UK to Kazakhstan - Ewan McGregor wannbe..
 

Hi
I currently work in Kazakhstan but am from Bristol, UK.
Next summer I plan to buy a bike in UK and ride it 'home' to Almaty, KZ and import it. (DR650 or XR650 or even the new Yam 660(?))

It will start out registered in my name, I will have UK and GreenCard insurance for Europe. I can get to the edge of Europe via Slovakia, Poland. After this it get foggy in my understanding.

Now, I understand the concept of a carnet if I am on a trip and need to assure the various authorities that I am not going to sneakily import it. But I do intend to import it at the end destination.

Therefore, what do I need to prepare myself for this trip?
I suspect I still need a carnet. But that upfront deposit may be a bit difficult to find.

Re export certificate. I presume I need that to import to places? I presume I can't get it whilst still in the UK as I haven't actually exported it at that point. But will I need it at the border to KZ...?

I 'd be open to fellow travellers, so if you are interested get in touch. I have a three and a half month window to do this between June 13th and Sept 4th 2009. I speak Russian so things beyond Poland aren't so hard...

Thanks in advance for any help...

I am still investigating the Kazakh end of things. Anyone got any experience of exporting permanently into KZ? Can I do a temp import, as if I am going to return to UK with it in a year or two... as maybe I will..

Thanks
Dan

You do not need a carnet to get to Kaz. No one will ask you for one.

A "real" green card insurance will take as far as the Ukraine. After that you buy it at the borders. The bit of paper the UK insurers give you, counts for nothing outside of the EU.

If you buy the bike new in the UK, buy it for export and save the 17.5%VAT as your destination is a non-EU country. If its like other EU states, you can use it in the UK for a fixed period of time before you leave. If its not gone by that date, you will have to stump up the tax.
If you buy second-hand from a dealer, there is also a VAT saving but you may have to try and get that back after the bike has gone. Which you will have to prove.

I seem to remember big bikes are expensive in Almaty... you may pay a lot of import tax:(

John

You will need Green Card insurance as far as the Ukraine/Russia border; after this you will (currently) need to buy Russian 3rd party insurance to get from Ukraine across S. Russia and into Kaz, but bear in mind Western Russia (Yekaterinberg westwards) will be joining the Green Card scheme in Jan 2009, apparently.

You can get worldwide comprehensive insurance ie for the bike itself from the UK, but this won't help you with 3rd party cover. Try Campbell Irvine, contact name Mike Berry.