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temporary license plates and purchasing a car from a different canton
May 22, 2011 @ 21:58

Hi


I'm interested in purchasing a used car and have seen some ads for cars that I want that are located on the other side of Switzerland.


I have been told that to bring a car from a different Canton, one can get a temporary license plate and then register it locally.


I found the form for DEMANDE DE PLAQUES A COURT TERME here: http://www.geneve.ch/san/doc/plaques-a-court-terme.pdf


I am now trying to figure out the requirements.  Two things that come up on the form are:


1. Seules les personnes domiciliées en Suisse peuvent bénéficier de plaques à court terme et la preuve d'un liendu détenteur ou du véhicule avec Genève est exigée.


Delivery only for residents in Switzerland and the proof of a bond of the holder or the vehicle with Geneva is required


-->am I correct to understand that they want some kind of proof that I have a connection to the Canton of Geneva and a Swiss residency permit?


 


2. ( présentez l’original du permis de circulation suisse ou tout document officiel contenant les données techniques du véhicule)( presentation of the original swiss registration certificate is required or any official document with technical specifications of the vehicle)


-->What does this mean in practice?  Do I have to have the original form before I can get the plate? Does this mean that I need to actually own the car before I can get the temp plate?


The idea is to go to purchase the car and drive it back then register it in Geneva.  I would hate to have to travel 400km twice, once to purchase the car and collect paperwork and a second time to collect the vehicule itself.


Anyone has any experience with this?


Thanks!


 


 


 

The text you are quoting:

Hi


I'm interested in purchasing a used car and have seen some ads for cars that I want that are located on the other side of Switzerland.


I have been told that to bring a car from a different Canton, one can get a temporary license plate and then register it locally.


I found the form for DEMANDE DE PLAQUES A COURT TERME here: http://www.geneve.ch/san/doc/plaques-a-court-terme.pdf


I am now trying to figure out the requirements.  Two things that come up on the form are:


1. Seules les personnes domiciliées en Suisse peuvent bénéficier de plaques à court terme et la preuve d'un liendu détenteur ou du véhicule avec Genève est exigée.


Delivery only for residents in Switzerland and the proof of a bond of the holder or the vehicle with Geneva is required


-->am I correct to understand that they want some kind of proof that I have a connection to the Canton of Geneva and a Swiss residency permit?


 


2. ( présentez l’original du permis de circulation suisse ou tout document officiel contenant les données techniques du véhicule)( presentation of the original swiss registration certificate is required or any official document with technical specifications of the vehicle)


-->What does this mean in practice?  Do I have to have the original form before I can get the plate? Does this mean that I need to actually own the car before I can get the temp plate?


The idea is to go to purchase the car and drive it back then register it in Geneva.  I would hate to have to travel 400km twice, once to purchase the car and collect paperwork and a second time to collect the vehicule itself.


Anyone has any experience with this?


Thanks!


 


 


 


broadreach fMay 22, 2011 @ 21:58
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Re: temporary license plates and purchasing a car from a different canton
Post 1
May 22, 2011 @ 23:05

I think you're overcomplicating things, you don't need temp plates. In my experience it shouldn't really make any difference in which canton you buy a car (I've bought in 3 other cantons in the past). It's is very common to buy in another canton as they are so small. You just need to register the car in Geneva once you have the 'carte grise', get some plates and take them along to put on the car before you drive it. If buying from a garage they should be able to help you out. You can do the registration by post.


For question 2, yes you can only register the car once you own it, ie you have the old carte grise which the owner should have cancelled. In practice you normally would need one trip to see/buy the car, and one to collect it. That would of course be true in Geneva too.


Don't forget to get the new car insured beforehand; again use the carte grise as proof of ownership.

The text you are quoting:

I think you're overcomplicating things, you don't need temp plates. In my experience it shouldn't really make any difference in which canton you buy a car (I've bought in 3 other cantons in the past). It's is very common to buy in another canton as they are so small. You just need to register the car in Geneva once you have the 'carte grise', get some plates and take them along to put on the car before you drive it. If buying from a garage they should be able to help you out. You can do the registration by post.


For question 2, yes you can only register the car once you own it, ie you have the old carte grise which the owner should have cancelled. In practice you normally would need one trip to see/buy the car, and one to collect it. That would of course be true in Geneva too.


Don't forget to get the new car insured beforehand; again use the carte grise as proof of ownership.


Nicolas M, May 22, 2011 @ 23:05
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Re: temporary license plates and purchasing a car from a different canton
Post 2
May 23, 2011 @ 06:52

Nicolas:


Thanks for the info.  


One of the cars I want to look at is 400 KM away from Geneva.  I was hoping to find a way to avoid having to make the trip twice, without having to purchase the car sight unseen.


I assumed that the temp plate would help me in this situation, so that I could get the plates first and then only use them if I actually buy the car.  


Is there any way to do this without making two trips?


 


Thanks!

The text you are quoting:

Nicolas:


Thanks for the info.  


One of the cars I want to look at is 400 KM away from Geneva.  I was hoping to find a way to avoid having to make the trip twice, without having to purchase the car sight unseen.


I assumed that the temp plate would help me in this situation, so that I could get the plates first and then only use them if I actually buy the car.  


Is there any way to do this without making two trips?


 


Thanks!


broadreach f, May 23, 2011 @ 06:52
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Re: temporary license plates and purchasing a car from a different canton
Post 3
May 23, 2011 @ 09:27

Do you already own a car here in Switzerland?

The text you are quoting:

Do you already own a car here in Switzerland?


richardm, May 23, 2011 @ 09:27
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Re: temporary license plates and purchasing a car from a different canton
Post 4
May 23, 2011 @ 09:11

Well you're going to have to be a bit creative...for example, if you do a good deal with the owner (most people are pleased to be able to sell their car for roughly what they want, more so if it's an expensive one) then maybe negotiate as part of the deal to drive it back on its current plates (for example, the owner could deliver it to you and then go home on the train). That way you could go straight to Carouge to register it, or at least park it somewhere off-road without the plates. You would have to sort all this out beforehand of course which could be interesting depending on your language skills and theirs.


If you're buying in one trip there's also the problem of payment; an owner won't let the car go without proof of payment, so you might have to take cash.


It would be much easier to buy from a garage as they have special 'U' plates of their own, but I doubt they'd let you leave with them on the car. All this depends on the owner, as they shouldn't really let the car go with its plates on it as the car is still their responsibility - in effect the plates 'belong' to them. 


For a car 400 km away, you need to be pretty sure of what you're buying too as it's going to be a pain if there are problems with it later. There are lots of cars available in Switzerland, so another strategy is just to be patient and buy something closer to home.


If I were you, I'd still do everything in two trips, it' so much easier for most of these issues (payment, insurance, registration).


Hope this helps

The text you are quoting:

Well you're going to have to be a bit creative...for example, if you do a good deal with the owner (most people are pleased to be able to sell their car for roughly what they want, more so if it's an expensive one) then maybe negotiate as part of the deal to drive it back on its current plates (for example, the owner could deliver it to you and then go home on the train). That way you could go straight to Carouge to register it, or at least park it somewhere off-road without the plates. You would have to sort all this out beforehand of course which could be interesting depending on your language skills and theirs.


If you're buying in one trip there's also the problem of payment; an owner won't let the car go without proof of payment, so you might have to take cash.


It would be much easier to buy from a garage as they have special 'U' plates of their own, but I doubt they'd let you leave with them on the car. All this depends on the owner, as they shouldn't really let the car go with its plates on it as the car is still their responsibility - in effect the plates 'belong' to them. 


For a car 400 km away, you need to be pretty sure of what you're buying too as it's going to be a pain if there are problems with it later. There are lots of cars available in Switzerland, so another strategy is just to be patient and buy something closer to home.


If I were you, I'd still do everything in two trips, it' so much easier for most of these issues (payment, insurance, registration).


Hope this helps


Nicolas M, May 23, 2011 @ 09:11
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Re: temporary license plates and purchasing a car from a different canton
Post 5
May 23, 2011 @ 13:10

I don't already own a car, so there's no option of transfering plates from one to the other.

The text you are quoting:

I don't already own a car, so there's no option of transfering plates from one to the other.


broadreach f, May 23, 2011 @ 13:10
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