Moving To Europe VII – Shipping Your RV From USA to Europe
Pre-Post Note/ Thank you for all the support comments on my last post! We’re narrowing down clinics for Polly & Rand and will hopefully have a treatment plan in place soon. In the meantime it’s back to my “Moving to Europe” series of posts and today’s topic is one that I think will be of great interest to all my US RV friends. Enjoy!
If you have a reaaaaaly good memory you might recall that we were on the verge of buying a small rig (Leisure Van) in the US last year.
One of our big goals at the time was to use it in the US for ~6 months (= avoids having to pay import duty in Europe) and then ship it over to Europe and RV with it over here for the next 5-6 years. We were smitten with the van and really liked the US-style details (e.g. slides and large holding tanks, both of which are not common in EU), so we thought this would be the perfect option.
So WHY didn’t we go through with that plan??
Well it all came down to a single item, the very last thing I decided to check just a few minutes before we were scheduled to put down a deposit on the van. And the answer almost knocked me off my seat.
Insurance!! OM….frikkin…G! For our nifty new Leisure Travel full (comprehensive) insurance would have cost us $10,500 for 6 months which meant it was going to cost us ~$21,000/year in insurance to RV with our US-plated rig in Europe. WHAaaaaaaT???
Now there’s a reason it cost so much, and it CAN actually make sense to ship your US rig to EU, depending on your RV size/value and how long you’re planning to stay there. But there are other options too! US citizens can rent RVs in Europe (perfect for short stays), but they can actually also buy, even without residence or a local address (there’s a sneaky way to do it!). These are BIG topics however so I’m just going to talk about the first one today -> shipping a US RV to Europe. We’ll cover everything from costs to mods, insurance and hidden “gotchas”. Here goes….
Shipping Options & Costs
Shipping your RV from US can actually make sense if you’re planning longer-term travel around Europe. Bringing your RV with you means you’re ready to go RVing as soon as you land, and if you keep US plates on the vehicle that means you don’t have to worry about going through local registration, or getting a local drivers license, or any of that stuff. Plus the shipping part is actually quite affordable.
Type Of Shipping: The first thing you should understand is that there are basically 2 ways to ship vehicles over the ocean. You can ship them as Roll-On, Roll-Off (RoRo) where your RV is driven up a ramp into the open hull of a shipping vessel, tied down for shipping and then simply driven off the ramp on the other side. Alternatively you can ship them inside a standard shipping container (20ft, or 40ft, if it fits), which is then loaded onto a container ship. The former is much cheaper and easier and what most folks go with for vans and RVs.
Shipping Lines & Agents: There are several large vehicle-shipping companies that can accomodate your RV or van across the ocean. Wallenius-Willemsen (www.2wglobal.com/) and K-Line (www.kline.com) are 2 big names. However most folks don’t book directly with the shipping line, but instead use an Agent or Broker that specializes in RV shipments. The advantage of the latter is that they organize everything for you, including the mass of paperwork & docs required for transport & customs clearance (no small matter!). SeaBridge is a reputable name and one that many RVers use. IVSS is another big one.
Shipping Costs: Rig size & value are the 2 biggest factors for shipping costs. RORO prices for vehicles are normally priced by cubic metre (CBM = length x width x height in metres), for the type of vehicle shipped (larger vehicles have higher CBM rates). For vans & small RV’s, current rates run around US$50-53 per CBM. Measurements must include everything that “sticks out” such as side-mirrors, bumpers, hitches or air-cons. For this reason, folks will often remove as much of this stuff as they can before shipping. Obviously, the larger in total volume your vehicle is, the more it costs. Marine insurance, if you opt to pay for it is extra, and runs around 1.5% of the cost of your rig (so, the more expensive your rig, the more it costs to insure for shipping). In addition you may be charged security fees, gate fees, document fees, Terminal Handling Charges (THC) & clearance fees.
Example RORO rates:
http://ro-ro.internationalshippingusa.com/Home.aspx
https://ivssuk.com/roll-roll-off-roro-shipping-rates/
Shipping Ports: The other factor in shipping costs is where you ship from and to. When shipping from the US you’ll want to chose an exit port on the East Coast (MUCH cheaper than shipping from the West) and then you’ll need to chose your import port on the other side. Popular export ports are Halifax, Canada, Charleston SC & Brunswick NC. Popular import ports are Antwerp, Belgium, Zeebrugge, Belgium and Southampton, UK. Which port you use affects your costs! Some US-EU routes are cheaper than others, so definitely work with a shipper & shop/ask around on this.
Pro-Tip/ DO NOT ship to Germany since they require you to post a bond equal to 29% of the value of the vehicle, in cash, before they will release the vehicle, which is only returned to you when you leave the EU within 6 mo of arrival. Other European ports do not have this restriction.
Booking & Shipping Time: Folks recommend booking 1-3 months in advance of your dates (cargo shipping routes typically aren’t fixed more than 3 months in advance). Actual shipping only takes ~10 days, but you may have to drop off your RV a few days before that date at the origin port, and it may take some days for release/clearance on the other end. So plan for around 2-3 weeks total transit time.
RV/Van Modifications
An additional thing you need to consider before you bring your RV or van to Europe is that you’ll need to make some mods to it so it can function once it arrives
Voltage Differences – Europe operates on 230V whereas US operates on 110V so if you try to plug your US-based RV directly into a European pedestal it will burn out all your electrics! To prevent this you’ll need to install a step-down transformer (230v down to 110v). They are sized by wattage, so make sure to buy the size* you think you’ll need to run your most power-hungry appliance. In addition make sure to buy a collection of adapter plugs so you can plug your rig into the European-style pedestals.
*NOTE/ You Can’t Run It All: An additional thing to be aware of is that campsites in Europe are rated and tend to have very restricted supplies. They are generally rated at 16A or 10A, sometimes as low as 5A (all 230V of course), so even if you get a mega-sized transformer you won’t be able to plug in and run everything in your US RV all at once. Most of the time you’ll have to conserve/limit what you turn on in order to prevent tripping the main power supply. So plan on running your appliances one at a time and size your transformer for that.
Frequency Differences – The other little electricity wrinkle for US-built RV’s is that US electricity operates at 60Hz, whereas everything in Europe operates at 50Hz. Now most electronic devices these days are designed to run on either 50Hz or 60Hz, so they won’t care either way. But certain appliances with frequency-sensitive parts like motors and solenoids are designed and wound for a specific mains frequency (e.g. things like A/Cs, microwaves and washing machines may suffer a bit with the incorrect frequency). You can buy transformers that convert both voltage AND frequency, although they are pricier than simple step-down versions, but from reading through various forums most folks don’t seem to worry too much about it. Their washing machine may run a bit slower or their A/C may not cool as well, but they just live with it.
Propane Fittings – Propane fittings are different in EU & they differ by country too, so you’ll need several different types of propane fittings in order to refill your tanks. US-style fittings are called “ACME” so what you’re looking for is are “ACME to Europe Refill Adapters”. Roadtrekker did a good article on this HERE.
Other Common Mods– Although not required for your RV to function, many folks choose to add solar to their rigs either before or after they land in Europe. This is great for boondocking (there are lots of free places to camp in Europe) or for situations where you just don’t feel like plugging in. Also some folks choose to wire up a separate 220/240V system (with 220/240V outlets) to run European-style appliances inside their rig. Again not required, but kinda nice if you decide to buy any European appliances (e.g. kettles, hair dryers etc.) down the line.
Why Not Just Use Your Generator? Many modern US RV’s have generators that can run the entire RV, so why not just use that as your main power supply in Europe? Well noise control here is a big deal so many European campgrounds either limit or (more commonly) prohibit generator usage altogether. You may be able to use it every now and then, but don’t count on it as your main source of power.
RV/Van Size & Fuel Costs
One thing you cannot ignore when you come to Europe are RV size and fuel costs.
First of all everything is MUCH smaller here. Roads are narrower (especially in towns), campsites are smaller and some places even have limits on the width and weight of vehicle you can drive. So, although it CAN be done (there are several active forums in UK that specialize in large US-style motorhomes), I personally wouldn’t recommend bringing your 40-foot RV to Europe. You’ll be VERY limited in where you can go and what you can do.
Smaller vans or RVs are much better suited. Around 6m (just below 20ft) is superb and will get you in everywhere, plus you’ll save a ton of costs in ferry crossings and other places that price by size (prices jump significantly beyond 20ft). Around 7-7.5m (22-25 ft) is on the larger size, but totally do-able. You’ll pay more in ferry crossings and such, but you’ll be able to travel almost everywhere with ease. Above 8m (26 ft) is considered very large. You’ll start to feel limited.
Lastly fuel costs are a big deal. You might think $3 per gallon is expensive for diesel in the US, but here in Europe $6-10 per gallon is not out of the norm. So that 8 mpg guzzler you’re driving in the US will become a MONSTER of a guzzler over here. Smaller RVs get much better gas mileage, and will be much cheaper in the long run for travel around Europe.
UK-Based Resources For American RV Owners:
- The American RV Club: http://www.arvclub.co.uk/
- American RV Magazine: https://www.arvm.uk.com/
- American RV Owners Club: https://www.rvoc.co.uk/index.html
RV/Van Insurance
The other thing that you’ll have to consider before you bring your RV/van to Europe is driving insurance, and you’ll need to take care of this BEFORE you ship it over (you’ll need proof of that your RV insured to drive around Europe before it can be released to you at your destination port). American vehicle insurance will NOT cover you in Europe, so you’ll need to buy insurance from a specialized broker that covers US-plated vehicles abroad. There are only a limited number of agents who offer it (Thum Insurance and Tour Insure are two reputable names), and it is NOT cheap!
Important items to consider:
Type of Insurance (Basic Vs Comprehensive): As with all insurances you can buy the bare minimum or buy something that covers more. In Europe, the bare legal minimum is liability insurance. However this ONLY covers claims from others/third party if you are in an accident and does not cover ANY claims of damage/theft/loss to your own vehicle. If you want to cover your own vehicle, then you need a comprehensive insurance policy. The latter is much better, but also MUCH (much, much!!) more expensive, especially if you have a valuable (= expensive) RV.
Coverage Countries: Most European insurances will cover you across all European countries, but they may not cover you in certain Eastern Europe countries, or if you decide to winter in N.Africa. Always make sure you get a list of which countries are covered by your policy.
Coverage Time: The companies that insure US-Plated vehicles in Europe will typically price you in increments of either 30, 60 or 90 days (multiplied up if you want 6 mo or 12 mo coverage) so make sure you understand how long your coverage is valid when you get your quote.
Do I need A “Green Card”: If you Google international insurance you might come across the term “Green card”. This is simply an internationally-recognized certificate that proves you have the minimum compulsory insurance required by the law for the country (or countries) you’re visiting. It is no longer required in the EU, but if you’re RVing around it’s a “nice to have”(just makes life easier since it’s so well recognized). Most insurance agents will send you one for free after you buy your policy.
Pro Tip: If you only plan to RV part-time in Europe (say, you fly home to USA in-between Visa Stay limits), you can reduce insurance costs by cutting back your policy from fully comprehensive to just 3rd party, fire and theft when your RV is off the road in storage. Some storage places (e.g. in the Netherlands) will even include fire and theft for you.
Additional Gotchas? The 6 Month Rule
An additional “gotcha” which you’ll want to understand if you’re planning to bring your US vehicle to Europe is that US Plated vehicles (= vehicles meeting US emissions) can only legally stay in the Schengen Area for six months out of any calendar year*. If they stay longer than that they are supposed to be formally imported and switched to European Standards & European Plates.
If you’re a US citizen traveling on a regular tourist visa this won’t be a big deal since it will kinda match your tourist visa limits (US citizens are only allowed to stay in the Schengen Area 90 days out of every 180), but if you went through the process of getting a long-term stay visa before you came to Europe you might find yourself in a bit of a pickle. YOU can stay as long as your visa says you can, but your vehicle cannot. So, you’ll need to take your vehicle outside of the Schengen Area for the remaining 6 months of the year.
But I’ve Heard Of People Leaving Their US-Plated RV’s In Europe For Years? Yup, despite the official 6-month rule there are plenty of American’s who’ve come over with their RV’s and simply left them here for years, storing them in EU storage whenever they travel back to USA. So what’s with up that? Well, technically it’s not legal, but the reason folks get away with it is that EU countries don’t really have any formal way to check & track all the various vehicles that are driving around in Europe. So that’s why you’ll rarely hear the 6-month rule being talked about.
One Last Tip – Get An International Drivers Permit (IDP)
One last thing you’ll want to consider before you bring your RV to Europe is to get yourself an international Drivers Permit.
It’s basically an internationally-recognized translation of your US drivers license and although it’s not required in most EU countries, some countries like Austria, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, ond Spain DO require it by law.
Plus it’s SUPER easy to get! You simply submit an application at your local AAA office (you can also mail it in) with a copy of your US State License, an ID photo and $20. 15 mins later you’ll walk out with an International Drivers Permit that is valid for a year. Easy peasy!
What About Switching Your RV To European Plates?
With insurance costs and the 6-month limit thing you might be thinking it makes more sense to formally import your RV into a European country and switch it to local plates. This will not only reduce insurance costs (WAY, WAY cheaper), but it will also allow your vehicle legally reside in Europe longer-term. So why not just do that?
Well, it’s not quite that simple….
First of all European technical standards are different from US standards, so you’ll need to go through a conversion process to get your vehicle compliant. The exact conversion you need to do will depend which country you are registering it in. For example in UK, headlamps need to be changed, amongst other things. In France it’s headlights and more. This takes time and money. Secondly each EU country has its own registration and emission requirements, so you’ll need to research how to register your vehicle and pass MOT emissions in the particular country where you’re registering your RV. Lots of paperwork and time involved in this one too.
Lastly YOU, as the owner, will also need to be legally resident (you can’t do all this on a tourist visa), so that means additional paperwork for the humans involved. Plus if you’re staying in Europe, you’ll eventually need to get a local license, and if your RV weight limit is above that of a standard drivers license (generally 3.5 tonnes in most of Europe) then you’ll need a special drivers license too.
All this said, if you’re settling somewhere in Europe and you can’t bear to leave your US RV behind there are companies who specialize in modifying US RV’s to be compliant. Some good examples in UK are LAS Motorhomes, Itchy Feet, and Signature RV, and in Germany ICF US Motorhomes.
What About Import VAT & Duty? If you’re switching your RV to Europe plates then you have to think about import taxes. In Europe these are big $$$ so you definitely don’t want to ignore them, but thankfully they’re not a problem as long as you’ve owned your RV for long enough before you ship it over. If you’ve been living in the US for more than a year (i.e. you’ve been living outside the EU zone for the past year) then you can bring your RV into EU free of duty and VAT as long as you have owned it for at least six months. So just make sure you meet those requirements before you ship it over.
So Should You Do It?
Well obviously it depends. I think shipping a rig to Europe can definitely make sense if you’re planning to RV over here for a few years and you have a smaller, older rig where insurance costs won’t be crazy. You land “ready to go” and don’t have to worry about acquiring an RV once you’re here. However if you’re coming for a shorter vacay OR you have a larger/newer (= more expensive) RV then I don’t personally feel it makes much sense. There are other options which are more economical and better suited to Europe travel. THAT however, my dear blog readers, is the topic for an entirely different blog post.
Got any questions about shipping an RV to Europe? Or want to share your personal experience With this? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below!
External Blogs On Taking An RV To Europe:
WOW – another GREAT blog by Nina the Genius! Even though this particular topic doesn’t affect us personally, I’m so impressed with the depth and value of everything in this article! WheelingIt is STILL the first best choice for RVing info, especially for beginners, on all subjects! (We always recommend it to ‘newbies’ who stay with us through Boondockers Welcome). And Nina, I don’t know how you manage to keep up with it all, along with all your New Home and Furry Medical problems! Well done!
Thanks much for the recommendations! Always appreciated.
Nina
As usual awesome post, Nina. So detailed and thorough – a great resource for anyone thinking of bringing a rig over.
We never thought about bringing our RV from the US over because it was a trailer and too wide and heavy for Europe. But if we had a motorhome we may have investigated it. But I agree with you it’s a timing thing. There would be some serious downsides to having a American rig in Europe. As well as the electric, dumping a black tank would be really difficult – cassette toilets are the norm and honestly I am not sure what we would do with a black water hose.
The other thing I would add if you are coming for a while – the rigs here are totally awesome. Yes they are smaller and don’t have slide outs. But from the few months we have been in our German built motorhome the build quality is in a whole different league to anything we saw in the US. (Touch wood nothing breaks now I said that). Obviously everyone has different needs, but from our experience so far it is well worth considering if you would be better getting something in Europe than going to the trouble of importing.
Fabulous insight Kate. Thanks so much for sharing!
Nina
We also RV’ed in Spain and Portugal for two months with a little 22 foot rig. Yes, the holding tank is smaller and the cassette toilet is a little different to figure out, but I personally would not want an American RV in Europe. Just dumping the black tank would be an issue because the dump stations are not designed for that… they’re designed for cassette toilets.
I just don’t see the hassle being worth it.
The European RVs are definitely better suited to both the roads and campsites over here. That said, a van would do well. Most of the Americans we know that have bought over rigs have shipped either vans or smaller Cs.
Nina
Love this post, love your writing. Thank you for all your research. So from all this great information and what Kate said-I guess it maybe a better idea to bring a rig from Germany over to the US? A German Class B maybe in the cards.
We do know a few Europeans that have shipped their rigs to USA. Of course they had to modify their rigs in order to handle the electricity and propane fittings, but it worked. Not sure what insurance costs are in that direction though….
Interestingly enough Hymer (big, big, big RV manufacturer in Germany) recently started selling rigs in USA through Hymer North America. It’ll be interesting to see how they do.
Nina
Great information! We came to exactly the same conclusion in our research. We sure were excited, though, about having at least one slide and, most of all, larger holding tanks. Ah, but it’s not meant to be. Instead, we’ve got our sights on the Hymer range. It’s really going to take some getting used to going from an American Class A to a European one, but oh well. Such is the sacrifice we make, right?
The Hymers are nice. We’ve been looking at lots online, but haven’t had the chance to check them out in person. They’re high on our wish list.
Nina
Fantastic information. You are the best as always!
That was a really good report. The insurance cost (even the basic public liability) shocked me! Adding in round trip shipping and insurance costs makes renting over there sounds like a better idea.
There have been a couple of people who have shipped VW campers to Europe & wrote about it on the vanagon email list in the last couple of years.
You’d have to look if you were interested… http://gerry.vanagon.com/archives/vanagon.html
Vans are a good option for Europe. We know a few van travelers over here and the size works great. Our friends Mali Mish are shipping theirs over in a few months too. It’s going to be fun to follow their journey.
Nina
Wonderful and thorough report, as always. Which leads me to ask whether you might consider doing a post on your review and comparison of smaller RVs, as you mentioned almost buying a new one. As someone who will take early retirement in August (age 62), i would be immensely grateful if you did your usual sharing of your critical analysis of what you looked for and what you found in the aborted search for a potential RV to take to europe. No worries if you don’t as i can imagine all you have your hands full with, given the paws, and all the transition stuff, plus life. All the best, and thank you for all your posts.
I don’t have enough pics/insight for a full blog post on that, but I can certainly tell you what brands we liked the most. For regular van-size Roadtrek makes a great product. They were too small for me (I get claustrophobic), but if I was able to handle it, that would definitely have made the cut. Pleasure Way also make nice quality vans. For the larger vans, B-type product we really like Leisure Van, both for the build quality and layout. Top notch stuff. If we were going Class C we would have been looking at Born Free (now out of biz), or Minni Winnie’s, both great products. In the used Class C space Lazydaze are another quality name.
Hope that helps you get started….
Nina
Excellent post! I plan to visit Europe (without a rig haha) but I do want to have one in the coming years in the states.
I wouldn’t believe that you could actually downsize to a 20 foot or less RV. How would the pets cope with you gone being used to The Beast?
Gas prices locally are around $2.709 while Costco is usually around .12 cheaper than that and around 8 miles from the house (didn’t look it up on the way here as I don’t need gas currently (over 3/4ths full). The price was on the way over here to the library.
Funny how I can do RV Geeks posts from home, but not on your blog.
The Leisure Van that we almost bought was ~25 feet. That’s around the size we’re planning to focus on over here. Layout was really innovative and would have worked well for us and the paws I think. I do find a huge difference between 20 and 25 foot RVs. The former would be too small for us.
Nina
We are selling a 2008 Winnebago View 23J that we bought that was shipped to the EU, all VAT/taxes etc are paid. We’ve visited 25+ countries over last 5 years as we have it legally registered & insured in Ireland. Our RV has only 30 K well maintained miles & is in great condition. A dream come true for us & it could become the dream for you too. Contact me for further info.
hello mike , just wondering how much did you sell the view 23j for.
all the best , Paul.
Hi Mike
Was it difficult getting an RV from USA to Ireland?
I’m considering doing just that
A 25ft RV price $120k
Roy
Hi, just read your information on your Winnebago, don’t know if it’s still valid info, as it may have Sold??
If it is available, could I get more information on it, Location, Price and Pictures?? I’m in GA and considering taking a vehicle to Ireland…ASAP!!
Really helpful and informative post for shipping of your car from USA to Europe. Thanks for Sharing.
Merry Christmas and thank you for all the helpful and detailed info.
On transformers, have you found a transformer to convert the FRQ as well as Voltage to US standard? There was a company in UK that used to have a transformer to convert 230V to 110V as well as 50 Hz to 60 Hz upto 30 A. unfortunately their web site is gone.. thanks and happy travels..
I’ve found a few companies that offer transformers which convert both voltage & frequency, but admittedly they are not cheap. Here’s some options:
GoHz offer a full range of products: http://www.gohz.com/single-phase-frequency-converter
Falcon also offers a product: https://www.falconups.com/home-page-links/international-freq-converters.htm
There are probably others, but I haven’t looked into it in toooo much detail. Hope you find something that works for you. If not, I think a simple step-down will handle *most* of your needs.
Nina
great.. thank you.. happy new year
“The 6 Month Rule” I recently spoke with the Netherland embassy and they said that didn’t apply for tourists. As long as you leave after 90 days you can leave your RV in storage and come back for it.
Great info. Very good to know.
Nina
Great information – thank you – – one Question – could you keep your RV full with your stuff or where there restrictions what you could take with you?
Hi there! Very good info, I new most of them and I am trying to decide if I should bring my RV there or not! I would appreciate suggestions….here is the story:
We are a family of 4, all of us have dual citizenship (US and Italian) and we often spend the summer in Sicily. We have a home with lots of land there and we are going to renovate the house on that land there but it won’t be ready for this summer. So if the virus will be gone we are thinking to ship our RV (Motorhome type A) there, and put it on the land. It’s an old (mid 70′) Bluebird Wonderlodge. My idea is to keep it there forever…so I am trying to figure out if it’s convenient to do so with the whole conversion and all! We own it for about 5 years now so I guess the VAT is not a problem. What do you think? TIA
I think the biggest issue you might have is registration of the motorhome in Italy (registration can be a long process here in EU). I don’t know if it’s required to register in Italy (if the motorhome is never going to leave your piece of land), but I’d recommend looking into that just in case. Other than that you’d obviously want to look at shipping costs & figuring out how the motorhome is actually going to make it from the port onto your piece of land.
Other than that I can’t see any issues with the plan?
Nina
Thank you for sharing this information, we are thinking of going back to Spain and taking our motorhome with us, thank you very much.. !!
Where do you currently live? Do they live in the motorhome?
good luck
We are currently based in France. We don’t fulltime travel in the motorhome anymore (only part-time), but there are many people who do in Europe.
Nina
Hello there.
Thanks for this AWESOME post.
I’ll see if it has changed a lot since, but that’s a great base to start for me and my wife.
We are Belgians living in the US (two years already, three more to go) and we always looked at the Airstreams. Our project is to buy one here, use it as much as we can then take it back to Europe.
Hopefully, somewhere (US or EU) we can do full time airstream living (working remote could be an option for me)…
So we can’t go with the tiny models (couldn’t live a year in 16feet). But can’t take the biggest (30 feet in EU, it’s a huge no-no).
Currently looking at 20-23feet models… And starting to look at whether or not it’s doable.
This page will be of a huge help.
Thank you so much. 🙂
Hi Nina!
Thanks for the blog post.
We are 2 years behind schedule, but are starting to make plans on shipping across the ponds in the fall.
Hope you, Paul and the fur babies are doing well. Maybe our paths will cross again in Europe.
Yeahhhh! How exciting for you! Let us know when you land this side of the ocean.
Nina
Hi Nina,
Thank you for all of the info you’ve posted. It’s helped me consider everything in the shipping of my 28ft RV/Motorhome here from the US to Sweden. We’ve considered the shipping, the insurance (for shipping and while in Sweden), changing the plates and our licenses to those of Sweden and we understand where to drive/park in Sweden to not break any Swedish laws. Our RV has the amber (yellow) turning lights as for a European standard and we’ll have our electricity wired correctly (and use what you’ve suggested for the electrical European standard). My question, if you’re willing, is are there any additional standards that our RV/Motorhome should meet to be easier to register in Sweden?
Let me also add, our RV is an old school bus that we’ve had converted to an RV by removing all seats and building to the likeness of a true RV. We’ve heard that this is ok as long as we’ve never changed the engine and have had the RV for at least a year.
Thank you, Nina.
Hi Noah,
To be honest I have very little info about registration of non-EU vehicles in Sweden. I know that what you’re doing would be near-impossible in France as any vehicle that has been converted into a camper has to meet all French regulations & norms (including the conversion itself) before it can get French plates. That requires several packet-loads of paperwork, including inspections by two separate French authorities, plus a certificate of conformity from the original manufacturer of the vehicle….and it’s expensive. Honestly most folks who self-convert end up selling before importing to France.
That said, the process in Sweden could be completely different!! So I say this not to put you off, but just to put you on alert that it could be much, much more complicated than you might originally think. My suggestion for you is to call the Swedish Transport Styrelsen (https://www.transportstyrelsen.se/) and ask them directly what it would take to convert register your self-converted camper & get Swedish plates.
Another option you may want to think about, if you’re not settling in Sweden permanently, is to simply drive on your US plates around Europe. The insurance is expensive, but it may be an easier (and cheaper) option than registering your camper in Sweden. Of course if you’re settling there, this is not an option.
I wish you the best of luck with everything!!
Nina
Great post. My situation is this: I have a tow vehicle I love (Subaru Outback) and a little teardrop camper (Vistabule) that I love. The combination gives me the flexibility to unhitch and explore by car, gas mileage and travel are easy. Your thoughts on taking a “caravan” arrangement to Europe? I’d like to stay in France/Schengen for 90 days, also travel in UK for, say, 90 days, then ship back. Your thoughts? Also, how much of an issue would it be to travel w/a teardrop camper if the tow vehicle is the usual US left hand drive?
Hi Kate,
Lots of folks caravan around Europe, so you will be in good company with your teardrop. It’s actually very common in Denmark, and Holland. The British love their caravans too. The left-hand drive will not be an issue, and as long as you’re properly insured you can take it everywhere. There are probably only two things I’d recommend you think about.
1/ Aires – Most of the low-cost Aires in France & across Europe only allow motorhomes, not caravans. This is not in and of itself a massive issue as you will be able to camp at regular campgrounds along the way, but it will limit you a smidgen on where you can stay. Also, many campgrounds in France & N.Europe are seasonal (i.e. they close over winter). You just need to be aware of this.
2/ Costs – I’m not completely sure of the costs to ship both a car plus trailer (vs just one vehicle) across the pond. I’d recommend you price it out to decide if it’s worth it for you (vs. renting, or tenting for example). Obviously the longer you stay in Europe, the more worthwhile your idea becomes. Perhaps a longer stay than 6 months? No reason you can’t as long as you have the time & abide by Schenghen stay rules (90 days every 180). Stay open to the idea.
Nina
Very complete post. I’ve spent almost a year pursuing a lot of the same information and basically gave up on importing a Class A RV (an Entegra Reatta XL 39BH) which I wasn’t planning to actually tour in, merely park and live in, maybe move it from one European big city to another maybe twice annually. Would mostly hang on the far edges of Paris where I’ve lived off and on over the years. Currently I’ve decided to import a fifth-wheeler (probably the Grand Design Solitude 379MBS-R). The big impediment was the VAT, although there was a long list of unknowns still after carefully reviewing your writing. Questions about ownership (without European residency which I actually had at one point), registration and insurance abound. What I need is a responsible European agent or someone on your side of the Atlantic (I’m in California) to nail down the details. Could you suggest one? For now at least can’t be a Brit because of Brexit,a t least that I know (e.g., Signature). They’re as foreign to the EU as we are now. I’m going to spend April to July next Spring in Paris trying to figure this whole business out although the sooner I can understand what i can and can’t do in detail, the sooner I can buy what I want here and start the six-month clock running. Any chance we could talk. My email is here. Really would like to connect if there’s a chance. Even hire you to get whatever I buy to Le Havre.
We are looking for an insurance for the RV in Europe. We are owners of a motorhome (camping car). We have the project of bringing it to Europe and travel there for a few years. We plan using the camping car for approximately 90-120 days each year and then store it for the remaining days. We plan visit: Austria, Switzerlang, Germany and France.
The vehicle is and will continue, each year, to be registered in America. Our driving license is valid for driving vehicles weighing up to 4,500 Kg. Our RV, fully loaded 3985 kg.
Vehicle Description :
Class B, Pleasure-Way Lexor, 2018, One propane tanks with a capacity of 36 liters which are permanently attached to the vehicle. The vehicle has two axles and single tires per axle (four tires in total for the vehicle). The motorhome measures: 637 cm in length, 250 cm in width and 283 cm in height. We are expecting doing between 6000 to 9000 km annually.
I would like to know if you know an insurance products for our motorhome suitable to our project. For our part, we have all the required personal insurances and do not require any.
We are looking at getting our motorhome across at the mid of July.
Thanking you in advance and hope read you soon. .
Denis Mercier
I’m not an insurance agent. Suggest you contact the two companies I mentioned in the post (Thum Insurance and Tour Insure) for a quote.
Nina
Your RVing in Europe is excellent, my wife and I have a Forest River, Cedar Creek, Champagne edition 5th wheel which we have used in Europe since 1999. If any of your readers want to see Europe for a long period or visit Europe on and off you can store your 5th wheel or RV without any problems in any EU country. We have detailed information on same in Spain where we have lived in our 5th wheel since 1999.
You c an buy new 5the wheel and usa manufacture RV plies resales of what ever model you want just advertise on the right facebook page and you will find what you want,
Anyone want info or info on the above please feel free to contact me on hba974-alan@yahoo.com
Great article! Sounds like you have some extra knowledge on transporting to France. We are moving to France full time and was thinking about bringing our 32′ Class C along because it fits our family so well. Would you recommend it in general? Or is it a very large expense and/or inconvenience? I noticed you said something about a lot of paperwork to register it in France. Thanks for your thoughts!
Sorry for the late reply. I would not recommend bringing your Class C if you are moving permanently. The import paperwork would be enormous, and difficult.
Nina