Registering a car bought elsewhere in the EU in France
The mini calculator estimates the malus on a car imported from another EU country after its age reduction, and tells you whether VAT is still due in France.
Car imported from the EU: malus and VAT
Malus due after reduction
€3,808
| Age reduction | 28 % |
| CO₂ malus | €3,081 |
| Weight malus | €727 |
| VAT payable in France | no, clearance without VAT |
New for tax purposes: 6 months old or less, or 6,000 km or less.
A car bought in Germany, Belgium or Spain counts, for the French tax office, as registered in France for the first time when you bring it over. It therefore pays the CO₂ malus and the weight malus as well as the regional tax. Both malus taxes are, however, reduced according to the car’s age in months since its first registration abroad: 3 % in the first months, more at each band, up to 100 % beyond 180 months. The scale used is the one for the year of that first registration, and nothing is due if it predates 1 January 2015. Example: a 7 CV petrol car at 160 g/km and 1,700 kg, first registered in Germany in April 2024, costs €4,241.76 to register in Grand Est on 20 October 2026, of which €3,808 is malus after a 28 % reduction. French VAT is due if the car is at most 6 months old or has done at most 6,000 km. You also need a tax clearance certificate, the “quitus fiscal”.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
The reduction band by band
The table comes from article L421-7-2 of the French tax code (CIBS). The percentage comes off the CO₂ malus, the weight malus and the shared cap on both.
| Age since first registration | Reduction |
|---|---|
| 1 to 3 months | 3 % |
| 4 to 6 months | 6 % |
| 7 to 9 months | 9 % |
| 10 to 12 months | 12 % |
| 13 to 18 months | 16 % |
| 19 to 24 months | 20 % |
| 25 to 36 months | 28 % |
| 37 to 48 months | 33 % |
| 49 to 60 months | 38 % |
| 61 to 72 months | 43 % |
| 73 to 84 months | 48 % |
| 85 to 96 months | 53 % |
| 97 to 108 months | 58 % |
| 109 to 120 months | 64 % |
| 121 to 132 months | 70 % |
| 133 to 144 months | 76 % |
| 145 to 156 months | 82 % |
| 157 to 168 months | 88 % |
| 169 to 180 months | 94 % |
| 181 months or more | 100 % |
From 2027 the law adds a usage component to this age-based part. Its content has not been checked here, so the figures above hold for a registration made in 2026.
The scale of the original year
An imported car does not pay the scale of the year it reaches France but that of the year it was first registered abroad. A car from April 2024 therefore uses the 2024 scale: CO₂ malus from 118 g/km and weight malus above 1,599 kg. For the 7 CV petrol car at 160 g/km and 1,700 kg, that is €4,279 of CO₂ malus and €1,010 of weight malus before the reduction, then €3,081 and €727 after the 28 % cut.
Three limits apply:
- for a first registration before 1 January 2015, no malus is due at all;
- between that date and 1 January 2020, the CO₂ malus uses the older NEDC test cycle. This site does not calculate it and the table says so;
- the weight malus only exists for cars first registered since 1 January 2022.
One car, five ages
| First registered | Months | Scale | Reduction | Malus | Registration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2026, nearly new | 4 | 2026 | 6 % | €10,138 | €10,571.76 |
| April 2024 | 31 | 2024 | 28 % | €3,808 | €4,241.76 |
| September 2021 | 62 | 2021 | 43 % | €857 | €1,290.76 |
| May 2018 | 102 | NEDC, not calculated | €433.76 | ||
| May 2014 | 150 | no malus | €223.76 |
The May 2014 car is cheaper than the May 2018 one for an extra reason: past ten years the regional tax is halved, and that age also runs from the first foreign registration.
VAT and the tax clearance
The General Tax Code treats a vehicle as new when it is delivered no more than 6 months after it was first put into service or has covered no more than 6,000 km. Either condition is enough: a two-month-old car with 12,000 km is still new for tax purposes. VAT at 20 % is then paid in France rather than in the seller’s country.
In every case registration requires a tax clearance certificate, issued by the French tax office to confirm that VAT has been paid or is not due. The file also needs a certificate of conformity. You then apply on the ANTS website, the State registration agency, at no charge for the application itself.
For a car bought outside the EU, customs come first: see importing from outside the EU. VAT is covered in depth on the VAT clearance page.