Buying a bike abroad - paperwork nightmare?
 

Hi,

I am currently mid-way through a year and a half plus long world trip (see AdventureProne.com for details,) and I intend for my next travel leg to be motorcycling across Asia. I have a few questions that I haven't been able to find answers for.

I plan on riding from Cairo all the way across Asia (or as far as I can get...no idea what to do about Burma/Myranmar yet.) Since I live in the US, I don't want to ship a bike all the way to Cairo, so I want to buy one there. This seems to have all sorts of unique problems.

- Does anyone have experience with buying a bike abroad in a non-western country?

- Is is possible to arrange a carnet from either the US or UK when I and the bike are in Egypt?

- How do I arrange a carnet if I want to sell/abandon a bike at the end (in SE Asia)?

- And just to eliminate an improbable option, is there a CC limit below which you don't have to deal with the hassles of carnet/insurance/etc?

I am currently in Africa, and email/internet access here is horrible, so I may not be able to check back for a week or so, but any advice would be appreciated.

thanks,

peter


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Peter Birch
peter@adventureprone.com

Check out my travel stories, photos and more at http://adventureprone.com

To answer your questions as best as possible...

- Does anyone have experience with buying a bike abroad in a non-western country?

>See the page on buying an Enfield in India. http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tri...eldindia.shtml

Generally buying a bike in any country is not a big problem. Insuring it can be though, as you often need a local address. Sometimes the dealer can be persuaded to let you use his address, as he wants to make the sale. Having said that, most 3rd world countries don't provide/require mc insurance.

It's at the border you can really run into trouble, as the carnet can be problematic. see below...

- Is is possible to arrange a carnet from either the US or UK when I and the bike are in Egypt?

>If it was a US/UK bike no problem renewing. You couldn't get in without it, so it's just renewing. If it's an Egyptian bike, it will probably have to be an Egyptian carnet, and I wouldn't wish that exercise on my worst enemy. I would defiitely recommend against buying in Egypt - it's arguably the WORST country in the world for paperwork hassles. It would be worth taking a ferry to Greece for instance and buying there, and organising a carnet there as well. However...

- How do I arrange a carnet if I want to sell/abandon a bike at the end (in SE Asia)?

>Can't be done without paying for the carnet or selling it in a country that doesn't require the carnet. If the bike is stolen/destroyed and the police will give you lots of documentation attesting to that, you can probably convince the carnet authorities to release it. Normally the carnet isn't released until you return home with the bike and provide the carnet people with proof of entry into the country with the bike. (A stamp by YOUR customs people in the carnet attesting to entry)

- And just to eliminate an improbable option, is there a CC limit below which you don't have to deal with the hassles of carnet/insurance/etc?

> Less than 0cc. http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb/wink.gif

You could also just buy a bike in the local country, tour around, sell it and move on. Or buy a bike in Europe, and plan on returning there. Or, buy such a cheap bike that you can afford to "dispose" of it as best as possible, and toss the carnet. A traveller I know used that method. A very cheap bike (sub$500) gets an extremely cheap carnet, esp. in Europe. In Canada/USA the carnet cost is based on the blue book value of the bike, and will be a bond of up to 300% of that for countries like India. Which is why people buy in India. Then no carnet required while there. You can get a carnet from Europe for an Indian bike, and ride it from there to home/Europe.

Good luck, let us know how you do!

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Grant Johnson

Share the Dream!
at: www.HorizonsUnlimited.com

Thanks for the information. I have a few follow-ups.

All I really want to do is buy a cheap bike on the west side of Asia, ride it across, and unload it on the east side of Asia, without losing lots of money. I am not married to the idea of Egypt, but it was a nice starting point.

- Does buying a "cheap" bike and tossing the carnet mean that I essentially lose 300% of the value of the bike (since I will be riding through India)? I don't know if a $500 bike would make it.

- Could I sell/abandon the bike in a country which doesn't use the carnet and still get my carnet money back? If so, where would I find a list of such countries?

- You mention buying a bike in Greece. I went there, and asked at a motorcycle shop specifically about this, and they said you have to be a Greek resident to buy a bike? Have you had any experience with this?

Thank you so much!

peter

>>Does buying a "cheap" bike and tossing the carnet mean that I essentially lose 300% of the value of the bike (since I will be riding through India)? >>

Yes.

>>Could I sell/abandon the bike in a country which doesn't use the carnet and still get my carnet money back? If so, where would I find a list of such countries?

You MIGHT be able to do this, but as I noted above, you're supposed to ride the bike home. Go to:
http://www.caa.ca/CAAInternet/travel...s/frames14.htm

and see what you can find, and also contact Suzanne Danis at the CAA, she is responsible for all carnets in Canada and the US, and is extremely helpful.

Suzanne Danis - International Documentation - Technical & Travel Services
Canadian Automobile Association
1145 Hunt Club Road, Suite 200
Ottawa Ontario K1V 0Y3
Canada
Tel. 1-613-247-0117 ext. 2025
Fax. 1-613-247-0118

>>Greek resident to buy a bike?

This isn't an uncommon requirement - basically you usually need a local address - so convince the dealer that in order to make a sale he needs to let you put down his address.

This may or may not be possible, it depends on the country, it's regs and "style" of business, and your powers of persuasion. Australia for instance only requires a local address, and dealers are usually happy to let you use theirs.

Try Turkey, you may have more success there, and there is a Horizons Community in Istanbul that may be able to tell you what the story is there on buying a bike for foreigners.

Good luck,

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Grant Johnson

Share the Dream!
at: www.HorizonsUnlimited.com