Category: Import Regulations

OK, the date is set. The Road Vehicle Standards Bill 2018 received Royal Assent on 10 Dec 2018. There is now a 12 month transition period to allow businesses to adjust and new management structures to be put in place. This Bill forms the skeleton of the new laws. The important detail on actual operation will be in the Regulations which have not yet been released. We will update again once this hap...

The new vehicle import regulations we have all been waiting for were finally passed by the Aust. Govt. yesterday… after 5 long years. At last, Australian consumers will have a greater choice of vehicles at lower prices including low emissions options What happens next ? There is a 12 month period before the new regulations will apply. The old scheme will be phased out over the next 2 years. ...

We are asked on a daily basis when the vehicle import regulation changes will kick in. New legislation has been proposed now for about 4 years ! Everyone is waiting for a refresh of the existing import regulations for Australia which are becoming somewhat stale and uninspiring – considering the reduced availability and rapidly rising costs of most of the desirable models out of Japan that ...

Only 23 submissions were made to the Committee reviewing the draft legislation for vehicle import regulation changes; 20 from affected businesses and industry bodies including 1 submission from the Govt. itself. Leaving just 3 submissions from individuals. With this level of apathy from Aust consumers it’s no wonder that Govt. and big business have gotten away with unfairly restricting our i...

The Road Vehicle Standards Bill 2018 and related bills have been referred by the Australian Senate to a Committee for enquiry and report back to the Govt. by 7 May 2018. The following is reproduced from an email received on 3 April 2018. Closing date for submissions if you wish to have your say, is 17 April 2018. Inquiry into the Road Vehicle Standards Bill 2018 and related bills On 28 March 201...

The new (Draft) vehicle import legislation was introduced to Parliament yesterday. The Govt. has also released a 32 page draft Cost Recovery Plan setting out proposed costs for the new SEVS. On first glance, some costs seem unreasonably high – particularly application fees of between $700 to $3,500 to evaluate a model for addition to the new SEVS list. Submissions from stakeholders are due ...

Importers of low numbers of used vehicles into Australia will now be able to import approx. 35 vehicles per year (up to 25kg of gas) without degassing or obtaining a license, thanks to recent amendments to the Degassing Laws. The rule was originally limited to no more than 5 units (in a single consignment) in a 2 year period per importer. This rule has been updated for certain aircon gas types: ...

From 1 January 2018 the 5% import duty will no longer apply to vehicles originating from Japan and the USA. A simple Certificate of Origin form must be submitted to Australian Customs at the time of completing the import entry. Removal of the 5% import duty represents a significant saving on the import of vehicles, particularly expensive ones such as GT-R’s for which the total price could en...

Import Regulation Changes will be delayed at least a further 6 months to around mid-2019 according to today’s Media Release from Minister Paul Fletcher: Stakeholder consultation period ending 28 Feb 2018 New legislation then to be passed through both houses of Parliament Reforms to commence 12 months AFTER the passage of legislation as the Road Vehicle Standards Act (RVSA) The change...

2021 UPDATE – Sorry, we are no longer taking orders for the R35 GTR as the prices are now too high in Japan for viable import. Related News – Nov 2007 to Jan 2009 R35 GTR now approved for import R35 GTR – we are receiving a lot of enquiries regarding if / when this model can be imported to Australia as a normal road use vehicle, so here’s an update. Quick Answers – ...

According to today’s Media Release from Minister Paul Fletcher, the 2019 Import Regulation Changes WILL NOT allow the parallel import of new cars. The Media Release cites “cost and complexity” outweighing “minimal consumer benefit” for this complete backflip on what was proudly announced by the Minister only 18 months ago (and still claimed to be going ahead in comm...

Latest Update December 2017 ~ 2019 Vehicle Import Regulation Changes – Draft Legislation Announced When first announced in Feb 2016 the proposed import regulation reforms sounded very positive — not only for motoring enthusiasts but for all Australians. AND a long time coming. The Need for Import Regulation Reforms The current import regulations are restrictive to trade and lead to much hi...

7News: Many car buyers wanting to purchase imports claim Australians are being ripped off, with vehicles far cheaper overseas. Typical differences in new car prices can be seen from the comparison of four popular models above. Watch the full 7News report: It’s now been 9 months since the Govt.’s last official update on the proposed vehicle import regulation changes. More reading: Lar...

With proposed changes to the Australian Vehicle Import Regulations looming in 2018, it’s worth a reminder that people movers such as the Nissan Elgrand, Toyota Estima and Mitsubishi Delica will most likely be blocked from import as a secondhand vehicle (unless they are a hybrid). There may only be 6 months left to import one of these if the changes go ahead as the Govt. has previously indi...

Numerous pages have been popping up on Facebook and Instagram in the last 12 months claiming they are busy preparing to source new cars come 2018, posting up pictures of high end cars and promising huge savings. As far as we can tell, these “businesses” don’t actually exist other than on social media, so (as always) be wary of scams and very careful to check who you are actually ...

Last week Australian Customs released an updated list of questions for imported vehicles requiring any asbestos components to be declared / removed at the time of import to Australia. Importing motor vehicles that contain components such as gaskets, brake pads and clutch pads that include asbestos is prohibited in almost all circumstances. Wharf clearance delays may result if a motor vehicle is su...

Proposed Govt. changes to the vehicle import regulations in 2018 would lead to increased competition in the Australian Car market by allowing the direct import of new cars by individuals. The Australian car industry is protected by restrictive import regulations (and taxes) which means all Australians pay much more for cars than they should, in some cases more than double. Not surprisingly, inste...

AIMVIA President, Jack Sandher, recently appeared on 7 News Sydney. AIMVIA is now regularly engaging with mainstream media, who are again taking an interest in the proposed changes to importing legislation and how it will affect both enthusiasts and everyday working families. Thanks to 7 News for helping AIMVIA get its message out to the wider public, and to Jack for braving the cameras for an int...

Under a revised and in many ways more restrictive Import Scheme for Aust in 2018, many enthusiast vehicle models will remain blocked from import if they were originally sold here new and other options will be quietly removed... It appears likely that people movers such as the Toyota Estima, Nissan Elgrand and Mitsubishi Delica (that currently form the bulk of 2nd hand imports to Australia and k...

The Australian Government is now considering the detailed thresholds against which vehicles will be assessed under the revised Specialist and Enthusiast Vehicle Scheme (SEVS 2018). Feedback on the proposed thresholds is welcomed by COB Monday 31 October 2016 to MVSAreview@infrastructure.go...

Want a comprehensive Japanese odometer check for your imported Japanese car or one you plan to buy ? Or to find out what your car sold for in Japan ? A service called Japan Car History Check provides Japanese auction records for most Japanese imports going as far back as 2007, including auction sold price in many cases. They can also access full Japan registration history from new and a re...

From 2018, proposed changes to the Vehicle Import Regulations will make it possible for new car import by anyone in Australia, not just the big car makers. Private individuals will be able to organise their own new car import to Australia every 2 years. This will apply to new cars and motorcycles from another country with comparable standards to Australia’s (including Japan and the UK). Th...

Following is the latest update from the Australian Imported Motor Vehicle Industry Association (AIMVIA). Over the past week there has been significant media interest in AIMVIA, with print and online content backed up by radio interviews in Sydney. The tone of the initial articles suggested concern by FCAI members over proposals by the Turnbull Government to relax the regulations surrounding the p...

In case you’ve not seen the news… Coordinated police raids on Sydney car dealers two days ago have resulted in one dealership, “Dream Car City”, having its trading immediately suspended. Videos below show police raids on several well known Sydney dealerships, including Edward Lees Imports on Parramatta Road. Moving sale ending Feb 2016… Prophetic. Moving to anoth...

2021 UPDATE – Sorry, we are no longer taking orders for the R35 GTR as the prices are now too high in Japan for viable import. Sept 2017 Update – 2007 to Feb 2009 R35 GTR eligible for import under SEVS 2019 How to import R35 GTR for road use is perhaps the most common question we receive on a daily basis. OK, let’s start with the current SEVS (Specialist and Enthusiast Scheme) i...

We’ve been receiving a large number of enquiries asking when it will be possible to start using the new 25 year rule to import vehicles like the early 90’s Honda NSX, as announced by the Govt. this week. Want to import Honda NSX under new 25 year import rule ? You’re definitely not alone ! ONLINE AUCTION SEARCH — start your research on any model by browsing upcoming aucti...

This morning the Govt. provided details of their plans to change the vehicle import regulations. We have briefly summarised what this will actually mean here. Under the proposed changes the NSX and other popular enthusiast models that were previously ineligible for import, as well as a wide range of new cars, will become available for road use. You can view more detail about the Australian Vehi...