Case Study 22 – Opel Zafira from Switzerland

This 2013 Opel Zafira came with quite the story.

Our customer had previously moved from Portugal to Switzerland, taking his car along. After about three years abroad, he was returning to Portugal and wanted to bring the Zafira back with him.

Bringing the Car Back Without Taxes?

There are supposed to be rules that allow you to bring a car back to Portugal tax-free if you’ve only been gone a few years. We were initially optimistic that this would apply to our client’s situation.

However, customs didn’t agree. They didn’t seem to acknowledge the regulation, and we couldn’t proceed with a tax exemption under that rule.

Fortunately, the client was officially moving back to Portugal—and this qualified as emigration, making him eligible for a tax-free import under the standard emigration process. That said, it required a lot more paperwork than originally expected.

Dealing with Customs

Communication with customs is often vague—but when a case falls outside the norm, things get worse. Every step required back-and-forth communication, and response times were painfully slow. The entire process dragged on for months.

Eventually, though, after much persistence, the car was finally approved.

Unregistering from Switzerland

Because customs took so long to respond, the customer had to unregister the car from Switzerland before approval came through in Portugal. To complete the Portuguese registration, you need to hand in the Swiss vehicle registration—which had already been sent back.

Thankfully, the Swiss authorities provided a document confirming that the car was unregistered, which satisfied the Portuguese authorities.

A Successful Outcome

Despite the many setbacks, the client was thrilled in the end. Several people had told him that this import wasn’t possible—but with the right persistence and guidance, we made it happen. Even for this older Zafira!

Key Takeaways

• Technical possibilities don’t always translate into practical outcomes. Just because something can be done doesn’t mean authorities will want to go through with it.
• Customs can be slow and unclear—especially with complex cases.
• Non-standard imports take time. If your schedule is tight or you value your time, avoiding exceptions is usually best.