If you move to Luxembourg on a permanent basis, you are required to register your vehicle in Luxembourg within six months of the date of your declaration of arrival in your commune of residence. To do this, you have to carry out several administrative formalities with various bodies.

1. Applying for the licence plate number

First, you have to apply for a registration number. You can file the application by using the MyGuichet.lu assistant (see section Forms/Online Services) or by contacting the National Society of Automotive Traffic (Société nationale de circulation automobile – SNCA)[1]. The licence plate number assigned to you will be the first available number of the current series. It is composed of 2 letters and 2 digits for mopeds and light quadricycles and 2 letters and 4 digits for all other vehicles.

You also have the possibility to apply for a personalized registration number. In this case, in addition to the EUR 50 tax stamp, you will pay an extra charge of EUR 50 for first use of the number and EUR 24 in case of reuse. There are several series of personalized registration number depending on your vehicle. For your car, you can choose between 5-digit numbers or 2 letters and 4 digits. All the 4-digit registration numbers are allocated. If you want to have one, your application will be placed on a waiting list. Be patient! It can take several years to obtain the coveted number.

2. Taking out a civil liability insurance policy

The next step is to insure your vehicle. Every vehicle circulating in the Grand-Duchy must be insured with an approved insurance company in Luxembourg. As soon as you can provide your VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) and your Luxembourg registration number, your insurer will issue a green card and a proof of insurance. 

3. Clearing customs and, when necessary, paying Luxembourg VAT

If you import your vehicle from outside the European Union, you have to submit it for customs clearance. You will pay customs duties - up to 10% of the purchase value of the vehicle -, certain fees and, if necessary, VAT. There may be an exemption from customs duties and VAT payment if the vehicle is being imported as a part of a relocation.

If you import your vehicle from an EU country, you will only be submitted to the VAT regime. In Luxembourg, a VAT of 17 percent is due on any vehicle classed as “new”. No VAT is due on a used car. A vehicle is considered to be used if it has a mileage exceeding 6,000 km and has been on the road longer than six months.

Whether you are importing your vehicle within or outside the EU, you have to take it in person to one of the Customs and Excise Agency offices. Once the clearance is complete, the Customs and Excise Agency will issue a document, the 705 sticker.

4. Completing the technical inspection

If you want to register a vehicle already registered abroad, it must be covered by a valid certificate of technical inspection. If you have a technical inspection certificate issued by the competent authorities of another EEA Member State or Switzerland, it remains valid in Luxembourg but no longer than the period allowed under Luxembourg law. If not, you have to undergo a technical inspection with one of the approved technical inspection bodies before registering your vehicle.

5. Registering your vehicle

For this last step, all you have to do is download the application form for obtaining a registering certificate (only in French), complete it, sign it and send it to the SNCA with the following documents: a copy of a piece of ID, the vehicle’s invoice, the insurance certificate, the custom document (vignette 705), a valid technical inspection certificate, the European certificate of conformity for vehicles registered from 1 February 2016, the foreign registration document and the tax stamp(s). You can send your administrative file by mail to the SNCA postal address (B.P. 23 – L5201 Sandweiler), deposit at the SNCA reception desk[2] or book an appointment online.

Two exceptions

All the procedures described above are not compulsory if you are a foreign student who wants to further studies in the Grand-Duchy. If you have your normal residence in Luxembourg, you are also not required to register your vehicle under three conditions. The vehicle has been made available to you by a company having its registered office in another Member State of the European Economic Area (EEA). You use it as a director, a manager or an employee of that company. The vehicle is validly registered in the country where the company has its registered office.

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