permanent import to Italy
 

It's a long shot I know but, has anyone got any first hand experiance of importing a bike to Italy.

Cheers Bob.

Yes....

It's rather a hassle, but doable, if you're Italian, or have a residence permit.

Some more information might be useful... (ie, is it a UK-eu registered bike? )

Hi Giacomo,

Thanks for the quick reply. We are moving from the UK to Como towards the middle of next year. I have a new Tiger 800xc and have thought about selling it here in the UK and buying another bike in Italy. However, the depreciation on my bike and higher prices of new bikes in Italy has me thinking it maybe worth a bit of hassle if I will save a significant amount of cash!

As I said, it's doable, however you have to show proof of residence in Italy, if you're moving here it shouldn't be a problem though, you have at least a year (if I remember correctly) during which the bike can be ridden on UK plates, and it can take that long before you are issued with a residence permit. (normally an employer would take care of that)

I'll try to fill you in on all the details: I imported an old vespa scooter from Slovenia, and recently bought a VW beetle there too. All in all it wasn't too difficult but I found that the "motorizzazione" offices (Italian DVLA), still work in a rather soviet manner and you will find the occasional "jobs-worth" character who doesn't want to admit not knowing how to do something unusual. While it is possible to pay an agency to take care of all the paper work for you, it's actually not so difficult to do it all yourself with a lot of patience, and saving a couple of hundred euros in the process.

Feel free to PM me, and enjoy your stay in Italy.

Antonio

Many thanks Giacomo. Will do. Bob.