Case Study 30 – Skoda Citigo from Germany

The owner contacted us about his plans to buy a 2016 Skoda Citigo and bring it to Portugal. The car was in great shape, fairly new, and came with all the right paperwork, making this one of the easier imports we’ve done.

COC Ready Before Arrival

Because the customer was still in the process of buying the car, he was able to request the COC (Certificate of Conformity) right away.

This helped us move quickly when the car arrived in Portugal.

The vehicle passed the inspection with no issues at all. The only minor challenge was locating the engine number, it took a bit of digging, but we got there!

Very Low Taxes

For cars like the Citigo, the ISV (import tax) is extremely low, just €100, which is the minimum tax for regular cars in Portugal.

Because of this low amount, we included the tax on our first invoice and paid it directly to the authorities.
This made things quicker and easier for the customer.

For higher tax amounts (typically over €1,000), we often recommend customers pay ISV themselves.

Fast Registration

Since we handled the payment immediately, the rest of the registration process was fast. The customer received his Portuguese plates in about a week; a smooth and speedy outcome.

Key Takeaways

• Small city cars like the Skoda Citigo are very cost-effective to import, thanks to the low ISV.
  If the tax is low (for example under €500-€1000), we often handle the payment on your behalf to save time.
• Having a COC ready before the car arrives is a great way to streamline the inspection, especially if you can get it for free.
• If not, we can usually provide a COC substitute quickly through a Portuguese engineer.