Italy
Importing a car into Italy
Italy keeps two registers: the Motorizzazione Civile for the technical side and the PRA for ownership. An imported car has to enter both, in a fixed order — start at the wrong one and you make the same trip twice.
- Registration authority
- Motorizzazione Civile
- Technical inspection
- revisione
- Last reviewed
Where the car comes from decides the effort
From an EU state
From an EU state there is no customs declaration and, for a used car, no import VAT. If the car counts as new for tax — under the threshold for first registration or mileage — Italian VAT is declared and paid before registration; the Motorizzazione wants the F24 payment receipt.
From a third country
From Switzerland or Liechtenstein it is an import: declared to the Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli, duty on the customs value, VAT on customs value plus duty. The bolletta doganale then joins the nazionalizzazione papers, and without European type approval a collaudo at the Motorizzazione is added.
The process, in order
The order is not arbitrary. Pull a step forward and you usually end up repeating it.
01Collect every paper before leaving
Italy requires the original foreign registration certificate, parts I and II. On financed cars part II sits with the lender, and noticing that at an Italian counter means waiting for the bank to post it.
02Check the COC or plan a collaudo
With a European certificate of conformity the nazionalizzazione is a data check. Without one — and for modified cars, small series and vehicles from outside the single market — the Motorizzazione inspects the car itself, in a collaudo, with its own appointment.
Handled by: Ufficio Motorizzazione Civile
03Settle the tax position
For a used EU car there is nothing to pay. For a fiscally new one, Italian VAT is declared and paid via the F24 form; the receipt is a precondition for registration and cannot be filed later.
Handled by: Agenzia delle Entrate
04Apply for the nazionalizzazione
The Motorizzazione takes over the technical data, withdraws the foreign registration certificate and issues the Italian registration. The result is the documento unico di circolazione e di proprietà, combining the technical and ownership records.
Handled by: Ufficio Motorizzazione Civile
05PRA entry and IPT
Ownership is entered in the Pubblico Registro Automobilistico. The imposta provinciale di trascrizione falls due at that point, at a rate set by the province where the keeper lives. Both routes — Motorizzazione and PRA — can be handled at one counter through a Sportello Telematico dell'Automobilista.
Handled by: The PRA (ACI) or a Sportello Telematico dell'Automobilista (STA)
06Revisione and insurance
From a certain vehicle age the Motorizzazione requires an Italian revisione before the entry is made. Third-party insurance is taken out against the Italian plate once it has been allocated.
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.
- Provincial transfer tax (IPT)
- Assessed on: On the PRA entry, by engine power in kW. The rate is set by the province where the keeper lives, so the same car costs different amounts in two provinces.
- VAT
- Assessed on: For a fiscally new EU car, on the purchase price; on a third-country import, on customs value plus duty. Paid via the F24 form.
- Does not apply: Does not arise for a used car from an EU state.
- Customs duty
- Assessed on: Only on a third-country import, on the customs value; the customs agency issues the bolletta doganale.
- Does not apply: Does not arise within the EU.
- Nationalisation
- Assessed on: Motorizzazione administrative fees, duty stamps (imposta di bollo) and issuing the vehicle document; plus a fee if an agency handles the process for you.
- Revisione and plates
- Assessed on: The testing station's tariff — different at a Motorizzazione station from an authorised workshop — plus the plates.
- Annual road tax
- Assessed on: Ongoing, by engine power in kW and emission class; levied by the region of residence, which sets its own rate.
The papers
Miss one of these and the appointment is wasted.
- The original foreign registration certificate, parts I and II.
- Certificate of conformity (COC) — otherwise plan for a collaudo.
- Purchase contract or invoice showing the price.
- Codice fiscale and ID; for non-EU nationals, the residence permit as well.
- Proof of residenza, because province and region decide the IPT and the road tax.
- Proof of VAT payment (form F24) or the bolletta doganale.
Where the sum tips
- The missing part II. Italy requires the original; if the financing bank holds it, the car sits until it arrives. That is a question to settle before the transfer, not after.
- The car without a COC. The collaudo is a separate Motorizzazione appointment, with a wait and often with requirements on lighting and the exhaust system.
- IPT by province. It follows the keeper's address, not where the car was bought and not where the agency handling the paperwork sits.
- The deadline for foreign plates. Anyone resident in Italy may drive a foreign-registered car only for a short, statutory period; after that a roadside check means a fine and the papers being impounded.
How long it takes
As an order of magnitude: two to six weeks from transfer to Italian plates with a COC and complete papers. With part II or the COC missing, rather two to four months, because chasing the document and the collaudo run in sequence, not in parallel.
The technical inspection
revisione
The recurring technical inspection. At nazionalizzazione the Motorizzazione requires an Italian revisione above a certain vehicle age before it makes the entry; after that it runs at the statutory intervals.
Common questions
What is the difference between the Motorizzazione and the PRA?
The Motorizzazione Civile keeps the technical register: it knows the car, its data and its registration. The PRA keeps the ownership register: it knows the keeper and every change of owner. An imported car needs both entries, and the technical one comes first.
How long can I drive on foreign plates in Italy?
If you are resident in Italy, only for a short statutory period. After that, driving a foreign-registered car is an offence carrying a fine, and the papers are retained at a roadside check. The restriction does not apply to visitors without residence.
How much is the IPT?
It turns on two things: engine power in kW and the province where the keeper lives. Provinces may set the rate within a statutory range, and they do so differently. The figure in force is given by the PRA, or the ACI, for the province in question.
Do I need an agenzia pratiche auto?
It is not compulsory. It takes the two counters and the forms off your hands and charges a fee for doing so. If your Italian is solid and every paper is there in original, do it yourself; if part II has to be chased or a collaudo coordinated, an agency saves time rather than money.
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.