How to Import a Car from Japan to Ireland — VRT, Customs & Registration

Ireland's import tax stack for a car from Japan has three layers, and VRT is by far the largest. Understanding each layer separately avoids the confusion that comes from third-party calculators bundling them without explanation.

The Japan-side purchase price plus shipping and insurance gives you the CIF (Cost, Insurance, Freight) value that Irish customs uses as the tax base.

The Ireland-side process is distinct enough from other markets to warrant its own walkthrough. The Japan-side steps — buying through an auction agent or export dealer, deregistering the car, and loading it onto a vessel — are the same as for any destination and are covered in the importing from Japan guide. Below covers what happens once the ship leaves Japan.

The NCTS (National Car Testing Service) runs both the roadworthiness NCT and the separate VRT registration process. These are distinct services: the NCT is a roadworthiness test booked separately; the VRT inspection is a vehicle identity check required to register an imported vehicle for the first time. Do not confuse an NCT booking for a VRT appointment — they are different systems on the NCTS website.

For imported vehicles, use the Import Vehicle Examination booking at ncts.ie/importexam/. Revenue pays for one inspection appointment; if you need to rebook (because documents were missing, for example), the second appointment is at your cost. A no-show or late cancellation (within five working days of the appointment) also triggers a surcharge on future testing.

Vehicles more than 30 years old at the date of Irish registration are classified as Category C vehicles for VRT purposes and pay a flat rate of €200 regardless of their OMSP, CO2 emissions, or engine size. The NOx levy does not apply to Category C vehicles. This flat rate represents a very significant saving compared to standard VRT — a JDM classic valued at €20,000 OMSP with a 20% CO2 band rate would otherwise owe €4,000 in VRT; under Category C it owes €200.

Vintage vehicles registered under Category C qualify for a ZV (vintage) registration plate instead of a standard Irish plate, though a standard plate is also an option. The 30-year threshold is calculated from the date of manufacture — a car built in April 1995 would not qualify until April 2025 and would have qualified by the time this guide was published in 2026. Popular early-1990s JDM models — Nissan Skyline R32, Honda NSX, Toyota Supra A70, Mitsubishi GTO, Mazda RX-7 FD (1992+) — are crossing or approaching the 30-year threshold in the mid-2020s, making the concession increasingly relevant for Irish buyers.

Customs duty and any applicable import VAT still apply at importation regardless of the vehicle's age; the €200 concession applies only to VRT.

After VRT registration, two further obligations apply before the car can be driven legally.

NCT (National Car Test): Ireland's roadworthiness test is due from age 4. For a newly registered imported vehicle, the NCT is due from the date of first Irish registration if the car is already 4 years old or older, which every JDM import will be. NCT scheduling is based on age: annually for vehicles 10–30 years old, every two years for vehicles 4–10 years old and 30–39 years old (non-commercial). The €60 test checks lights, brakes, suspension, emissions, tyres, and bodywork integrity.

Motor tax: Motor tax is an annual duty paid to the local authority (county council) at the rates set by the Department of Transport. For cars registered before July 2008, tax is assessed on engine displacement in cubic centimetres — relevant to most JDM imports. Rates range from roughly €199 per year (up to 1,000cc) to €1,809 per year (over 3,001cc). A 2.6-litre RB26 engine is taxed in the 2,501–3,000cc band at approximately €1,293 per year; a 2.0-litre SR20 falls in the 1,751–2,000cc band at approximately €621 per year. Motor tax can be paid online via motortax.ie.

Irish JDM buyers occasionally consider buying a car already imported into the United Kingdom and then moving it to Ireland — especially when a specific model or spec is available in the UK market. Post-Brexit, this route has become significantly less economical than it was before 2021, and in most cases Japan-direct shipping is the correct choice.

When a Japanese car is shipped to the UK first, UK customs applies 0% duty (under the UK-Japan CEPA, which eliminated the tariff by 2026) but UK VAT at 20% is charged. When that same car then crosses into Ireland, it is treated as an import from the UK (a non-EU country), triggering Irish customs duty at 10% (unless the vehicle can demonstrate Japanese origin and claim the EU-Japan EPA rate) and Irish import VAT at 23% on the Irish CIF value plus duty. The layering of taxes — UK VAT at purchase, then Irish customs duty and Irish import VAT on entry — makes UK-sourced imports materially more expensive than Japan-direct.

Note that a Japan-direct import also owes Irish import VAT at 23%, but only once: on the CIF value at the Irish border. The via-UK route effectively subjects the vehicle to VAT twice (UK + Irish), with the Irish VAT base inflated by the UK-purchase price that already included UK VAT. For Ireland, Japan-direct shipping to Cork or Dublin is the standard and lower-cost route. The conclusion from the cost comparison: buy direct from Japan and ship direct to Ireland unless a specific UK-sourced car is the target and the price accounts for the additional tax exposure.

Kei cars and kei trucks (keijidosha) are small-displacement Japanese domestic vehicles with engines at or below 660cc. They face no age-based barrier to importation into Ireland beyond the standard process described above — there is no equivalent of the US state-by-state kei truck road-registration restrictions. Older kei vehicles crossing the 30-year threshold are eligible for the €200 flat VRT rate.

The practical consideration for kei trucks is type-approval classification on Irish registration. A kei truck is classified as an N1 light commercial vehicle (under 3.5 tonnes), not as a passenger car (M1), which affects VRT category (Category B, not A), motor tax band, and NCT-vs-CVRT (Commercial Vehicle Roadworthiness Test) scheduling. The VRT rate for Category B N1 commercial vehicles is 8–13.3% of OMSP rather than the passenger-car CO2 bands. A licensed customs broker familiar with Japanese vehicle imports can confirm the correct classification for a specific kei model at Irish customs before shipment.

A realistic end-to-end timeline from buying in Japan to driving on Irish roads:

• Winning a bid or agreeing a price in Japan: same day to a few weeks if bidding at auction.
• Japan export processing (deregistration, customs clearance, port delivery): 1–3 weeks.
• Ocean transit to Cork or Dublin: approximately 5–7 weeks by RoRo.
• Port clearance in Ireland: 2–5 working days, longer if documentation issues arise.
• NCTS VRT appointment (must be booked within 7 days of entry): appointment availability varies — budget 1–2 weeks after entry.
• VRT payment and Irish registration number: same day as NCTS appointment.
• NCT: book and pass separately — allow 1–2 weeks for an available slot.
• Total from purchase to road-legal: approximately 10–16 weeks.

The most frequent problems on the Ireland route — drawn from Irish importer forums and recurring customs broker reports — fall into four areas.

• Missing emissions data at the NCTS appointment. Revenue requires CO2 and NOx figures from the manufacturer; Japanese domestic vehicles do not always have these prominently on the export certificate. If you cannot produce an official NOx figure, Revenue may assign a default high rate. Request the emissions documentation from your Japanese exporter before the car ships.
• No origin documentation for the 0% EPA duty rate. The preference is not automatic — the Japanese exporter's commercial invoice must include a statement on origin. An exporter unfamiliar with EU trade documentation may not include this. Ask for it explicitly; without it you pay 10% duty on the CIF value.
• Missing the 7-day booking window or 30-day registration deadline. These are statutory deadlines. Driving an unregistered imported vehicle on an Irish road after 30 days is an offence. If port delays push you close to the limit, contact the NCTS and Revenue to document the delay.
• Buying a UK-registered car and assuming it transfers cheaply. As set out in the routing section, a car already UK-registered and UK-taxed will face a second customs/VAT stack on entering Ireland. The purchase price needs to factor this in.
• OMSP surprise. VRT is calculated on Revenue's OMSP, not the price you paid. For a desirable JDM model whose Irish collector value significantly exceeds its Japanese export price, the OMSP can be considerably higher than expected. Check Revenue's online VRT calculator (ros.ie) with the specific make, model, year and specification before buying.