Guide · Belgium

Driving a UK-registered car in Belgium: the deadline, what approval and the BIV or TMC cost, and what to do instead

Belgian residents must register a UK car with the DIV, and Wallonia tolerates only 30 days. What approval and the BIV or TMC cost, and the alternative.

Last reviewed October 2026

How long can I keep it on UK plates?

Under the Royal Decree of 20 July 2001 (article 3), people who live in Belgium must register the vehicles they use here, even if the vehicles are already registered abroad. The obligation starts when you are entered in the national register through your commune, and the law gives no grace period. Wallonia's tax administration says its inspectors tolerate 30 calendar days; after that, if you are checked, you are in breach and pay the taxes with a fine on top. Reports in 2026 put that fine at up to 25% of the tax, with a minimum of €50, and the tax administration can also tax retroactively. The police can fine you, order you to register immediately and in some cases impound the car, and your commune won't issue a residents' parking permit for it. Exceptions are narrow: a car provided by an employer abroad for your work (with a copy of the employment contract and a letter from the employer in the car), a car lent free of charge for up to a month, or a student's car during their studies. On the UK side, the DVLA expects you to notify it when a vehicle leaves the UK for 12 months or more, as a permanent export.

Can a right-hand-drive car be registered?

Yes, right-hand-drive cars can be registered in Belgium. The inspection checks that the car meets the technical rules, so the headlamps must be set or replaced for driving on the right first. Belgian buyers pay less for right-hand drive.

What registering it involves

Technical approval at an inspection centre. A car last registered in the UK between 1973 and the end of 2020, and not modified since, goes through a validation procedure. A car first registered in the UK from 2021 needs an individual approval, by inspection or an approved technical service, and missing partial approvals mean repeat tests, some of them (such as emissions) at specialist laboratories.
Belgian third-party insurance; your insurer or broker can then submit the registration to the DIV online.
DIV registration with the approval certificate, the original UK registration document, the registration application form and proof of purchase. You receive Belgian plates.
The regional registration tax (BIV in Flanders, TMC in Wallonia and Brussels), then annual road tax.

What it costs

Technical approval: the inspection centre's fees for a validation, more for an individual approval; missing emissions approvals can mean laboratory tests that cost a lot, and without a re-test the approval says the European emission standard does not apply, which makes the Flemish BIV much higher.
Flanders, BIV from 1 July 2026: worked out from the NEDC CO2 figure, the Euro norm and the fuel for a car first registered before 2021, then multiplied by an age factor: 20% at 96 to 107 months old, 10% above that. Minimum €58.16, maximum €14,539.31.
Example (illustrative, Flanders, Euro 6, eight years old): 2018 VW Golf 1.5 TSI petrol, 116 g/km NEDC, about €140; 2018 Ford Kuga 2.0 TDCi diesel, 135 g/km, about €370; 2018 Range Rover Sport SDV6, 185 g/km, about €1,070.
Wallonia, TMC for registrations since 1 July 2025: a base amount by power (kW), reduced with age (40% of the new-car figure at eight years), multiplied by CO2 ÷ 115 for an NEDC figure, by the maximum authorised mass ÷ 1,838 kg and by a fuel factor (1 for petrol and diesel). Minimum €50, maximum €9,000; the old eco-malus no longer applies to cars. Amounts are indexed every 1 July.
Example (illustrative, Wallonia, July 2025 amounts): 2018 Ford Kuga 2.0 TDCi, 110 kW, 135 g/km NEDC, maximum authorised mass taken as 2,200 kg: base €867 × 40% = €346.80, TMC about €490.
Brussels, TMC: based on the engine's power (fiscal horsepower or kW) and the car's age, with no CO2 element; amounts have been indexed every year since 2024.
On top: plates, Belgian insurance, any headlamp work and the annual road tax.

The alternative: sell it back to the UK

The obvious comparison is driving it back to the UK yourself. From Brussels it is about 200 km to Calais, plus the crossing, the journey back and then the job of selling the car in the UK. It only works while the MOT and UK insurance are valid, and as a resident you are already past the point where the car should be on Belgian plates. We collect the car free from your address on a transporter, handle the export paperwork and pay you in pounds sterling (£) by bank transfer on collection day.

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Common questions

Can I estimate the registration tax first?

Yes. Flanders has an online BIV simulator, Wallonia publishes its TMC formula and tables, and Brussels Fiscalité publishes its rates on MyTax. You need the CO2 figure and power from the V5C, the Euro norm, the maximum authorised mass and the date of first registration.

My car was registered in the UK in 2021 or later. Is that harder?

Usually, yes. The validation procedure only covers cars last registered in the UK up to the end of 2020. A later car needs an individual approval, and if partial approvals such as emissions are missing, the tests have to be repeated, which can be expensive.

What if the MOT has expired?

Not a problem. We buy cars with an expired MOT, no UK tax or a SORN, and collect them by transporter.

I've already moved back to the UK and the car is still in Belgium. Can you collect it?

Yes. We collect from wherever the car is. You arrange access, such as the keys and a contact on site, and we agree the details by email.

Rules, rates and thresholds change. This guide is a general summary as of October 2026, not legal or tax advice — check the current position with the registration authority before relying on it.

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