Importing a car from China to Italy / EU: full landed-cost guide 2026

Importing a car from China to Italy: duties, IVA, IPT, single-vehicle approval and registration

A Chinese-market car can be imported into Italy by a private person or a company. It pays EU customs duty, import IVA and the provincial registration tax (IPT), plus the EU countervailing duty if it is a new Chinese-built electric car. Without an EU certificate of conformity (COC) it needs a single-vehicle approval at the Motorizzazione before registration.

Policy checked: 26 October 2026. Each rate and step links to its official source. Customs (Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli), the Motorizzazione and the PRA decide on the actual car; nothing here guarantees the outcome.

Who can import, and what the car must be

Individuals and companies may both import: a company declares with an EORI number, a private person through a customs broker. Left-hand drive is not an issue. A Motorizzazione information sheet states that nationalising a vehicle from outside the EU requires it to comply with all EU rules subject to mandatory harmonisation, and that it is always subject to inspection and test (visita e prova) at the Motorizzazione office.

Taxes and the landed cost

1. EU customs duty 10% on the customs value (car, freight, insurance), TARIC 8703.
2. Countervailing duty on new Chinese-built electric cars, Regulation (EU) 2024/2754: BYD 17.0%, Geely 18.8%, Tesla 7.8%, other cooperating producers in the Annex 20.7%, all others including SAIC 35.3%. A manufacturer's rate needs that manufacturer's invoice with the Article 1(3) declaration; otherwise 35.3%. Under CN note C/2025/330 a car is still new if registered 6 months or less or driven 6,000 km or less, so a used car must exceed both, with proof.
3. Import IVA 22%, the Italian standard rate, charged on the customs value plus duties and transport costs to destination, per the customs agency's FAQ.
4. IPT (Imposta Provinciale di Trascrizione), paid to the province with the first PRA registration, within 60 days of the registration document being issued (see, for example, the Provincia dell'Aquila IPT regulation, Art. 7). The tariff in Decree 435/1998 is €150.81 for a car up to 53 kW and €3.5119 per kW for a car over 53 kW, and each province may raise it by up to 30%. A provincial IPT tariff filed with the Ministry of Economy and Finance spells out the method: the per-kW amount is multiplied by the car's full kW, then the provincial increase is applied (€4.56 per kW at +30%).

The Ecotassa applied only to cars bought and registered between 1 March 2019 and 31 December 2021 and is not charged today.

Two petrol SUVs, calculated live by this site's rules engine. The IPT row uses the engine's default for a car with no power on file (up to 53 kW, plus 30%, about €196). Both cars have 2.0-litre turbo engines far above 53 kW, so their real IPT is higher: above 53 kW the €3.5119 rate applies to every kW of power, so a 150 kW car in a +30% province pays about 150 × 3.5119 × 1.3 ≈ €685. When a quote carries the car's power, the calculator applies this rule. The approval row is a LandedCar planning estimate of €2,500, not an official fee or agent quote.

Landed charges come to about 49–50% of CIF, or 116–124% on top of the ex-works price, before the IPT correction above. The customs assessment prevails.

Single-vehicle approval and registration

Under Article 75 of the Codice della Strada, a vehicle's compliance can be checked one vehicle at a time, by visita e prova at the competent offices of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport. The Motorizzazione's general directorate regulates the approval of foreign vehicles as a single unit (approvazione in unico esemplare), with vehicles lacking an EU type-approval code inspected at a vehicle testing centre (CPA). For a non-EU car the office asks for the customs import document (bolletta doganale), the manufacturer's certificate of origin or conformity, technical evidence of compliance with EU rules (emissions, noise, braking, seat belts, crash protection), sworn translations and form TT2119.

Then Article 93 requires the car to be registered by the Motorizzazione and carry a registration document; the registration is passed to the PRA run by ACI. A 2020 Motorizzazione sheet lists €10.20 in fees, €32.00 in stamps and €41.78 for a rectangular plate, plus PRA charges. For a new car, an EU individual approval under Article 44 of Regulation (EU) 2018/858 from any member state must be accepted in Italy; a national approval (Article 45) is valid only where issued (Article 46). The Motorizzazione decides; LandedCar does not guarantee registration.

Shipping and customs clearance

Cars ship by container to ports such as Genoa or Naples; the calculator uses reference freight and insurance. The seller provides the invoice, export declaration, bill of lading and the Chinese certificate of conformity. LandedCar delivers to the port (FOB or CIF); the customs declaration, taxes, single-vehicle approval, Motorizzazione and PRA registration are done in the importer's name by the importer or their agent, and the responsibility for each step must be written into the quotation and pro forma invoice.

Frequently asked questions

I am moving from China to Italy. Can I bring my own car without paying duty? The customs agency's FAQ and Regulation (EC) 1186/2009 allow duty- and IVA-free import as personal property after 12 consecutive months of residence outside the EU and at least six months' ownership and use. Customs decides; approval and IPT still apply.

Does a used Chinese electric car avoid the countervailing duty? Only beyond six months' registration and 6,000 km, with proof.

Sources, checked 26 October 2026: ADM: customs FAQ · Your Europe: VAT rates · ACI: IPT tariff, Decree 435/1998 · ACI: IPT general information · Provincia dell'Aquila: IPT regulation · Agenzia delle Entrate: Ecotassa · Codice della Strada, Art. 75 · Art. 93 · Motorizzazione: non-EU vehicles · Motorizzazione: registration fees · MIT CPA: single-unit approval · Reg. (EU) 2024/2754 · CN note C/2025/330 · Reg. (EU) 2018/858, Art. 44–46 · Reg. (EC) 1186/2009 · TARIC 8703. The approval cost is a LandedCar planning estimate, not an official charge. Rules change; the decisions of customs, the Motorizzazione and the PRA on the actual vehicle prevail.