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Buyer guide

Import & VRT explainer

A lot of Irish campers started life in the UK or mainland Europe. Here's how Vehicle Registration Tax works on them, what it can cost, and how to tell a finished import from one that could become your problem.

The short version

  • Any vehicle brought into Ireland to stay has to be registered here and have VRT paid. Revenue sets the rules and the NCTS handles the registration.
  • You have 7 days from the vehicle arriving to book the NCTS appointment and 30 days to finish registering it.
  • Motor caravans are taxed on Revenue's estimate of their Irish market value, not what you paid.
  • Since Brexit, a camper from Great Britain can owe customs duty and import VAT on top of VRT. A camper from Northern Ireland may owe only VRT.
  • If you're buying one that's already here, the only thing that counts is an Irish registration certificate plus proof VRT was paid.

Buying a camper that's already in Ireland

This is where most buyers get caught. Adverts say things like “UK reg, VRT to be done”, “import in progress” or “on foreign plates, easy to register”. Once you buy it, whatever is still unpaid becomes your bill, and the deadlines don't reset because it changed hands.

  • Irish reg and logbook: the import is done. Check the logbook describes the vehicle as a motor caravan and ask to see the VRT receipt.
  • Foreign plates, not yet registered: get the full cost of finishing the import in writing, find out when it arrived in Ireland, and price that cost into your offer. If it's been here more than 30 days, treat it as a serious warning.
  • Vague answers: “it's all sorted” with no paperwork is not sorted.

We don't feature campers with an unfinished import or VRT status on camperdeals.ie. See our listing standards.

The deadlines

  1. Within 7 days of arrival: book a VRT appointment at an NCTS centre.
  2. Within 30 days of arrival: have the vehicle registered and the VRT paid. Registering late means extra VRT. For a vehicle that needs a customs declaration, missing the deadline can mean it gets seized.
  3. After registration: you get an Irish registration number. Fit the new plates, then tax and insure the vehicle under that number.

At the NCTS centre you'll need the foreign registration certificate (the V5C for UK vehicles), proof of the CO₂ and NOx emissions, the purchase invoice, photo ID, proof of address, your PPS number and evidence of when the vehicle entered the State. Check the full up-to-date list on Revenue's NCTS page before your appointment.

How VRT is worked out on a camper

Revenue puts every vehicle into a VRT category. The category decides how the tax is calculated, so for a camper, how it's classified matters as much as its price.

  • Motor caravans: Category B. Since 1 July 2025, the rate depends on CO₂ emissions: 8% of the value (minimum €160) up to 120 g/km, and 13.3% (minimum €266) above 120 g/km. Most diesel campers are above 120 g/km.
  • The “value” is the OMSP: Revenue's estimate of what the vehicle would sell for on the Irish market, including all taxes. It isn't your purchase price, so a bargain bought abroad can still carry a VRT bill based on the Irish price.
  • Vehicles over 30 years old: Category C, with a flat €200 charge. That makes classic campers much cheaper to import.
  • Older emissions figures: vehicles tested under the older NEDC system have their CO₂ converted to a WLTP-equivalent figure first. That can push a van over the 120 g/km line.

Rough example: a diesel motorhome that Revenue values at €40,000 on the Irish market, with emissions over 120 g/km, would owe about €5,320 in VRT (13.3%). Get the real figure from Revenue's VRT calculator for the exact vehicle before you commit.

What counts as a motor caravan

To be registered as a motor caravan, Revenue expects real living accommodation, all fixed inside the rear of the vehicle:

  • Seats and a table
  • Sleeping accommodation (the seats can convert into a bed)
  • Cooking facilities
  • Storage

The living area should use the space behind the driver, and an adult of average height should be able to move around inside it. Revenue calls conversions that don't meet this “day vans”: a bed and a pull-out kitchen in the boot, or cooking you can only reach from outside. Day vans don't qualify. If the cooking uses gas, a Gas Installer Certificate should be available.

Where a van already registered in Ireland is converted into a camper, the owner has to send Revenue a Declaration of Conversion (VRTCONV). It needs photos, conversion invoices and emissions evidence. Revenue then reassesses the VRT, and more can be due. On a DIY or small-workshop conversion, ask whether this was done. It's why the logbook matters so much. See our paperwork guide.

UK, Northern Ireland or EU: where it comes from matters

Great Britain (England, Scotland, Wales)

Since 1 January 2021, a vehicle from GB is treated as coming from outside the EU. Before you register it you need a customs declaration. You may also owe customs duty, and you pay VAT at import, both on top of VRT. Some vehicles are exempt from customs duty under the origin rules or returned goods relief, but the VAT still applies. Bring the declaration's MRN to the NCTS centre.

Northern Ireland

Under the Windsor Framework, a camper bought in NI may owe only VRT, with no customs duty or import VAT. That applies if it was brought into NI under the Framework's rules, or was already in NI before 1 January 2021 and has stayed there since. A GB vehicle that was only passed through NI doesn't count.

EU countries

There's no customs duty on a used vehicle from another EU country. VAT only comes into it for “new means of transport”: less than 6 months since it was first registered, or 6,000 km or less on the clock. Most used campers pay VRT only. A left-hand-drive continental camper can still be good value, but check it will pass the Irish roadworthiness test and that you can get it insured.

Budget for the whole landed cost

  • The purchase price, plus the currency exchange cost on a sterling price
  • Ferry and travel to collect it
  • Customs duty and import VAT (GB only)
  • VRT
  • A roadworthiness test (CVRT / CRW) and any repairs needed to pass it
  • Motor tax and insurance from the day it's registered

Compare that total with Irish-registered campers of the same age and spec. Once everything is added up, a van that looks cheap in the UK can cost the same or more.

Questions to ask a seller

  • Is it registered in Ireland? Can you send a photo of the Irish logbook?
  • Can I see the VRT receipt?
  • If it came from GB after 2021, was a customs declaration made and the VAT paid?
  • Is it registered as a motor caravan? If it was converted after registration, was a Declaration of Conversion sent to Revenue?
  • If it's not registered yet, when did it arrive in Ireland, and who pays to finish the import?

Official sources

Rates here are as published by Revenue in September 2026.

General guidance only — not legal, financial or mechanical advice. Rules and fees change, so confirm current requirements with the relevant Irish authorities (RSA, Revenue, your local motor tax office) before you buy.