Shipping USA Motorcycle from Canada to Italy
 

I have air cargo booked for my USA registered motorcycle, flying from Toronto, CA to Rome, IT.

The agent with AirCanada suggested Rome or Paris over London destination because customs was supposed to be easier to deal with outside of the UK.

Now, as I read through shippers information, I find that my vehicle may be subject to a 30% deposit with customs because it is less than a year old. I was reading this about cars on a sea-based shipper website.

Does anyone know if temporary tourist import of a motorcycle to Italy is subject to this 30% of the value deposit?

If so, are there other European destinations that are not so expensive with regard to customs fees.

If not, I may have to abandon plans to bring my 2018 motorcycle and bring my 2014 since they are not subject to this rule, at least for cars.

Your help and experience is appreciated.

Simon
Albuquerque, NM

i was going to ship to Venice before I saw your post and actually found the site u mentioned. There is a guy on fb group mentioning something similar but end up paying nothing after a change of custom officer on different day (but i'm not sure how old his bike is)

https://www.facebook.com/groups/theh...7279910701937/

i saw others mentioned that it would be easiest entering through france/swiss/germany.

If you end up shipping to italy please let me know how it went as i'm planning to do the same but i may just ship to geneva if it makes things easier. Good luck!

^^^That guy in the FB post is confessing to customs fraud (and his bikes are going to be impounded by the Slovenian police most likely).

The key is making the Italian customs guy understand that you're only transiting via the EU, not importing the bike to stay there.

Hi Simon:

I've never heard of such a thing (30% deposit) in my life, and I've shipped my motorcycle between Canada and Europe several times.

As long as the customs people in Europe (Rome, in your case) have no reason to believe that you are anything other than a bona fide tourist who has brought their own vehicle with them, you should not encounter any problems at all.

To expedite clearing your bike through customs, I suggest you have the following documents on hand when you show up at the freight shed / customs office to fetch the moto:

1) Proof that you have the required European 'Green Card' insurance. This means the 'Green Card' (in reality, a green-colour slip of paper) itself.

2) Proof of your ownership of the motorcycle and that it is validly licenced in your home jurisdiction. This would be whatever document your home state issues that shows you own it and it has a valid licence plate on it.

3) If you have already made arrangements with Air Canada to ship the moto back to North America, it would't hurt to have documentation of that with you. It's not at all essential, but it would support your contention that you are only temporarily importing the vehicle for tourist purposes.

4) Likewise, if you already have a return air ticket for yourself, bring it with you, just in case the customs folks have any doubts about whether you plan to return to your home country or not.

5) Lastly, bring your passport. This shows that you have the right to reside in your home country and are not likely to claim refugee status in Italy.

I've never flown my motorcycle into Italy, so, I can't tell you what the Eyetalyun officials are like to deal with. I've flown it into England, France, and Germany, and in every case, all customs cared about was that it was not stolen (hence the proof of ownership) and that it was properly insured for use in Europe (hence the green card).

I can only presume that they looked at me and came to the conclusion that I was in fact a legitimate tourist, not some shady character who planned to leave his moto behind in Europe. FYI, my moto was brand new, less than a few months old, the first time I flew it into France.

Michael