Sorry for yet another post on this (I did a search but still couldn't get my head around it).

The "framework" for my upcoming journey:

Trip-Duration: 2 months EU, then 10 months through Central Asia into China, India,...Australia. After that: possibly S-America (funds permitting). In other words: more than 12 months journey time
Bike: Registered in the UK, Insured via ebikeinsurance (pay monthly), MOT until March 2009
Carnet: I'm German and can get the carnet via ADAC in Germany (note: the ADAC stopped doing carnets for non-German nationals). Hence I can't stamp the bike out in Dover.

My trip is open-ended: I might come back to the UK, I might go back to Germany, and there is also a possibility I might stay in Australia for a bit (studying - in which case I might officially import the bike into Australia & sort out the carnet somehow).

What's the best thing for me to do once I'm outside the EU?
Should I SORN the bike and cancel the insurance once I'm outside the EU (pretending that the bike is off the road & garaged in the UK)? When I get back to the UK in a year or two: Can I just re-tax it prior to arrival and pre-book the MOT?

About the Carnet from Germany: What should be my first 'Exit' stamp?Germany? Or the last EU country I'm gonna leave (Greece/Turkey)?

Another option for my return: Since I have a German carnet anyway, would it be better (or necessary?) to ship back to Germany and have the bike stamped back in the carnet? Could I then tax/insure/pre-book MOT in the UK, ride back from Germany to Dover, and then ride to the MOT?

I hope someone here can help me. Tax/Sorn/permanent export is complicated enough for me, but the German carnet adds to the confusion.

Bjorn

__________________
__________________________
http://www.panomoto.com