NOVA

On several occasions the Helpline has been asked on how to register a foreign car for the UK road.

One of my first questions is ” have you a NOVA certificate? ”

In case you do not know: NOVA stands for  Notice Of Vehicle Arrival and all vehicles old or new have to have a NOVA certificate before they can be registered for the UK roads.

One complication has arisen though, because the NOVA application says that the vehicle must be registered within 14 days of arrival. The two recent cars I have been involved with have both been in the UK for years, one prior to the implementation of the NOVA certification, but have never been registered.

the question was asked ” what date shall I put on the application then?” I was unsure and felt I needed some guidance, so I contacted HMRC for an answer: there response was:

”  As the vehicles being imported are unlikely to attract any VAT or duties, they would declare the date the vehicle was imported into the UK and if they wish they can put in a covering letter explaining why. ”

So make an honest application with a covering letter if necessary

Steve