police stopping uk cars at malaga airport

Hi, I have heard that the police are now spending much of their time at Malaga airport laying in wait for those of us who drive uk reg cars. I also understand that many are being seized and the owners given 5 days in which to register the cars on spanish plates.This concerns me as like so many other people we visit the airport to collect friends and family. Does anyone know whether there is any truth to these rumours and if so is there a particular area at the airport where the guardia carry out their duties. Thanks Jack.

 jackt, not wanting to be judgmental or anything, but if this concerns you, then why don't you do what is required by law and transfer your car to Spanish plates?  If indeed you are resident here or have been here longer than six months (your post indicates that this may be the case, if you regularly visit the airport to collect friends and family).

It amazes me why the police don't pick up people in foreign plated cars, personally - I see many on UK and other plates at school drop off and pick up (who are obviously resident) and always wonder why the police don't pick them up and fine them and bring in some badly needed money to the coffers!

Instead of looking for a way to avoid the police, change your plates!

if your U.K. reg car is legal then there is no problem. The police are after the illegal cars i.e. no up to date U.K. tax disc, insurance, correct paperwork etc. If your car is not completely street legal in country of registration then your insurance is invalid here! The police might also be looking for cars that  although "street legal" have been in Spain for more than the six months in any one year and are again illegal.

Stay legal and don't try and break the Law. YOU WILL GET CAUGHT

 Stay legal and have no worries , if you are in and out of airport a lot then the Traffico investigator would have been following you around for some time getting evidence of an illegal Taxi. Of course if you do everything for free as they are only friends and family !!

As you see I am a legal Taxi and ex poilce so no issue with Police doing their job. 

Agree with all below.

However the same law applies to vehicles from all countries not just the UK, there are just as many German, French and Scandanavian cars (just to mention a few) that are not correctly registered but it seems the police do target the UK plated car with extra venom

I wonder why this is?

 There was a road block by us the other week.  It's been reported in the press that the Police are cracking down on foreign registered cars.  However, I noticed several German, Belgian and French cars being let through without being stopped whereas the UK registered ones were being stopped.  So, yes, it would appear that not all foreign registered cars are equal.

It never ceases to amaze me how people on here are looking at ways of upsetting the "locals". Jack, try thinking back to when you were in the U.K. and you noticed all the foreigners driving around in illegal cars with no insurance/M.o.T./ tax etc. and what you thought about them! Were you keen and helpful to them and advise those foreginers how to avoid the police? Well you are now a foreigner in Spain trying to avoid your legal requirements. Stop making it harder for the majority of foreigners to have a peaceful life in our chosen new country and GET LEGAL. I only hope that I don't have an accident with you in your, I assume, illegal car  for as sure as eggs are eggs you will lose everything you have not only here in Spain but back in the U.K. as well.

Well thats my sympathy vote for the day

 It does amaze me too that some expats here have been driving around in UK plated cars for years!  The local police must see them as they drop off their kids at school every morning.

Interesting to read about UK plated cars being more likely to be pulled over...I wonder if it's in response to the whole Gibraltar/UK and Spanish fisherman dispute?  They are certainly applying the pressure at the GIb border, causing massive queues.

In answer to Team GB maybe the reason is just one little word  ................

GIBRALTAR   

or am I just paranoid?

 Or maybe they have found that the majority of illegal cars on the road just happen to have UK plates?  I know of at least 3 near me that have UK plates and are left for when the owners come out on holiday.  1 of them has been here for at least 2 years and, no, I have no idea how they manage to get a tax disc as it has never been back to UK.  Could be a case of profiling?  I was actually paranoid as, when we came over, we drove so we could pack the car up with household goods.  I booked my ferry back just within the 3 months (although I was later told I should only have kept it for 30 days as we took out residency) and then the ferry was cancelled due to bad weather.  I wouldn't drive the car out of our community after the 3 months was up until the day I drove it back to UK after being here for 3 months and 3 weeks.  

Babol

I can tell you the same story but relating to two long standing Norwegian residents of our commuinity, they both have had thier cars here for donkeys years and seem to use them with impunity.

Yes, I think on balance there are slightly more UK plated cars that are illegal here but there is still a significant  number of cars from other European countries that are not compliant and are never stopped.

What is a worrying is that some unscrupulous UK expats are now acquiring old UK bangers to drive around in because traffico are only impounding cars with a perceived value of more than 1000€ also I read somewhere that around 40% of all vehicles are without a current ITV and therefore have no valid insurance - The roads are a dangerous place.

Justin & Steone

In the current climate one would of thought that Spain needs all the friends that it can get at the moment after falling out with it's biggest chum - Argentina (Over Repsol)

ITS people like this that CAUSE us all LEGITIMATE drivers to pay more ANYWAY

I would report a CAR in the UK if it had no TAX on it why SHOULD SPAIN be any different

I have seen Ferraris etc UK PLATES with no TAX disc down in PUERTO BANUS now if you can AFFORD a car like that then you should be ABLE to afford to MAKE it legal

ALSO driving a RIGHT HAND CAR is far more dangerous and I read you are 5 times more likely to have an accident on the CONTINENT because the STEERING is on the opposite SIDE

GET THESE IDIOTS OF THE ROAD ASAP

Rod

Hi, Many of you assume that my car is illegal. It has fully comp insurance, a current M.O.T and uk road tax. I asked a simple question

thats all. Jack.

Even with Uk road tax, a valid MOT and insurance if a car has been in the country more than 6 months, in any 12 month period, it is ilagally on  Spanish roads

As previousy stated there are a lot of older UK vehicles that are being aquired by numerous nationalities, many African buyers, that are being linked to crime because they cannot easily be traced and in the Alicante & Murcia regions they are really stopping and checking many more UK plated cars

The fact that so many people have these cars on the road isn't actually an excuse to do this and my biggest fear is that if there is an accident and you get hit by an uninsured driver we all know who picks up the bill, I know because it happened to my son

Old UK car crossed a junction, crashed in to the car side on, occupants ran away from the scene, car wasn't registered and he had to pay the bill

The sooner and the more the Police do these stops the better 

 jackt, with all due respect, if you have had your car in Spain for more than six months, it is of no relevance whether it is mot'd, etc., as it should be on Spanish plates.  If you are, indeed, a resident in Spain (registered and have your green form or whatever colour it may be now), then - correct me if I am wrong - you cannot legally drive anything other than a Spanish plated car and, if driving a foreign plated car, must change it to Spanish plates within two months from becoming resident.  (I'm up for correction if I have got that wrong in any way - just my understanding that, if resident, the six month rule for vehicles does not apply).

Your 'simple question' appeared to have been about how to avoid the law - which wouldn't be a concern if you were legal!!

Hi, My question was not to avoid the law. I am not a permanent resident in Spain and spend about 6 to 8 weeks out here.

It seems that the police are having a "pop" at illegal uk cars and whilst I believe mine to be legal I do not want to find my car being impounded by some over-zealous copper. If I lived here permanently I would put it on spanish plates. As it is the car spends most

of it`s life in the uk.

The law is very clear here and first of all it is very easy to resolve the problem and that is, if you are only here using the vehicle 4-6 weeks thenj you will have presumably have used a ferry or taken the tunnel which means that you will have offical carriage papers of tne date of the crossing and they will contain a vehice description and registration number. You should carry these documents and a translation that explains these facts

Please remember that many of these people still have UK insurance and are using the green card system as a work around but agian there is normally a limit to how long this insurance is valid

Remember the rule is 6 months in any 12 month period

A vechicle that is still on UK plates and that has not been exported or SWORN off the road  has to have valid road tax, if it has been exported and is not liable for UK road tax then it is very easy for the Spanish Police to check the details on when the vehicle was exported

A car must have a valid MOT certificate or what would be classed as a certificate of road worthyness, even perhaps a spanish ITV and for  a vehicle that has no road tax or MOT the insurance would not be valid

UK insurance companys will not accept a vehicle for cover which has a Spanish ITV

It doesn't matter how much they use the car in Spain as the law is based on the vehicle, not the person as with Spanish insurance

 Apologies, jackt - from another thread about residency, I recall you enquiring about residence certificate, etc., and social security and mentioning that you paid Spanish income tax on your pension, so presumed that you were resident here (otherwise why would you pay income tax here?).

Again, sorry for the presumption.  

  Temporary importation
If you are a non-resident of Spain but from an EU member state then you can import your vehicle into Spain and use it with its own licence plates without paying any Spanish taxes for up to six months in one calendar year. The vehicle must be road worthy and legal in the country of registration. Your car may remain in Spain indefinitely, provided its UK tax and MOT are maintained, but you may not stay in Spain for any longer than 182 days in any one calendar year and neither you nor anyone else can use the vehicle in Spain during the remaining part of the year. Your car must also be insured in its country of registration under EU Law.

However, you automatically become a resident, from a tax perspective, after being in Spain for 182 days in a year. At this point you are by law required to pay import tax (unless you register as non-resident) and re-register your vehicle with Spanish plates, and can be fined for non-compliance. If you are taking your vehicle out of the UK on a temporary basis, you must take the registration document or certificate with you to present to the Spanish authorities if required.

Permanent importation 
The procedures relating to permanent importation are complex, and it is undoubtedly easier to sell your car in the UK and buy a new one in Spain. If you do wish to import a car, the use of professional help (Gestor) is almost a necessity unless you are patient and a good Spanish speaker.

If you are taking your vehicle out of the UK on a permanent basis you must notify the DVLA and send them the vehicle's registration documents, which will be exchanged for a certificate of permanent export (V561).

Virtually any vehicle, including cars, motorcycles, campervans etc, whether right or left- hand drive, can be imported, with the general exception of right hand drive commercial vehicles such as panel vans, due to lack of vision from the driver’s position.

If you are a Spanish resident already and wish to import a car from the UK, your foreign-plated car can only be driven from the Spanish border or point of entry to the place of residence in Spain and registration with the Department of Transport and application for Spanish plates should take place during the first 30 days of arrival in the country. The local provincial traffic department will issue a temporary green registration plate, which is valid for ten days, allowing you to complete an ITV test and receive a permanent registration number.

An application for an import licence must be made to the Ministry of Economics and Finance: Ministerio de Economía Hacienda. For this, a certificate is required from the Dirección de la Seguridad del Estado showing the date of issue of your resident's permit. The registration procedure involves acquiring a standardisation certificate for a right-hand drive car, which states that the vehicle complies with Spanish safety standards. This can be acquired from any Spanish ITV centre, which will perform an ITV test (equivalent to a MOT). Payment of IVA (VAT) at 16% will be required if not already paid, also import duty of 10% for vehicles imported from outside theEU. Payment of a Special Registration Tax ( impuesto sobre circulación de vehículos ) of 12% calculated on the vehicle's value may also be required, but may be avoided if a certificate of non-residence in the UK is produced, which can be provided by a UK embassy - applications for this exemption must be made within one month of the start date of your residence permit. 

Road Tax (impuesto municipal sobre vehiculos de traccion mecanica) must be paid annually, between March and May, to your local town hall.

Permanent residents of Spain are not permitted to operate a car on foreign number plates, so if your status changes from non-resident to resident, and you have previously been driving a foreign plated car, it will be necessary to go through the process to obtain full national plates and pay the required taxes.