Living in Tunisia - Bringing in a bike
 

Hi, new to this site, redirected from ADVRider. I live in Tunis and will be bringing a BMW R1200GS from Marseilles via ferry. I see there is no carnet. Other than green card, what other paperwork is required. Also, will a green card purchased in Tunisia also meet the requirements for the EU? I'm flying the bike in from North America to Paris.

Welcome to HU! And I think you'll enjoy Tunis, we greatly enjoyed our time there.

Can't help on the paperwork side now, but I'm sure one of our experienced travellers in the area will know.

There are several places in Europe you can get an EU green card from, search for user Frgich here, http://www.lobagola.com/tours-and-se...insurance.html
or Polly at http://www.motosapiens.org

Whether they can cover Tunisia or not I don't know, or whether they can organize a Tunisian green card :(

Best of luck!

Hi, and also, welcome to our forum.

Temporarily importing a vehicle to Tunisia for tourist purposes is easy, you just need to present your passport, vehicle ownership document, and you might be asked to show proof of insurance.

BUT: You wrote that you live in Tunisia. That makes it an entirely different matter. If your residence is in Tunisia, then, regardless of your citizenship, the customs authorities might look at the matter as being a permanent importation of a vehicle to the country. That raises a whole pile of other questions, such as whether the vehicle conforms to the safety, emission, and labelling requirements for the country, payment of import duties, an obligation to re-register the bike in Tunisia and put a Tunisian licence plate on it, etc.

I suggest you visit a Customs office in Tunisia and explain your intentions in detail - who owns the bike, where it is currently registered, how long you plan to keep it in the country, etc., and get advise from the Customs people about how you should proceed.

If you have a visa in your passport that permits you to reside in Tunisia, then you will be considered a "resident", not a tourist, regardless of your nationality. There are rare exceptions to this rule, for example, if you are a diplomat or perhaps a student, but generally speaking, if you have a residence visa, you are effectively (for vehicle import purposes) a Tunisian.

Lastly, you mentioned that the bike will originate in (implies being purchased in) North America. Be aware that it may be impossible to register a vehicle sold in North America in a European country, because it will not have the required safety and emission compliance placards attached to the frame of the vehicle, and certain other characteristics (headlight beam pattern, turn signal illumination & colour) don't conform to European specifications. This isn't a problem if you plan to keep the bike and eventually return the bike to North America, but it will be a massive problem if you plan to sell the vehicle overseas.

Michael

As Michael said, if you are a resident, the vehicle will be treated as an import, not a temporary one.

you will have to get in touch with the 'Customs office located in Tunis center'.

Bureau des relations avec le citoyen
Tél : 71287891

Fax : 71287891

Mail : brc@douane.gov.tn

Adresse : Rue Asdrubal Lafayette 1002 Tunis