Importing a car.... (note: the NL consensus is don't!)
Submitted by wjmsjo on Fri, 2011/07/15 - 22:58.
Me and my Nica wife currently live in Costa Rica. Planning on moving to Rivas/San Jorge. I will initially be a perpetual tourist but will go for residency. My question is about a car. We have a Tico car and want to bring it to Nicaragua. I have done this in the past with a document I had to get here in CR and was able to use the car in Nicaragua.
The question is. If I initially bring the car as a "tourist", what do I have to do to register is in Nicaragua and how long to do it? I have also seen some posts about the age of the vehicle but am not clear on that either.
Thanks in advance.
Shipping household belongings & possibly a vehicle
We are planning a move to Nicaragua within the next 6 months & want to investigate shipping some of our belongings as well as possibly a vehicle ... if it's reasonable. We currently live in Ohio, but could ship from Miami as well. Does anyone have a recommended shipping line or agent? Recent costs they can share? Suggestions? Where can we find prices to purchase new or used vehicles in Nicaragua ... for comparison's sake?
Appreciate anything you can share!
Thank you.
i wouldnt do it. no way. i
i wouldnt do it. no way. i have a couple contacts that are trying to make ends meet with containers and sometimes send cars in their containers. but it turns out bad for those who want their car over there. because of the fees and the multiple hassle left and right.
what i suggest is this. if you want to ride around nicaragua just rent one from people who are charging a small fee who have allready their cars over there and trying to make ends meet with the taxes they have to deal with. that is the move i would do.
My car is trapped between customs deadlines...
I have an older van - a 1988 w. US plates, which according to customs can only be in Nicaragua for 30 days at a time. CR customs lost record of one of my exits, and so decided I had been there for more than 90 days in the past calendar year, and that therefore the car can't enter Costa Rica again for 90 days. My current permit expires in 5 days.
So I have 4 questions:
1. Do I need any paperwork other than current insurance to be legal in Nicaragua beyond the 30 days? (i.e. to be able to leave w/o problems)
2. If I lapse 60 days in Nicaragua, what sort of fines/penalties are there on exit?
3. I am willing to donate the van to the library. Do they get the same exemption as churches in being able to take in a car from 1988?
4. When I donate it, will the recipient be liable for any penalties if the van's permit here has expired?
TIA
We drove our car in from
We drove our car in from Costa Rica.
What a terrible experience.
Seriously, if you want to import or drive in a car to Nica -- in a word -- DON'T.
We had more complications than I have time to write. But this is interesting... just as it was nearing it's first 90 days, a drunk hit it in the middle of the night.
So the good government here counted the time it was in the shop against it's permit time. They aren't all real helpful.
Finally we got it all sorted out but had to pay a bit more than 1/2 it's real value in duties.
Let me say most strongly, if you want a car here, BY A NEW ONE. Heck, you can get a Hyundai for like $9k brand new, if you just need to get around.
Then there are the insurance issues here... heck the nightmare went on and on.
Long story short, NO ONE IS KIDDING when they advise you not to drive or ship a car to Nica.
Nuff said!
IMPORTING A CAR
I shipped my car from Long Beach, California on may 29th-it has yet to clear customs-all the paper work was completed by INTUR weeks ago-last friday i was able to get the stuff that was inside my car(car parts, tools, etc.) over half of it was missing. i paid $1350 for the shipping-i have paid my lawyer $600-the customs broker $1000- If i had it to do over again -i would buy a car here which i did a few years ago and am still driving today-dealing with the powers that be in this country is more of a hassle than i care to repeat
I think Tucker's post should come up automatically
As soon as the next person asks the question!!
OK and TresRios...!
based on a Nica friend`s experience
If you are going to ship anything in your car, best to ship yourself in the container to protect it.......
``The government is clearly Marxist. The question is whether it is Karl or Groucho``
hi tucker..
i agree..buy local..i have bought 5 diferent cars and trucks down here..all used..and i am happy i did..
Ok thanks for the great
Ok thanks for the great advice everyone. I'm sold on buying my truck in Nica.
Much Thanks, Bobby
Importing truck vs buying in Nica
I have searched this site high and low for an answer to my ?'s to no avail so here goes. I'm going to buy a reliable 4x4 truck to have in Northern Nica. The question is do I buy it here(california) and ship it in a container with replacement parts that I'll need in the future or buy it in Nica? I've read the vehicle can't be more than either 5 or 7 years old to import and I found a webpage that gave duty prices but could only choose vehicles pre 2008. Does anyone know what the import duties are and the variables of said duties (e.g. % of vehicle value)? Thanks, Bobby p.s. I am a U.S. citizen, not retired and don't have a business in Nica, if that helps.
Importing vs buying
The age of the vehicle you'd like to import, is stipulated on the immigration law that you're coming under. In my case was 7 yrs. from date of vehicle's manufacture.
To import and nationalize a vehicle from California: a vehicle's engine serial # is required. An engine serial number (except for motorcycles) is not printed on a California's vehicle title(pink slip)
If the engine serial number is not engraved on the engine's block, the s/n has to be engraved in a police designated shop and that means a real pain in the butt. Note: as i remember, the engine serial #, correspond to the last 9 numbers of the 17 numbers of the vehicle's VIN.
Buying a used vehicle in Nicaragua, could be troublesome if the paperwork is not in order.
Purchasing a brand new vehicle in Nicaragua, is IMO the obvious choice.
There's vehicle importation's fees calculator on the Aduana's web site. I may re-post it later.
Good Luck
Al
The duty will kill you
and coupled with the shipping it pays to buy here. With some looking, you can find a decent vehicle that has not been beaten to death..in fact as I looked, so really good buys. A lot of them have some age (2003/2005) but decently low miles...50K miles. One example...Pathefinder..4WD/50K miles/2004/really great shape and AC, etc....$9KZZT
A good example of a reliable 4 x 4 Truck is a Toyota
Lots here for sale and they will keep the parts on their shelves for you!
Exactly
One source of well-maintained used vehicles are NGOs. When you get down here, start asking around as there are lots of NGOs in Estelí.