Import of cars to India by NRIs

Should you import new or used cars to India

Car Import rules for NRIs

Part 2. Import of cars by persons returning to India for permanent
            settlement.  (Continued from previous page)

Rules for importing a car to India by Non Resident Indians (NRIs)

Individuals returning to India for permanent settlement as well as the following categories may not be subject to the rules discussed for import of a car to India in the previous page under part 1. Categories of importers to whom the previous mentioned rules may not be applicable are:

1. Individuals coming to India for permanent settlement after TWO years continuous stay abroad provided the car has been in their possession for a period of at least one year.

2. Resident Indians presented with a car as an award in any international event, match or competition.

3. Legal heirs, successors of deceased relatives residing abroad.

 

4. Physically handicapped persons.

5. Companies incorporated in India and having foreign equity participation.

6. Branches and offices of foreign firms.

7. Charitable/Missionary/Religious institutions (Registered as per law)

8. Honorary Consuls of foreign countries on the recommendations of the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India.

9. Journalists/Correspondents of foreign news agencies having accreditation certificate with the Press information bureau, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Government of India.

All the above categories shall be entitled to import only one vehicle except categories 5 & 6 which shall be entitled to import a maximum of three vehicles.

ALL such imports will not be sold for a period of TWO years from the date of registration in India.

NRIs PLEASE NOTE:

The total Customs duty incidence on cars comes to around 181%. The car can only be imported, if you are transferring residence into India and the engine capacity is less than 1600 cc (for new cars), there is no cc limit for old and used cars, in your possession for more than 1 year. Customs duty on used cars is calculated on a depreciated price depending on the age of the vehicle.

Payment of Customs duty in Foreign Exchange: Indian nationals or foreign nationals of Indian origin returning to India for permanent settlement bringing vehicles to India will have to pay customs duty in foreign exchange or from bank accounts in India that have funds deposited from abroad, such as NRE/FCNR accounts.

	Enter your search terms Submit search form
	Web www.nriinformation.com

NRIs PLANNING TO TAKE A CAR TO INDIA?
If you are an NRI and toying with the idea of taking a car back to India when you return. Consider the following:

1. Use the services of a customs broker. Paper work in India moves in all directions quickly except forward. Hiring a customs broker at the port of arrival will speed up things and believe it or not save you from a lot of unnecessary hassles.

2. If your wondering whether you can make a profit by selling the car in India, In my opinion you would. There is usually a demand for foreign cars and the upper class in India have loads of money. One thing Indians don't mind paying is status symbols and when it comes to status symbols a foreign car probably is way up on the  list.

A word of caution here though, imported cars have a time restriction on when you can sell them. However some brokers and dealers bypass the registration step for the two year waiting time. The seller gets his or her money, the buyer gets the car and the registration is done at a later date, needless to say this is not legal but people seem to do it.

On the question of whether one should take a car back to India, It would of course have to be a personal decision for all. However as for myself I can only give prospective NRIs advice by expressing a personal opinion that if you plan to resettle in India, it might be prudent to keep a low profile. Unless of course you have lots of money and want to flaunt it.