Importing a car from Dubai to the UK costs the shipping plus UK import tax: most vehicles pay 10% import duty and 20% VAT, calculated on the vehicle value plus shipping. Classics over 30 years old in original condition pay 0% duty and just 5% VAT, and if you are relocating to the UK with Transfer of Residence (ToR) relief, meaning you have lived abroad for 12+ months and owned the car for 6+ months, you pay no tax at all. UAE cars are left-hand drive, which is permitted on UK roads; they just need the usual Gulf-spec testing and modifications before registration.
We handle customs clearance and NOVA for a fixed £150 fee, and our instant online calculator prices the whole job, shipping from Jebel Ali, marine insurance, UK import tax, testing, and road-readiness paperwork, in under a minute:
International Shipping / UK / EU Transport
Get an INSTANT breakdown of all costs involved for UK / EU Transport, or International shipment by air / sea freight.
Private vehicle import support
ShipMyCar is a private vehicle shipping and import specialist, not a government agency. We provide logistics, compliance preparation and guidance; official decisions, fees and records remain with the relevant authorities.
The Shipping Process from Dubai
We have many years experience of dealing with the RTA for export purposes and have an excellent and cost effective shared shipping route from Jebel Ali to the UK, to ensure your vehicle arrives safely and at the best possible price.
Prior to shipping the car out of Dubai you will need to visit the local RTA to have them put the vehicle on export plates. This is a very straightforward process and completed in relatively quick time. You then are given a timescale to get the vehicle to our depot (usually around 7-14 days) ready for export.
Our specialist handling teams will securely load your vehicle into either a 20ft dedicated container or a shared 40ft container. We only ship cars in our containers for the safety of the vehicles inside.
Your vehicle will be fully insured during the entire process; we take a full condition report on collection and a full condition report on UK arrival. Any damage is covered up to total vehicle loss.
Import Duty and Tax from Dubai
All imports from Dubai are subject to UK import duty and VAT unless a relief applies. To summarise the tax position when importing a car from Dubai to the UK:
- If you have lived in Dubai at least 12 months and owned the car at least 6 months of that period, Transfer of Residence relief means zero tax and zero duty to pay.
- If you do not qualify for Transfer of Residence relief, expect 10% duty plus 20% VAT, calculated on the vehicle value plus the shipping cost.
- If the car is over thirty years of age and in original condition, there is no duty and just 5% VAT on a current valuation of the car.
We handle the UK arrival and import formalities for you, including customs clearance and the NOVA submission for a fixed £150 fee, ensuring you pay HMRC no more than what is due. For a full breakdown of every scenario, see our UK import duty and tax guide.
Testing and Gulf-Spec Modifications
Regardless of whether the vehicle is a European built vehicle or not, because it is coming from outside of the EU, it will require an IVA (Individual Vehicle Approval) test if it is under ten years old. ShipMyCar has an in-house IVA test lane at our Milton Keynes facility, so modifications, preparation, and the DVSA-conducted test all happen at one site, with no shuttling your car between a workshop and a separate test centre.
Usually for Gulf-spec cars this means changing the fog light to the right hand side, displaying MPH on the dashboard (usually by replacing the speedometer fascia or programming the digital readout to display MPH) and ensuring headlights have the correct beam patterns for the UK. UAE cars are left-hand drive; that is permitted in the UK, so no steering conversion is required to register the car here.
If the vehicle is over ten years old it will still need the appropriate lighting modifications to get through an MOT, which also means it will need to be roadworthy in terms of tyres, suspension components etc.
Once you have all the necessary testing completed, the car can then be prepared for UK road use and the relevant final paperwork.