1. What procedures does this information concern? 

Re-registration of a vehicle from another EU Member State to Slovakia. Information on this webpage is intended to help foreigners in Slovakia get an overview of the various requirements and conditions for transporting a motor vehicle permanently to Slovakia.

2. Citizens need to be prepared in order to ‘start dealing with authorities’. What needs to be prepared by an EU citizen before they ‘start dealing with authorities’ and where can they find/obtain this?

When exporting a vehicle registered in another EU Member State to the Slovak Republic, the original vehicle owner is to deregister the vehicle at the registration office and re-register it to the purchaser residing or established in the Slovak Republic, to whom the original owner will subsequently hand over Part I and Part II of the registration certificate, if they were issued in an EU Member State.

Then, the purchaser of the vehicle must undergo an approval process or recognition of roadworthiness at the traffic department of any District Office. The process is managed by the Ministry of Transport and Construction of the Slovak Republic; details are available at Ministry of transport and construction of the Slovak republic´website (only in Slovak).

3. What should citizens expect?

Once the vehicle has been approved by the District Office, the owner is obliged to apply to the Traffic Inspectorate for registration of the vehicle, where the following is required:

• Part II of the registration certificate issued by the District Office;
• a certificate of new compulsory motor vehicle insurance;
• payment of the administrative fee.
• After registration of the vehicle, the applicant receives registration plates with the registration number, Part II of the registration certificate in paper form and can apply for a personalised Part I of the electronic registration certificate, which will be sent to the address specified by the vehicle owner.
• For a new vehicle imported from another EU Member State (provide the link to Section 11 of Act No 222/2004, as amended), the vehicle owner is to submit a certificate issued by the Tax Office on the payment of the value added tax on the territory of the country; this certificate is not required if the owner of the vehicle submits a certificate of registration for value added tax and a confirmation from the Tax Office about having received a notification from the owner of the purchase of a new means of transport from another European Union Member State.

4. Who should citizens contact when they need assistance or advice?

5. Legal protection

Your rights when buying a car abroad – including the amount of VAT you have to pay – vary depending on whether:

• the car is new or used;
• you are buying it from a professional car dealer or a private individual;
• the seller is based in an EU country or not.

You generally have the highest level of legal protection when you buy a new car from a professional seller based in the EU.

Under EU consumer rights rules, you have a minimum guarantee of 2 years if the car you purchased turns out to be faulty or not as advertised.

In some EU countries, the guarantee period may be reduced to no less than 1 year for used vehicles. The buyer and seller have to agree to this at the time of the purchase agreement.

Note: be aware that EU consumer rights do not apply to private sales, so you should be extremely cautious when buying a car from a private individual.

When you buy a car abroad, make sure the seller gives you all the documents you need to register the car in your country of residence. Check that you have the original documents for the car.

6. Transport of a vehicle

When you buy a new car in another EU country, you will need to consider carefully how to transport it home, as it will not yet be registered in your country of residence. You have these options:

• You can tow the car home, hitching it to a fully insured and registered vehicle.
• You can hire a specialised shipping company to transport your car.
• You can drive the car home yourself. For this you will need to get insurance and temporary registration plates in the country where you buy the car.

7. What sanctions are applicable for non-compliance with obligations?

Where a vehicle owner does not apply for registration, no sanction applies, however, the vehicle cannot be used until it is registered.

8. Frequently asked questions and answers

Can citizens register vehicles electronically at the traffic inspectorate?

The possibility for citizens to register vehicles electronically at the Traffic Inspectorate, following their roadworthiness approval by the District Office, is under preparation.