Foreign car in Malta unregistered, with enforcements.

Hi Arnauld,

welcome to the forum.

Sadly you are in major trouble and when you get stopped (whether in Malta or when you try to leave) you will either have to pay up or your car will be a gonner.

From the moment you received a Maltese ID card you are a resident and should have registered your car in Malta. So that will cost you 30 € for every day .

As you already have a Maltese ID card you cannot leave Malta and come back as a tourist again ! The 6 months only count for tourists and with an ID card in Malta you are no longer a tourist. Normally foreign cars are registered when they come off the ferry so it will be difficult to get around the arrival date of your car.

If you get caught leaving Malta your fine for not registering in time will be 180 days X 30 € = 5400 € plus any other fines that they have on record for your car.

I'm sorry that I can't give you any specific advice. You should have done your homework first. Just make sure that you are insured with your car if you are still driving in Malta. If you have an accident you will be in even more in trouble.

Just leave your car somewhere and leave and never come back although even that might not work as fines can be legally enforced anywhere in Europe.

Cheers
Ricky

Hi Ricky.

But I do not understand, I had my ID card after I moved to Malta, how can they back up, since I have not registered my car ? In more, insurance and car are on behalf of my father in France and everything is in order, There is really no alternative but to leave for good?

I thought actually be right about the six months and I want a lot about this car. If I leave Malta with my car, they stop me at the harbour automatically?

I have not received ANY news about potential fines, whether in France or here!

Can I try to make a voyage round-trip and try to save it without risking fines? Id my car is expiring at the end it would be an opportunity ?

regards

Hi Arnauld,

as the car does not belong to you it is different but not necessarilly better! From the moment you got your ID card you are not allowed to drive a foreign plated car in Malta.

Fact is that the car was brought into Malta for longer than 6 months even if you could never have registered the car in Malta as you don't own it yourself.

If you are lucky you might get away with it but I can't be sure. There are usually ADT officials noting the registration numbers of foreign cars when they leave the ferry. We have had several similiar cases on the forum but typically we never hear back from those involved. That could be good news or bad.

Are you sure that the insurance still counts for the car being moved to Malta for more than 6 months and being driven by a resident of Malta? I would check that out to be on the safe side.

If you try the round-trip let us know how it went and what checks are made.

It is typical that you have not received any fines in France or here. Here they don't know who is driving the car and they don't send the ticket to France. In other countries they wait for the car owner to return and then give a hefty fine so there is that risk if you leave Malta with the car and return and TM catch you.

When you leave use your passport and don't mention your ID card if you get stopped. You might be lucky !

Cheers
Ricky

BTW, the 6 months doesn't start again if you leave and come back - its 6 months in a 12 month period

French insurance is still valid, I checked recently. Another solution might be to declare the car to my name in France, which would impose in France to change the plates, and then declare it this time. Except leave Malta like a robber, which I do not want, I have nothing else like solution. I am to see how that goes now in France ^ ^.

Even if you change the ownership, the car is still in Malta illegally as its been here more than 6 months in 12

Hi Arnauld,

the question is not whether the car insurance in France is still valid but whether you are insured as a driver other than the owner registered as a resident in a foreign country and driving in a foreign country! That is a different question .... apart from the fact that you are not allowed to drive the car in Malta anyway.

And as George already said , the car is already here illegally so it can't show up on the ferry coming from Italy without leaving first.

You have two options : Try your luck leaving with the car or show up at Transport Malta and explain yourself and see what fine they impose or maybe impound the car.

I don't really see any other solution.

Cheers
Ricky

Good evening everyone.

After careful consideration, All in all I would consider selling the car, possibly by MaltaPark website.

Could someone give me a summary of any procedures for sale to individuals:

- It is registered abroad, which it will undoubtedly a change of vehicle registration.
- Is there need for roadworthiness tests to verify whether local norms?
- The wheel is on the left, is this a problem?

Thank you in advance.

Not much chance of selling it in Malta. If someone tries to register it or insure it the fines will come up and TM will get involved.

Terry

Hi Arnauld,

from what you said in previous posts the car does not belong to you ! It belongs to your father .How can you sell something that does not belong to you ? I hope you realize that trying to sell something that does not belong to you is fraud and as such a criminal offence.

That will cause major problems. You will have to legalize the car before you can sell it .

Cheers
Ricky

"another fine mess stanley"

What if in such situation someone else (tourist) leaves Malta driving such car after 5 months from arrival of that car to island on ferry?

If police stops me and and I show them driving licence and ID from my country - how would they know that I am in the same time also a Maltese resident (do they check in some database by my name / surname / birth date)?

oscar_PL wrote:

What if in such situation someone else (tourist) leaves Malta driving such car after 5 months from arrival of that car to island on ferry?

If police stops me and and I show them driving licence and ID from my country - how would they know that I am in the same time also a Maltese resident (do they check in some database by my name / surname / birth date)?

do you mean you are the driver, or this other person who is a tourist ?

georgeingozo wrote:

do you mean you are the driver, or this other person who is a tourist ?

I mean:
1. Car is mine and registered in my country
2. I am maltese resident but during control I show ID and drivers licence from my country (during 5 months from car arrival)
3. Car is being taken back to my country by a collegue of mine who comes here by plane from my country and is a tourist

Will it work?

This not only stinks of illegality but has anyone considered the seriousness of not having valid insurance? The validity of insurance depends upon so many things and not just that the insurance is paid for. If any driver's insurance is invalid due to a legality, then any victim of an accident is going to suffer. Insurance is NOT just for repairing damage to vehicles, it provides the necessary funds to victims in the event of serious injury, to enable them to access what they need that has to be paid for. As far as I am concerned anyone driving illegally, in any way, should have their car taken and scrapped as well as prosecuted. Anyone who drives illegally in any way (except in an emergency)is a very selfish person indeed.

oscar_PL wrote:

Will it work?

or to put it another way - if I break the law, whats the chance of getting caught ?

Nobody is allowed to drive a car in a foreign country that does not belong to him unless he has written permission from the owner. So TM or the Maltese police or any other policeman along the drive can ask to see the authorization of the driver.

So here in Malta or in Italy the chances are that someomne will question the situation.

It is not clear if the car has valid insurance at all or for a non-owner driver. Normally only driver and family members are insured when the drive the car.

To be honest I hope it doesn't work !

Cheers
Ricky

Usually insurance becomes invalid as soon as whoever is driving it, is driving it illegally for whatever reason. Sometimes though it is the car not the driver that the insurance applies to. Germany is/was such an example.
This is criminal activity and proposed criminal activity.

Pardon me, but where did Oscar ask about inssurance?!

If your friend is a tourist and he comes to Malta, you could accompany him when leaving the island and also prepare a letter for him hat he is allowed to drive the car.

Wheter or not the inssurance is valid with someone else driving you need to check with your agency.

Other than that I would say that will work and I dont see nothing illegal in doing so (when within the 6 months of arrival)

oscar_PL wrote:

2. I am maltese resident but during control I show ID and drivers licence from my country (during 5 months from car arrival)

if by "during control" you mean drive, thats illegal - Maltese resident cannot drive a foreign plated vehicle

michael78 wrote:

Pardon me, but where did Oscar ask about inssurance?!

If your friend is a tourist and he comes to Malta, you could accompany him when leaving the island and also prepare a letter for him hat he is allowed to drive the car.

Wheter or not the inssurance is valid with someone else driving you need to check with your agency.

Other than that I would say that will work and I dont see nothing illegal in doing so (when within the 6 months of arrival)

He didn't but insurance is a legal requirement. Many things can invalidate insurance especially driving when not entitled to do so.

michael78 wrote:

Pardon me, but where did Oscar ask about inssurance?!

If your friend is a tourist and he comes to Malta, you could accompany him when leaving the island and also prepare a letter for him hat he is allowed to drive the car.
Wheter or not the inssurance is valid with someone else driving you need to check with your agency.
Other than that I would say that will work and I dont see nothing illegal in doing so (when within the 6 months of arrival)

He didn't but insurance is a legal requirement. Many things can invalidate insurance especially driving when not entitled to do so. It seems that this car is out of registration on Malta and cannot be renewed as the 'owner' is now a resident. Even if he gets someone else to drive it, he is the 'owner' so will still be outside the law.
If my memory serves me well I also think that in Germany, insurance is different, the car rather than the driver is insured by the owner and registration plates are dependent upon that irrespective of who drives it. Hence, perhaps a differing perspective?

In Malta its the car thats insured, not the driver - our car has a policy that allows anyone over 25 to drive it

ricky wrote:

Normally only driver and family members are insured when the drive the car.

Not necessarily, e.g. my car insurance here in Malta covers "authorized drivers" which is definded in the policy as "you and any driver aged 25 years or over"


edit: oh, I didn't see that GnG posted the same just a few minutes earlier ...

georgeingozo wrote:

In Malta its the car thats insured, not the driver - our car has a policy that allows anyone over 25 to drive it

A rather fine point here as it would be for anyone authorised by you? It's the same in UK, it's an option but it has to be legally registered and MOT'd.

I.E. Not registered - no insurance.

Hi Mat ,

that's ok ! But on the way to Poland you might be driving through Germany ! And the German's will look at the coverage in the original insurance contract. I have a car in Germany that is insured in my name but my son drives it! I had to declare that and pay a higher premium.

And if a tourist is driving a car that he isn`t his  own own out of Malta even the Maltese authorities might get big eýes - if you show a paper from the resident owner in Malta on the way to the ferry there might be discussions !

Cheers
Ricky

Is it also not unreasonable to assume that at the ferry points of embarkation and disembarkation there will be Automatic Numberplate Recognition technology? Even if not on Malta it's all over Europe. Bound to get caught, what with no registration and outstanding fines.

Hi red,

no , you won't find that ! That is only on the ferries to the UK.

I presume the car does have Polish plates but heading for Poland at the border it might be checked if not before anywhere on the German 'Autobahn'.

It's a risk !

Cheers
Ricky

@red
The original thread of Arnaudb707 had a different problem then Oscar has I understood. Oscars car is here less than 6 months and he just wanted to know if he can have someone else, a tourist friend, drive his car. (the second part of his question no doubt is illegal but might work, although I would want to try that)

Of course the most important thing is to check for insurrance validity. This is also where I got nervous myself last month when reading something that it could only be valid for 3 months in another country, but thank god there is no restriction for my insurrance.

Normally it is not a problem to drive a car which is not yours (i.e. when you have a company car you dont carry a letter saying that allows you to drive it, or?) Anyways, I also doubt they ask you when leaving Malta. Nobody asked me when I came to Malta whom my car belongs to (and it belongs to a company of mine).

It is also stated on the Virtue Ferry Website that most of the regulations and things you have to show only apply to Maltese registered cars.

I will ship my car beginning of next month to Italy will let you guys know how that works out :-)

Hi Michael,

I drove a German company car for many years but could not leave Germany without permission from the the company and the insurance company! I did have a letter saying that i was allowed to drive their car !

So what you are saying is a bit naive ! Of course when you drive within the Schengen area you will probably not get caught as there are no border controls  but trying to leave Malta on the Virtu ferry might increase the risk of getting caught.

Cheers
Ricky

Ok Ricky, my experience is different.

I was browsing the net and I found this:

http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/ve … dex_en.htm

Cross-border workers

You are a cross-border worker (employed or self-employed) if you work on one side of a national border but live on the other, and return home at least once a week.

If you use your own car to commute regularly from the country where you live to the country where you work, you have to register it and pay the relevant taxes in the country where you live - but not in the country where you work.

If you drive a company car (registered in the country where you work), you may use it for private purposes in the country where you live without having to register it there. You would then be driving with foreign plates in the country where you live. This may cause concern for the local police, who have to check that people under their jurisdiction have paid national vehicle registration taxes.

>> So this means under the above circumstances I could drive a foreign plated car in Malta? (referring to the last paragraph)

" and return home at least once a week."

Well I would see it like this George:

I work i.e. in Switzerland but live in Malta and I am home most of the time and sometimes I am in Switzerland.

So home in this context is Malta where I am most of the time.

Just thought this would be interesting for someone.

michael78 wrote:

Well I would see it like this George:

I work i.e. in Switzerland but live in Malta and I am home most of the time and sometimes I am in Switzerland.

So home in this context is Malta where I am most of the time.

Just thought this would be interesting for someone.

But it has already been on Malta for more than 6 months, unregistered and with unpaid fines. Oh and not employed but a student.

From the web site link given previeously:

"Exceptions to compulsory registration after 6 months

Students

If you are staying in another country only in order to study, you can drive your car without having to register it or pay taxes there - for as long as you are enrolled in an educational establishment in that country.


Sample story

Mathieu is French and living in Belgium where he is doing a 2‑year post-graduate course. Mathieu's car was damaged, so he went to the police to get a report for his insurer. When the police discovered that Mathieu had been living in Belgium for over a year without registering his car there, they told him that he was in an irregular situation and would be fined.

Mathieu could prove that he was registered at Antwerp University and therefore, as a student from another EU country, he didn't have to pay car or road taxes in Belgium."

Very interesting and that is true and thanks for finding that out, as long as he is usually resident in another country.
I wonder how being resident on Malta will affect this, though one can be resident in more than one country. (Certainly for UK tax purposes).

From UK Govt site:

You may be able to use a vehicle with non-UK number plates for longer than a 6-month period, without taxing or registering it, if all the following apply:

you're a student or worker
you normally live outside the UK
you're in the UK for a set study or work period
the vehicle is registered in its home country

Interesting.

There is also something in regards to company cars from the EU. But I dont know how provable that be.

Hi,

I know this is an old topic but there seems to be some knowledgeable people here to ask my question.

Currently in Malta as a tourist from the UK. I will be working soon and claiming residency here. When I go back to the UK, I am thinking of driving from Malta via Italy and France to the south of the UK where I was living. I am thinking of buying a car in the UK and driving to Malta a month before packing and leaving Malta to return to the UK. Sounds mad I know but for me it's cheaper (luggage wise etc) and a good experience.

I want to do the above to have a road trip along the way back to the UK with my wife. The question is: What are the legalities of buying a car in UK and then bringing it to Malta for a month even though I will be resident in Malta at the time?

Regards,