The Import Process

The importing process

The short version for those of you with short attention spans:

Pay the $1210 broker’s fee
Buy the car
Pay for it in Japan
Car gets shipped to Australia
Pay the customs broker
Car goes to compliance workshop
Car is complied
Pay the compliance workshop
Register the car
You’re good to go!

The long version for everyone else:

Do I just pay you the whole lot up front?

This is one of the first things most people ask us, and the answer to this is no, because we are brokers, not a car yard! Our role is to provide a service – that of helping you bring the car in yourself. The only part you have to play in the process is to pay the bills, which come to you directly from the companies we use and trust.

Step 1 – Signing up with ICI

Our fee from start to finish is $1210 – hopefully as we go along you will see that this good value for money! Please note that this fee is partially refundable* if you don’t find a car, or end up getting another car elsewhere prior to a car being purchased in Japan.

Step 2 – Shopping for a car

The fun part! You, as the customer, always have the final decision about the car you buy – we have as much or as little input as you desire. We’ve had some customers come to us with cars already bought or found in Japan, and at the other end of the scale, other customers are quite happy to give us the details of the car they’re after and let us do all the work. The first and probably most important part of our role is to advise you on what is eligible and ineligible for import to Australia. There are many, many traps for the uninitiated, all of which can result in your new car never even making it to our shores – a pretty expensive mistake as you can probably imagine.

We have trusted companies inspecting and buying cars on our behalf at auctions across the country. Unless specifically advised not to do so, we inspect all our vehicles ‘in the metal’ before buying.  Having said this, we can and have sourced cars from a number of other export companies in Japan at the customer’s request. Depending on how specific you are, we may also look through dealer websites to see what is around if we’re having trouble sourcing the right car, but dealer mark-ups in Japan are no different to Australia, so you obviously have to pay accordingly. Ultimately, it’s far more important to take your time and get the right car rather than rushing into it.

We also have access to a number of vehicles via wholesale companies here in Australia, which is quite useful if you need a vehicle in a hurry, although again, they can be slightly more expensive than importing your own. Those who go down this route obviously have a very different path for the rest of this process.

Step 3 – We got one! What next?

Once the car has been purchased, you receive an invoice from the export agent in Japan, which is the cost of the car, plus the FOB charge. FOB stands for “Free On Board”, and covers all the bills and processes associated with getting the car on to the boat at their end in Japan. It is in Japanese yen, and we will explain how to make an international transfer quickly and easily. Usually within 24 hours, your money is received in Japan, and your car is booked on the next available boat to Australia. Depending on where you live, it can take up to three weeks to get on a boat, but the average wait time on the docks in Japan is usually two weeks or so. As a general rule, “Roll-On, Roll-Off” (or RO-RO) is our preferred method of shipping, unless you’re bringing in a Ferrari or another equally rare or exotic vehicle, in which case we can put it in a container for you.

Step 4 – Setting sail from Japan

Around the time your car goes on the boat in Japan, you will get an approximate ETA in Australia (or wherever your local shipping terminal is) from us through our client portal. The trip from Japan to Australia takes approximately two weeks. By now, we will have already organised your compliance workshop and put you in touch with them.

Step 5 – Your car lands in Australia

The process of getting your car off the docks in Australia generally takes about a week, so don’t expect it to be rushing out of there the same day the ship arrives! You’ll be hit with a variety of charges and taxes that help contribute to our federal government’s revenue – at one point you’ll even pay tax on a tax! We employ a customs broker to help clear the car off the docks; for comparatively little money, they make life much easier for everyone and they are invaluable if things ever go wrong. You’ll know when your car is about to be cleared, because once your car has passed through all the necessary processes, you’ll get a bill from the customs broker, which includes your shipping charges, Customs duty, GST, Quarantine Fees, port charges, steam cleaning and a host of other small fees along the way. While some customs brokers are happy to move your car on before you pay the bill, most will refuse to release the car until everything is paid up. Given that storage charges in some ports are up around $70 a day, this invoice is the one that needs to be paid as soon as you receive it!

Step 6 – Compliance

Your car is then transported from the docks to the compliance workshop (we arrange this for you), where they begin the process of making your car roadworthy for registration and use on Aussie roads. This process generally takes 2-3 weeks, with the longest part being getting through all the necessary red tape, as well as a 10-day turnaround time for the compliance plate to be made, sent back and fitted to your vehicle. Costs for compliance start from around the $2200-mark and can vary quite a lot for a number of reasons. As with other bills, you will receive the invoice directly from the workshop. Occasionally there will be additional work required during the compliance process that the workshop will advise you about when they begin, particularly if there may be an issue with getting a roadworthy certificate.

Step 7 – You’re good to go!

In normal circumstances, once your invoice is paid, the compliance workshop will provide you with the necessary completed paperwork to enable you to walk into your nearest transport office and collect your brand spanking new number plates to go back and screw on the car. If you’re a little way from the workshop, we can arrange delivery of your car right to your doorstep (at your expense – again all you have to do is pay the bill). A word of advice: make sure you have a cover note for insurance before you take it for a ride, and drive your new car like a granny until you can put a fresh tank of 98 octane in it. After a couple of weeks, fuel starts to drop octane, and we can guarantee that any fuel left in the car will be totally stale, so no thrashing or you may wind up with a dead motor!

*Please note that prior to a vehicle being purchased, you are entitled to a refund for your broker’s fee minus search costs of $330 if requested in the first three months, with an additional $110 deducted per calendar month or part thereof from that point on. If you decide not to import a car after it has been purchased for you in Japan, your entire broker’s fee will be forfeited, and you may also be liable for additional costs associated with re-auctioning the vehicle in Japan if they total more than our fee.