Importing cars is not as straightforward as some other products because motorized vehicles are regulated by several different government agencies. When Customs and Border Protection has to interact with other government agencies to ensure compliance, things tend to slow down.

The first step of importing a car is to make sure you have valid title to the vehicle. Without proof of ownership, Customs won’t let you enter the vehicle.

Next, you’ll need proof that it complies with all the standards and regulations enforced by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation. These agencies have strict regulations that can make it quite difficult–if not impossible outright–to import certain vehicles into the U.S.

All vehicle imports must be accompanied by EPA form 3250-1 and DOT form HS-7. If it’s a new vehicle manufactured to U.S. Standards, your car should have stickers on the engine and driver’s side door to indicate this. The DOT and EPA Web sites also have lists on of vehicles that are qualified based on their years, make and model. If your car does not meet either of these standards (stickers or listing on the web site), then you’ll need proof in the form of a letter from the manufacturer stating that it complies with the standards of those agencies.

If you’re car is an antique ( over 25 years old) it’s exempt from EPA and DOT restrictions, but you’ll still need to fill out the same EPA and DOT forms to present to Customs and Border Protection.

With all of the above paperwork in hand, along with proof of ownership, you’re ready to file a customs entry for your car. You can do this on the entry summary CBP Form 7501. Many importers choose to hire a customs broker to help with the various CBP, EPA and DOT Forms because many of the fields are not obvious.

Now that you’ve caught your breath from that shameless plug for our own services, we can move on to actually clearing your car through Customs.

Once you’ve filled out CBP Form 7501 and the EPA and DOT forms, you’re ready to enter your car into the customs territory of the U.S. You’ll do this by presenting your car to a CBP officer at the border along with your entry summary and the EPA/DOT forms plus proof of compliance outlined above. As long as you have all the right documents, the officer will assist you in filing the entry right there. If you don’t have the right documents with you, you may still abe allowed to enter the country. The officer may allow you to declare the vehicle for customs entry at the port closest to your home. You’ll need to do this soon, however, because you can’t register the car until you have a copy of the released customs entry form.

If you’re an American citizen who moved overseas with your car, and are now returning to the country with it, you probably do not owe any customs duties on the vehicle. As long as there were no periods of more than a year when you weren’t in possession of the car, you don’t have to pay any duty to bring the car back home. However, if somebody else had possession of the car for a period of more than 1 year, then you’ll owe a duty of 2.5% on the car’s current “blue book” value. Until you pay this duty and clear the car through U.S. Customs, you’ll not be able to resell the vehicle. Any vehicle which is sold in the U.S. prior to being cleared through CBP is subject to immediate seizure, so don’t do something stupid like that.