How to Import Foreign Cars to India - Procedure, Guidelines

The allure of mean machines is difficult to satiate and to many people, it does mean importing vehicles that aren't available for purchase in India. That's when they take to importing cars. However, the process is incredibly tricky, not to mention expensive. Here's everything you need to know about how to import foreign cars to India.

Huge costs

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When you're importing a car to India, you will need to be aware of several costs that may even exceed its original price.

Import duty: You may need to pay import duty up to 165 percent of that car's cost, car insurance, and freight (CIF) value. For bikes, it's 116 percent.

Registration: To get a vehicle registered in India, you need to take it to the nearest RTO and pay the charges for registration as well as the road tax. These depend upon the type and cost of the vehicle.

Now there are different rules that you need to follow while importing different types of vehicles.

Conditions to abide by for importing new cars

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• The car must be manufactured or at least assembled outside India.
• It must only be imported from the country where it was built.
• It must not be previously sold, loaned, registered, or leased.
• It must have a right-hand drive.
• Its headlights must be suitable for illuminating the left side of the road
• Its speedometer should be set to kilometres and not miles.
• It must only be imported through naval docks in Mumbai, Chennai, or Kolkata.

Conditions to abide by for importing used cars

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• The used car's manufacturing year must not be more than three years.
• It should be loaned, leased, registered, or sold.
• It must have a right-hand drive.
• Its headlights must be suitable for illuminating the left side of the road.
• Its speedometer should be set to kilometres and not miles.
• It must only be imported through naval docks in Mumbai, Chennai, or Kolkata.
• It must have a roadworthiness certificate with a validity of at least 5 years.

Banned vehicles

A few types of vehicles are completely banned from being imported in India. They include:

• Cars with an engine capacity from 1,000cc to 2,500cc.
• Heavy-duty two-wheelers or bikes with engine capacity ranging from 50cc to 500cc.
• Scooters with an engine capacity ranging from 250cc to 800cc.

Paperwork And Documentation:

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The paperwork needed to import a vehicle into India includes:

• Invoice
• Insurance policy
• GATT Declaration
• Bank Draft
• Bill of Lading or Sea Waybill
• Import License
• Purchase Order/Letter of Credit
• Test report
• DEEC (Duty Exemption Entitlement Certificate) / DEPB (Duty Entitlement Pass Book) / ECGC (Export Credit Guarantee Corporation of India) or other documents as required.

That's all you need to know before you think about importing a vehicle into India. It's indeed a costly and time-consuming process, but if your heart just wants what it wants, go ahead and make sure that the car of your dreams is in keeping with all these regulations before beginning the process of getting it into the country.