Buying a tax-free bike in UK
 

Hi to you all. I am starting to plan a ride from London to Cape Town in a year or so's time.
I'm considering buying a new bike in the UK on the VAT (purchase tax) free scheme and eventually exporting it at the end of the ride back home to Australia.
Has anyone any experience of whether the fact that the bike is purchased free of tax has any bearing on the international carnet system?
Or anything else for that matter.
I know that when I import it into Aus I will have to pay customs charges and probably some tax as well, that isn't what I am asking about, just the journey.

Thanks in advance, Al.

I've no direct experience of what you plan but ..
Won't the bike have to be registered before getting the carnet? Registration will require VAT\sales tax\excise duty to be paid - whatever country you choose.
Maybe a prince has diplomatic immunity?

Yes, I do have diplomatic immunity by virtue of my regal status, kneel and pay homage, O lowly one.
When you buy tax free in UK, the bike is registered on export plates.
Last time I did it (1995), I exported the bike to USA which is more relaxed on carnets.
This time, it's going to be ridden through Africa, and, who knows?, maybe S America.

Interesting ... I didn't know export plates were an aspect of the UK registration system. Best of luck with your plans.

Yours, tugging my forelock and in envious admiration of royalty's skill at avoiding taxes.

With all the faffing around with countries that have annual roadworthy inspections and registration, I reckon you'd be better taking a bike from Australia where in most States you only need an internet connection to renew/pay another year's rego. Just do the trip in reverse. That resolves all the "will I get an import approval" when the bike comes back into Australia.
I thought Germany was the only country in the EU that had export plates with one year registration and green card insurance, I used that back in 2007 for a campervan, so not exactly up to date. There were some conditions as well - cant re enter Germany.
The UK's export scheme is a nightmare if I remember correctly, you can only get the VAT back if the seller is VAT registered, the vehicle documents have to show its been permanently exported - so has to be de-registered - so no valid carnet......................plus you don't know if you'll get your VAT back until you have left the country, then you have to have a UK bank account for the refund to be transferred into. Nightmare when I was looking at it.
Now where's my guillotine for the aristos..........

Thanks RogerM. The tax free scheme for overseas visitors in UK only works for new vehicles to the best of my knowledge. You don't get a refund, you simply don't pay the tax in the first place. Take your point about de-registration though. I had considered doing the trip in reverse, taking a bike from Aus and going CapeTown to London, but tax free purchase isn't an option in Aus as far as I know.
Maybe I'll just bend over, take it like a man and buy tax-paid in UK for an easy life!

Buying an ex-demo or nearly new bike from a dealer should give you significant savings. I've often heard that the first year's depreciation is roughly similar to the VAT levied on the new price. I haven't had the luxury of testing that theory myself.

If you decide to finish the trip in UK and have a useable 650 single for sale I'd be interested to hear from you. That plan almost worked for me 10 month ago but the AUS bike broke down in Germany.

I'd be interested to see any link to this tax free scheme, and I guess a few others would too. Though I must say it sounds too good to be true, and you know what they say about that ;)

Where I suspect it may fall over is that if it's designed for bikes that are being exported to another country (you can reclaim VAT on personal permanent exports) there may be no provision for them to be used before they are re-registered elsewhere. To ride a bike in the UK it must be legal in its home country (same principle applies all over Europe) and if the home country (state of sale/registration) then I'd have thought all domestic taxes would have to be paid in order to obtain a registration number which is needed for insurance and road tax. Happy to be proved wrong.

BMW used to run a ride/export scheme from Germany, they would export the bike for you in one of their regular shipments after you'd run up 50,000kms on it. I think Guzzi also did the same. Not sure when they stopped, or maybe they haven't. Probably worth an email or two.

Buy a nearly new bike.

The VAT will have already been paid (and lost) by the first owner.

If you buy a used bike from a BMW dealer, then you will get a two year World wide warranty and European recovery included in the purchase price.

I don't doubt that such schemes exist and I was curious enough to investigate. I know uk.gov websites are usually very clear.

Here are two relevant pages for two different schemes:
1) taking-vehicles-out-of-uk
"If you buy a brand new vehicle to take out of the UK (also known as supply of a ‘New Means of Transport’) you don’t have to pay UK VAT or vehicle taxes such as the registration fee."

(Interestingly this can apply to a new vehicle going to the EU too. But that obviously isn't relevant in this case.)

2) Personal Export Scheme This seems to be the most suitable
Extract:
"This notice describes the Personal Export Scheme (PES). The scheme allows motor vehicles to be supplied in the United Kingdom free of VAT if they’ll soon be exported to a destination outside the EU. This notice sets out the conditions you must follow if you want to use the scheme, either as a buyer or a seller.

Who can use this scheme
You can use the scheme if you’re:
from outside the EU
an EU resident who’s leaving the EU for at least 6 months

You usually have to be personally driving your vehicle to a non-EU country."

That last sentance would suggest the vehicle is registered and road legal. The page also says the owner can use it for 12 months in the UK. That's a surprise!

Too good to be true?
 

Understand your cynicism, Des Senior.
Google VAT notice 707: Personal Export Scheme for further info.
I bought a bike under this scheme in 1995, rode it around the UK quite legally for a few months then shipped it to USA for what was going to be a long holiday prior to shipping it onwards to it's final destination in NZ, to where I was emigrating.
After spending some three months in USA, I concluded I was too idle to arrange shipping and sold it to a dealer for basically the same price I had paid tax-free in UK.
It's a legit scheme.

BM stopped that many years ago.
They may have started again?

Moto Guzzie .. don't know, they used to run it, but now?
Contact the local dealer? Might be possible for other Euro makes.