Hiya all
HELP please!!..after driving my Guernsey-registered car to 8953 Dietikon I found out that i should have declared it at the point of entry (not that the kind lady who checked my luggage pointed that out...) and I'm now stuck with no import number without which I can't do the insurance and therefore the registration + licence plates... plus, I got hold of Zurich Connect (former Zuritel) and they tell me that i can't have an insurance without Swiss licence plates ??? i thought it was the other way around... and TCS says that i can't get an insurance without a B permit? my permit application is stuck somewhere in a burocratic nebula and i can't drive until it comes back??
so, does anybody knows where (if) I can get this import number somewhere around Zurich without having to go back to Basel border crossing? any further addresses where to get licence plates / english speaking insurers would be handy too.
Thanks in advance

bonjour, as some might say.

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and short answer, yes. go to any bigger customs office

It's the 18.20 form you need. Cost about 20chf and you receive the paperwork inc the unique number you need. Take all of your car docs with ya.

How long have you had the car here? You can drive it for 12months before you need to get swiss plates etc. I've been here sine March and only just got the import docs.

thanks kevleg, unfortunately my insurance expires at the end of september - hence the rush... can i get this 18.20 form online?

I think you have to go in person. It's easy to do. No appointment needed (well I didn't). Takes about 20 mins. They check the chassis number etc and do the paperwork.
Do you know the process of registering your car in Switzerland then? Emissions test, poss Cert of Comformity, booking the Inspection, making sure the car is verrry clean..

I was faced with the same problem when I came here in my little citroen. My solution was to leave it parked illegally for 18months until I got a knock on my door from Switzerland's finest. It cost me 800 francs to scrap it in the end, pretty good as a park place would have cost double that.

or you could follow advice that helps

thanks all, looks like i finally got it sorted.
first I had to register at the StadtHaus (apparently you can't import a car after you have already been through custom unless you are registered??) and then, with the letter acknowledging the registration (in lieu of the B permit that i think may take a while to arrive) i went back to the Zoll Freilager and they did all in about 10 mins, didn't even looked at the car... issued the 9 digit import number and with that number i got the insurance pretty much sorted over the phone. not sure i had the best deal but i didn't have the time to shop around. Insurance had to be in the missus' name though, i couldn't get in my name as they need the actual B permit to do it (missus has one already), i'm waiting for the paperwork to arrive in a day or so and then there is no time limit within which you have to change the license plate to swiss ones (well, 12 months)

thanks guys for the help

Just for interest sake, we imported our car 4 years ago... and although at first confusing we managed to get the paperwork, and all other admins, and car checks done...
Now exporting it back to the UK is another story...
No officials seem to know who the car should go to first, relatives who took the car back (to use themselves in future) , have been shuffled from one office to another (good hour drive apart) and it looks like its going to be some real hassle.

Swiss side to export it out of the country... no problem and we get to enjoy our new swiss car arriving soon :-)

Hi - Walter, could you tell me where you got the insurance from? It sounds as though you got that sorted before re-registering the car in Switzerland, which is what I need to do right now.

Hey skyblue, i got the insurance through ZURICH CONNECT (formerly zuritel) if you go online there's a form to fill in to get in touch with them, they got back to me by email a couple of days later with a phone number to call, i called them and it was all done on the phone in about 15 mins. You will need a B permit though and make sure you have the HP of your car handy as some english car don't have an equivalent in europe so they'll use the closest similar with the same HP

Thanks
I called Zurich (perhaps not the right bit) and they said it was impossible.

Then I found www.nvc.ch and they had it sorted out within 24 hours - with Zurich!

Amazing.

Just out of interest, have you gone through the process of converting to Swiss plates yet?

I have a car over in the UK which I didn't bring with me when I came, because I wasn't sure how long we'd be over here. Anyway, 20mths later I'm not considering bringing it over. I have 3 questions for those in the know:

1. Because I've already been here 20mths do I need to change to Swiss plates immediately?
2. If I am allowed to keep it on UK plates for 12mths: do I need to go through any of the other processes such as getting headlights changed, doing the Swiss MOT etc?
3. How easy is it to get insurance for a car with UK plates? Do they insist on any of the modifications being made before they will insure you?

Now I need to go and check whether or not I'll be able to convert my driving licence over, which I didn't do within the first 12mths of being here!

Hi just curious if anyone had to do any modifications to their UK car (wheel on the left side etc) before registering/insuring? Are your car models available in Switzerland?

Hi, on this subject can someone give me the contact details fo the Zoll Freilager in Zurich, can't seem to find the right link online - need to go there tomorrow...

Cheers!!

Simon

not quite as exteme as moving the steering wheel, but we had to have new lights fitted, and put the catalitic convertor back on. The make of car was available here but the actual model wasn't, so it cost us quite a bit to import in total