Delays in IMT leave imported cars months waiting for legalization

Sa statement, the association said that, according to the testimonies that have come to it, “there are cases in the IMT that take three to four months until it is possible to complete the procedures associated with the so-called Vehicle Certificate Request (VPC) and make the payment thereof”.

In the same note, the entity indicated that even after that phase was completed, “there have been situations where vehicle data are not immediately available to enable the initial registration of ownership to proceed”.

The association also warned that the delay can then be extended in the car register itself, explaining that, although the problem is not limited to the city, it is in the Port car register that “the APDCA has received some of the most worrying reports, with requests submitted through the Online Automobile to wait several months for completion”.

According to the organization, “the result is an effect of accumulation”, since, to a waiting period of several months in the IMT “a new additional period may be added until the completion of the registration and consequent issuance of the Single Automobile Document (DUA) / Registration Certificate)”.

“ This situation has consequences that go far beyond a bureaucratic ‘uncomfortable’’, lamented the association, indicating that “the companies get fixed capital, face difficulties in the management and marketing of vehicles and are forced to manage the expectations of customers”.

APDCA also drew attention to the IUC – Single Circulation Tax.

“In the year of enrollment in Portugal, the tax should be paid within 30 days of the expiry of the 60-day legal deadline for registration,” he said, pointing out that when “administrative procedures extend far beyond these deadlines, companies and citizens may be faced with difficulties in timely compliance with a tax obligation for reasons that are not attributable to them”.

“ It is not acceptable for a company to comply with all the procedures required of it and to wait months for different public administration services to complete the process. Much less we can accept that these delays can then put companies or citizens in a situation of non-compliance with legal deadlines,” said Nuno Silva, chairman of the APDCA leadership, quoted in the statement.

The association also ensured that it had already alerted the guardianship for delays in the IMT procedures, considering “an urgent joint intervention between the IMT and the Registry and Notary Office” in this context.

Lusa contacted the IMT and is waiting for an answer.