Belgium
Importing a car into Belgium
Belgium inspects first and registers second — the roadworthiness test comes before registration, not after it. And the one-off registration tax is not federal but regional: Flanders assesses it on different criteria from Brussels and Wallonia.
- Registration authority
- DIV — Dienst voor Inschrijving van Voertuigen / Direction pour l'Immatriculation des Véhicules
- Technical inspection
- autokeuring / contrôle technique
- Last reviewed
Where the car comes from decides the effort
From an EU state
From an EU state there is no customs declaration. Proof of the VAT position remains: vignette 705 from the federal finance service confirms that VAT is settled — for a used car with nothing to pay, for a fiscally new one only once it has been paid in Belgium.
From a third country
From Switzerland or Liechtenstein the car is first declared to the customs and excise administration; duty on the customs value and import VAT on customs value plus duty fall due. Only then does the finance service issue vignette 705, and the Belgian part begins as it would for an EU car.
The process, in order
The order is not arbitrary. Pull a step forward and you usually end up repeating it.
01Obtain the certificate of conformity
Without a European COC the federal mobility service requires an individual approval — goedkeuring per eenheid or approbation individuelle. That is a procedure of its own, with a report and a wait, not something handled in passing.
02Apply for vignette 705
Vignette 705 is the Belgian proof that no VAT remains outstanding on the car. It is applied for at the federal finance service, with the purchase contract, the foreign registration certificate and the COC; without it the DIV will not accept the application.
Handled by: The federal finance service (FOD Financiën / SPF Finances)
03Inspection before registration
An imported car is presented before it is registered — the keuring voor inschrijving. It covers not only condition and brakes but the identity of the car against its papers. A foreign test does not replace it.
Handled by: An approved test centre (autokeuring / contrôle technique)
04Insurance and the WebDIV application
The registration request goes to the DIV electronically, normally through the insurer or broker who also writes the third-party cover. The COC, vignette 705, the test report and the foreign papers are submitted with it.
Handled by: DIV, via WebDIV
05Plates
In Belgium the plate belongs to the person, not to the car: anyone who already holds a Belgian plate carries it over to the new vehicle. A plate no longer needed has to be returned to the DIV, otherwise the registration keeps running.
06Wait for the registration tax
The registration tax is assessed after registration, not before. In Flanders the notice comes from the Flemish tax service, in Brussels and Wallonia from the federal finance service — and the basis of assessment differs between the regions.
What gets added
Without amounts, and deliberately so: official rates change, and a stale figure is worse than none. What is here is the basis of assessment — enough to calculate with, once the current rate is known.
- Registration tax (BIV / TMC)
- Assessed on: One-off at registration, assessed by the region where the keeper lives. Flanders assesses on CO₂ output, fuel, emission standard and age; Brussels and Wallonia on engine power and fiscal horsepower. The same car therefore costs different amounts depending on the address.
- Annual road tax
- Assessed on: Ongoing, by fiscal horsepower; in Flanders, additionally by the car's environmental characteristics.
- VAT
- Assessed on: Only for a car that counts as new for tax; then payable in Belgium before vignette 705 is issued.
- Does not apply: Does not arise for a used car from an EU state.
- Customs duty and import VAT
- Assessed on: Only from a third country: duty on the customs value, import VAT on customs value plus duty.
- Does not apply: Does not arise within the EU.
- Inspection and registration
- Assessed on: The test centre's tariff for the pre-registration inspection, the DIV fee for registration, and the plate itself.
- Individual approval without a COC
- Assessed on: A report and an administrative fee from the federal mobility service, plus the cost of whatever modifications the report requires.
- Does not apply: Not required where a European certificate of conformity exists.
The papers
Miss one of these and the appointment is wasted.
- European certificate of conformity (COC).
- The original foreign registration certificate, parts I and II.
- Purchase contract or invoice showing the price.
- Vignette 705 from the federal finance service.
- The report from the pre-registration inspection.
- ID, proof of address and the insurer's cover note for the WebDIV application.
Where the sum tips
- The region. The registration tax follows the keeper's address, not where the car was bought. Moving across the language border changes the sum in both directions — a large petrol engine is assessed differently in Flanders than in Wallonia.
- The order. Belgium inspects before registering. Coming from Germany and treating the test as the step after the plate leaves you with an application the DIV will not accept.
- The personal plate. A Belgian plate belongs to the keeper, not the car. A second vehicle needs a second plate, and one no longer in use has to be handed back — otherwise the registration and the tax keep running.
- The missing COC. Individual approval at the federal mobility service takes time and, for cars from outside the single market, regularly calls for changes to lighting and the exhaust system.
How long it takes
As an order of magnitude: vignette 705 and the inspection together take one to three weeks, and the WebDIV registration afterwards a matter of days. Without a COC, with an individual approval, rather two to four months.
The technical inspection
autokeuring / contrôle technique
The technical inspection. For an imported car it takes the form of a pre-registration inspection and checks the car's identity against its papers as well as its condition; afterwards it runs at the intervals set for the car's age.
Common questions
What is vignette 705?
The Belgian proof that no VAT is outstanding on an imported car. For a used EU car it is issued with nothing to pay; for a fiscally new one only once Belgian VAT has been paid. Without it the DIV will not accept the registration request.
Why does the registration tax differ between Flanders and Wallonia?
Because it is a regional tax and each region has chosen its own basis. Flanders looks at CO₂ output, fuel, emission standard and age; Brussels and Wallonia at engine power and fiscal horsepower. What counts is the keeper's address, not where the car was bought.
Can I carry my Belgian plate over to the new car?
Yes, that is the normal case: the plate belongs to the keeper. It is carried over in the registration request for the new car, and the old car has to be deregistered first. One plate cannot cover two cars at once.
Does the car really have to be inspected before registration?
Yes. The pre-registration inspection is a precondition, not a consequence, of registration. The drive to the test centre is allowed on valid foreign plates with insurance; otherwise the car goes on a trailer.
This overview is not a substitute for information from the competent authority. Rates, fees and deadlines change; the office that registers the car is always the binding source.