little as 50% of the Australian ‘market value’. An indication of market values can be found by searching for similar vehicles on websites such as www.autotrader.com.au

If you require more information on this topic please go to Australian Government website.

To get a free quote for your car shipping to Australia either email us or complete our online quote form. Our team look forward to hearing from you. YFT have access to all the vessels departing from the UK to Australia on a weekly to monthly basis depending on final destination. YFT take great pride in car shipping to Australia.

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