What Dubai Customs, the Federal Tax Authority, MoIAT and the RTA publish about importing a car to the UAE: 5% duty, import VAT, the status statement, registration fees, and what is still unconfirmed.
To import a car to the UAE, you clear it through customs, obtain a Vehicle Clearance Certificate, and then register it with the RTA. Dubai Customs says a customs tax of 5% is imposed on the total assessed value of each car, and its customer guide describes the 5% tariff base as CIF value. The Federal Tax Authority says imported cars are also subject to import VAT at 5%. The Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT) issues a product status statement for used imported vehicles. No official page reviewed for this guide publishes a vehicle age limit, so confirm with Dubai Customs, MoIAT and the RTA before you ship. For cars arriving from another GCC state, the official material describes duty collected once at the first point of entry, not a blanket exemption. All figures were read on 9 November 2026.
Not legal advice
The official pages list documents and requirements rather than one numbered route, so the order below is the order in which each document is needed, and details can differ for your car.
Source for the document lists: Dubai Customs, clearance of personal effects. The VCC service page shows a Dubai Customs fee of AED 30 per vehicle (Request Vehicle Clearance Certificate).
Dubai Customs says that on a car, new or used, a customs tax of 5% will be imposed on the total assessed value of each car (clearance of personal effects). The Dubai Customs customer guide (version 3.03, undated) states the common customs tariff of the GCC Customs Union as 5% on the CIF value of foreign goods imported from outside the union. The u.ae customs page says government tariffs in the country range from 0 to 5 per cent.
Both wordings are official. In practice, read it as 5% of the value Dubai Customs assesses. This guide shows no worked AED example, because the assessed value is set by Dubai Customs and the pages reviewed do not give a calculator.
The Federal Tax Authority's automotive sector VAT guide (June 2021) says cars imported into the UAE are subject to import VAT at 5%. It says import VAT is imposed on the customs value, including the value of insurance, freight and any customs fees paid on import. The guide does not say in plain words whether the 5% duty is added to that base, so this guide gives no combined percentage. An importer that is not VAT-registered must pay the VAT to the FTA before the cars are released, according to the guide. Check for a later FTA revision before you rely on it.
MoIAT issues a product status statement for used imported vehicles. It confirms that the vehicle can be registered in the traffic system and used in the UAE, and is applied for online through an account. The fee is shown on the MoIAT page; check the current fee there, because this guide does not state one.
The GSO list of motor vehicle technical regulations (2028 model year, MY2028-D3) says all light and heavy vehicles imported into the UAE must comply with a minimum Euro 6b emission standard or equivalent. An earlier list (2027 model year) gives dates: new types from 1 January 2026 and all imported light and heavy vehicles from 1 July 2027. This guide does not say how MoIAT or Dubai Customs apply it to a single used car; confirm with MoIAT before you ship.
MoIAT has also consulted on technical requirements for imported used vehicles. Its consultation page (1 July to 1 October 2023, status closed) refers to prohibiting the import, licensing and insuring of 7 types of vehicle. Burnt-out, scrapped, flooded and disassembled cars are among the examples given; the full list of seven is not published on the pages reviewed. The page says light vehicles imported for re-export are excluded. Check MoIAT for the rules in force today.
No official page reviewed publishes a vehicle age limit. As of 9 November 2026, no age limit was found on the Dubai Customs clearance page, the MoIAT status statement and consultation pages, the RTA new-registration page, or the u.ae registration page. Confirm with Dubai Customs and MoIAT before shipping.
Many importer and marketplace guides state an age limit, and they disagree with each other. None of them is an official source, so none is repeated here. One line is easy to misread: the RTA new-registration page says "There's no age limit to register a vehicle in Dubai." In context, that appears in a note about the age of the person applying, not the age of the car. Read it on the RTA page before drawing a conclusion.
The Dubai Customs customer guide says: "Customs duties are collected at the first customs point of entry of the GCC States." It describes a set-off mechanism, called Makasa, to avoid paying duty twice, and says the declaration for goods moving within the GCC needs proof from the exporting country to avoid the repeated payment of customs duty at the destination. The guide is written for traders and cargo. It does not describe a procedure for a private buyer of a GCC-registered car, and it describes a mechanism rather than a blanket exemption.
Some guides say GCC cars are exempt from duty and VAT; the official material reviewed does not say that. VAT on a car arriving from another GCC state is not officially published in the sources reviewed. Also note that "GCC-registered" is not the same as "GCC spec"; for that distinction read GCC spec vs imported spec.
For a resident registering an imported car, the RTA new-registration page (updated 06 Oct 2026) lists the Emirates ID, the Electronic Customs Certificate and the Sale and Purchase Agreement. It also lists a document proving compliance with the Gulf Specifications, issued through MoIAT's Conformity Sector, if the vehicle is not compliant on its customs card. The version reviewed lists that item for citizens and GCC nationals, so ask the RTA who must provide it in your case.
Once registered, the car is covered by the same rules as any other; see the buying a luxury car in Dubai checklist and how to transfer car ownership in Dubai.
Carzle lists cars from UAE dealers and does not offer an import service or recommend shippers or customs brokers. One sourced point for the comparison: the Federal Tax Authority guide says a motor trader must display, advertise, publish or quote VAT-inclusive prices. This guide makes no price comparison. Browse cars on Carzle, used cars and the showrooms directory.
Quick answers from the Carzle Editorial
Disclaimer: This article is for general information only and is not legal, financial, tax or insurance advice. Prices, specifications and availability are indicative, vary by trim and GCC specification, and change without notice - confirm current figures with the selling dealer. Government fees, registration, import, customs and traffic regulations are subject to change; always verify current requirements directly with the relevant UAE authority (RTA, MOEI, Customs, your emirate's traffic department) or your insurer before acting. Carzle is a marketplace: vehicles are listed and sold by independent dealers, and Carzle is not a party to any sale.
