Exporting your car from the Netherlands to Spain: papers, plates and cover

At our desk we deregister the vehicle from the Dutch register. Whoever the export is registered to, usually the buyer, receives the export certificate (kentekenbewijs deel II, also called registration certificate part II) and the registration card (kentekencard) with one corner cut off. The seller receives the indemnification certificate (vrijwaringsbewijs). Everything about these papers is on the page about Dutch car export documents.

If the car is driven, it needs Dutch export plates and temporary export insurance: 14 days of third-party cover with a Green Card, also sent as a PDF by email. If the Spanish process takes longer, you can extend the export insurance online, 14 days at a time and subject to the insurer's approval.

When you buy in the Netherlands, the car is not transferred into your name in the Dutch register. The RDW advises that the buyer exports the vehicle in their own name: you receive the export certificate, the seller receives the indemnification certificate. Before you pay, check that the car comes with a certificate of conformity (CoC), because the Spanish ITV station asks for one or for a ficha reducida. If you cannot travel to the Netherlands yourself, the RDW allows a contact person in the Netherlands to arrange the export.

1. Deregistration for export in the Netherlands. We issue the export certificate, the indemnification certificate and, if needed, white plates with insurance. The RDW advises checking first which documents the importing country requires.
2. The journey south. On its own wheels with white plates and a Green Card, or on a car transporter.
3. ITV inspection. An approved ITV station inspects the car before registration and issues the Spanish technical card. It needs the Dutch registration papers and a CoC or ficha reducida.
4. Taxes. The registration tax IEDMT goes to the Agencia Tributaria, the annual road tax IVTM to the municipality where the owner lives.
5. Registration at Tráfico. After an appointment (cita previa) or an online application, the car receives a Spanish registration number. Then come Spanish number plates and Spanish insurance.

Every step, with documents and tax rates, is explained on registering a car in Spain.

At our desk, deregistration with complete papers usually takes about 15 minutes. Remotely, we start as soon as your yellow plates arrive; the papers then travel by DHL in about 5 working days as standard, or in about 1 working day with DHL Express, including to Spain.

The Spanish part takes longer. There is no official average duration. With complete papers (CoC included) it is often a matter of a few weeks in practice, depending on appointments at the ITV station and at Tráfico. If the CoC is missing, or the Spanish Tax Agency checks the declared value, it can take longer. The DGT has up to 3 months by law to deal with an application.

Watch the deadlines. Anyone who becomes resident in Spain must register the car within one month, according to the Spanish government portal. For the registration tax, the limit is 30 days after use in the country begins, or 60 days with the relocation exemption.

Are you already in Spain with the car, still on Dutch registration? We can still arrange the export with the kentekenbewijs deel II. It is done entirely remotely, through a different procedure from the one at our desk: everything goes by post. We send the papers by insured DHL, in about 5 working days as standard or about 1 working day with DHL Express. Contact us first, and we will tell you what we need and what it costs.

Our prices are starting prices: export documents from €50, export insurance with white plates from €100 and the complete package from €150. You always know the price in advance. On the Spanish side, the owner pays the DGT fee of 99.77 euro, the IEDMT (standard rate 0 percent up to 120 g/km CO2, rising to 14.75 percent from 200 g/km) and the ITV inspection, among other things. An overview of our rates and the Spanish costs is on the cost of importing a car to Spain.

Moving for good? Your own car may then be registered without the Spanish registration tax, provided you meet the conditions; see moving to Spain with a car. Motorhomes, caravans and trailers have their own rules, for example for trailers over 750 kg: see exporting a motorhome or caravan to Spain. We also deregister trucks and vans for export; prices for heavy vehicles are on request.