Guides / Checking a UK car for Poland · Updated 30 September 2026

Checking a UK car before you export it to Poland

The official UK checks to run before you buy a used car to take to Poland, and how to tell DVLA it has left the country for good.

This guide is also available in Polish.

Buying a used car in Great Britain and driving or shipping it to Poland is a two-country project. Most of the paperwork happens on the Polish side after the car arrives, but the checks you do in the UK before you hand over any money decide whether that paperwork will go smoothly. A car with a questionable log book, a hidden safety recall or a mismatched chassis number is a problem you carry across the border with you.

This guide walks through the free official checks the UK government points buyers to, and the one step you must take with DVLA once the car leaves the UK for good. It covers only what gov.uk says; where official guidance is silent, we say so rather than guess.

Before you see the car: three online checks

GOV.UK's "Buy a vehicle" step-by-step starts before any viewing. Ask the seller for the registration number, make, model and MOT test number. With those details you can run three free services.

1. Vehicle enquiry service (DVLA)

DVLA's vehicle enquiry service needs only the number plate. It shows the tax status and expiry, SORN status, MOT expiry date, date of first registration, the date the latest V5C log book was issued, year of manufacture, engine size, fuel type, emissions data and export status.

Two of those fields matter particularly to an exporter. The date the last V5C was issued tells you whether the log book the seller shows you is the current one: a document older than the latest issue date is a warning sign. The export status tells you whether the car has already been reported as leaving the UK. Compare make, colour, engine size and fuel type with what the seller has advertised; gov.uk's advice is simply to check that the details you've been given match DVLA's records.

2. MOT history check

The MOT history service also runs on the registration number. For cars tested in England, Scotland and Wales it shows whether each test was passed or failed, the mileage recorded at each test, when the next MOT is due, what parts failed and where the test was carried out, and lets you download current and previous MOT certificates. For cars and motorcycles, records cover tests from 2005 onwards (Northern Ireland from 2017).

For a buyer who may never see the car before it is loaded onto a transporter, this history is valuable. A mileage sequence that drops between tests, or repeated failures on the same component, is worth questioning. Downloaded MOT certificates are also useful to keep with your file for the Polish registration stage.

3. Vehicle recall check

The DVSA recall service tells you whether the manufacturer has recalled the vehicle, a part or an accessory because of a serious safety problem. Cars can be checked by registration number, or by manufacturer, model and year if no number is available. Gov.uk notes that you will not usually have to pay for recall repairs or parts, and that where a vehicle has a serious safety defect the manufacturer will write to tell you what to do and you must not drive it. An outstanding recall is far easier to have fixed while the car is still in the UK network the manufacturer's letter refers to.

When you see the car: the V5C log book

The V5C registration certificate is issued by DVLA and records the registration number, the vehicle identification number (VIN) or chassis number, and the registered keeper. Gov.uk's used-car checklist asks you to do four things at the viewing:

• Look for a "DVL" watermark on the V5C.
• Check the serial number is not between BG8229501 and BG9999030, or BI2305501 and BI2800000. If it is, the log book might be stolen, and gov.uk tells you to call the police as soon as it is safe to.
• Make sure the details in the log book match the details you were given.
• Check the VIN and engine number on the car itself match the log book.

The VIN check deserves extra care for an export. The Polish registration and customs stages identify the car by its VIN, so a mismatch discovered in Poland is much harder to resolve than one noticed on a driveway in England.

Note what the V5C is described as: a registration certificate that names the registered keeper. Gov.uk's vehicle log book pages do not describe it as proof of legal ownership, so keep the seller's invoice or bill of sale as well.

Outstanding finance

Many buyers ask whether gov.uk lets them check if a car still has finance owing. It does not. The official step-by-step lists DVLA records, MOT history, recalls and the stolen log book check, and the vehicle enquiry service page makes no mention of finance. Any finance check would have to come from a source outside the government services described here, and we cannot point you to an official one.

After you buy: keeper slip, tax and insurance

Gov.uk's checklist says that if you buy the vehicle you should tax it immediately, using the green "new keeper" slip from the log book. The "Buy a vehicle" step-by-step also reminds you that you must have insurance and tax before using the vehicle on the road. If you plan to drive the car to Poland rather than have it transported, plan these steps before collection.

Telling DVLA the car is leaving: the permanent export section

When you take a vehicle out of the UK permanently, gov.uk tells you to fill in the "permanent export" section of the V5C, detach it and send it to DVLA, Swansea, SA99 1BD. Keep the rest of the log book: gov.uk says you will need it to register the vehicle in the country you are taking it to. For a Polish registration, that remaining part of the V5C is a core document.

If any vehicle tax refund is due, gov.uk says you will usually receive it within 4 to 6 weeks, calculated from the date DVLA receives the permanent export section. Sending it promptly therefore matters.

If the permanent export section is missing, gov.uk tells you to send a letter to DVLA saying the vehicle has left the country, with your name, address and the export date. Gov.uk has separate guidance for vehicles taken abroad for less than 12 months, which does not apply to a car you are moving to Poland for good.

What happens at the border and in Poland

Since the UK left the EU, a car moving from Great Britain to Poland is a customs import into the EU. That brings an import declaration, and depending on your circumstances Polish duty, VAT and excise, before registration at a Polish vehicle licensing office. We cover the tax side in our guide to duty, VAT and excise on a UK car in Poland, and you can compare the options for handling paperwork in do you need a broker?. For the customs identifier every importer needs, see the EORI glossary entry.

If you would rather hand over the whole chain, from UK documents through customs to Polish registration, see this end-to-end UK to Poland vehicle import service.

Right-hand drive

A UK car is right-hand drive. The gov.uk pages used for this guide do not address how Polish authorities treat right-hand drive vehicles at inspection or registration, so we do not make claims about it here. Check the current Polish requirements before you commit to a purchase.

Related guides

• Moving a motorcycle from the UK to Poland: customs and registration

• Bringing a caravan or motorhome from the UK to Poland

• Taking a car from the UK to Poland: duty, VAT, excise and registration

Sources

• Check a used vehicle you're buying (GOV.UK)
• Check vehicle details from DVLA (GOV.UK)
• Check the MOT history of a vehicle (GOV.UK)
• Check if a vehicle, part or accessory has been recalled (GOV.UK)
• Taking vehicles out of the UK (GOV.UK)

General information, not legal, tax or customs advice. Rules change; confirm current requirements on gov.uk or with a registered agent before you ship.