Why Is There a 25-Year Import Law

One of the groups that fought against an import ban was the Automobile Importers Compliance Association. It was a not-for-profit commercial group consisting of approximately 200 importers, carriers, modifiers and testers. Unfortunately, this experience was not uncommon. For every conversion store that advocated that gray market cars be safely updated to comply with U.S. law, there was another that focused on pumping as many conversions as possible through shady methods. Vehicles must be certified by their manufacturer to U.S. federal emission standards to be sold in the United States. Vehicles that do not meet these requirements are considered non-compliant. A currently certified ICI, listed from the EPA, must import non-compliant vehicles for you. The only EPA-approved ICIs are located in the United States. It is therefore recommended that you contact an ICI to discuss the cost of modifications and testing before deciding to import a non-compliant vehicle. ICI is responsible for ensuring your car meets all U.S. emissions requirements.

(Effective July 1, 1998, the EPA no longer has a single exemption for vehicles five model years or older.) Note that EPA will deny entry to certain manufacturers, models, and model years if an ICI is not certified or refuses to assume responsibility for the vehicle(s) in question. Motor vehicles that were not originally manufactured to comply with all applicable FMVSS may be temporarily imported into the United States for certain purposes, including research, investigations, demonstrations, or training or racing events. Vehicles imported for this purpose must be entered in box 7 of the SH-7 declaration form, which must be submitted to customs upon importation. Unless the importer is a manufacturer of motor vehicles certified under the FMVSS, a letter of approval from NHTSA is required to proceed with this importation. Instructions and a request for obtaining an approval letter from NHTSA can be found on our website at nhtsa.gov/importing-vehicle. Once completed, the application must be faxed to the Compliance, Import and Certification Division of the Vehicle Safety Board at 202-366-1024. We issue the temporary importation permit under box 7 in annual increments for up to three years if the vehicle tax is not paid, or for up to five years if the tax is paid. We are not opposed to granting renewals of existing authorizations when we receive a written request supported by a full justification for the need for renewal. Temporarily imported vehicles must be exported or destroyed at the end of the period for which importation is authorized. They came again and again because Mercedes offered the German power and features that were not available in Mercedes in the US market. Unlike today, there was no import ban on a new Euro-Benz.

“Of course, there are absolute crooks out there,” he admitted. “But there are a lot of authorized dealers who are downsizing the odometer and playing bait and switching games.” Jackson said the association is trying to develop self-control to control abuse. As recently as 2015, Mercedes and BMW saw grey market imports call into question their interests and profits. They pressured U.S. traders and local authorities to curb gray market imports. “We nipped it in the bud,” Steve Cannon, then CEO of Mercedes Benz USA, told Reuters. Some background sources we interviewed say no, given modern complexity, it`s too expensive to get a car in the foreign market from the last two decades to U.S. safety/emissions compliance. For example, if an EPA-compliant control unit is not in a car, it is estimated that an importer will need about $250,000 to develop one. The problem is that international standards are not the same, and in a world where Canada and the U.S. cannot even agree on airbag or seat belt standards, this is a “fantasy.” You can often import a vehicle into the U.S.

as long as you don`t plan to register it, i.e. H. For use on the race track. Foreign diplomats and military personnel may sometimes bring their cars to the United States. And citizens of other countries are generally allowed to keep their cars in the U.S. for up to a year. There are, in certain circumstances, ways to legally bring a car into the United States that would otherwise not qualify for importation. Some newer vehicles may be brought into the country with a so-called “registered importer”, while others are eligible for importation under the “show & display” rule.