Can I avoid paying registration/import tax?

Yes, the Spanish authorities will class your vehicle as part of your personal possessions brought with you to Spain and will exempt you from tax, but only within 2 months of your arrival (see below) and if you can meet the following criteria.

a) You owned the vehicle for more than 6 months (as shown on the vehicle registration document) before obtaining Padron/Residencia/paying Spanish income tax.
And Then…
a) Your original “Padron” is less than 2 months old.

IF YOU HAVE BEEN LIVING IN THE UK AND ARE A BRITISH PASSPORT HOLDER:
b) You can prove that you have lived in the UK for at least 12 months. This can be done via a letter from your employer or information from the UK tax authorities for example. Having a property, bank account or being on the electoral role is inadequate for this purpose

c) You obtain a Notary letter confirming your past and present addresses and the date that you moved to Spain
IF YOU ARE NOT A BRITISH PASSPORT HOLDER OR ARE BUT HAVE MOVED FROM A COUNTRY OTHER THAN THE UK

You may be able to obtain a Baja Consular (residency transfer document) from your Consualte (or in the case of UK citizens from the Consulate of the country in which you were previously resident)
Or you may have other official documents supporting the fact that you lived in a specific country
Please contact us for specific advice regarding this subject as it may not be straightforward
Please note that for importation purposes, the date of your arrival in Spain is taken as the date that you APPLY for your FIRST Padron at your present address (or “Residencia” at any address) so in practice, you could have been in Spain for some time before obtaining your Padron and still be exempt from the tax.

Should you need a Baja Consular, then a trip to the British Consulate in Alicante, (which covers the provinces of Albacete, Alicante, Castellon, Murcia and Valencia), is needed; we normally accompany all customers there at no extra cost. The cost of a Baja Consular is presently 168.00€ (January 2013), which is usually less than the cost of import tax.
Most countries have a Consulate in Alicante (including Ireland) and charge less than the British!