Why South Africans cannot import cheap used cars

South Africa only permits the importing and registration of used cars from overseas in highly exceptional circumstances.

This measure is intended to ensure road safety, improve the quality of used vehicles, and protect the local manufacturing industry.

Several countries have laws which make it more expensive for motorists to keep a vehicle road legal in that country beyond a certain number of years.

In Japan, for example, owners of cars older than 13 years must pay an extra 10% fee on annual vehicle taxes.

Motorists who want to avoid paying these fees or want to switch to a newer car sell their vehicle for scrapping, put it on auction, or export it to other markets at a fraction of its original price.

There is a massive market for these cars in poorer countries — including many African nations.

All of South Africa’s neighbours allow their residents to buy used cars from overseas. Many of these vehicles are even shipped through South Africa’s ports to countries like Botswana.

However, South Africa, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and Sudan have near-total bans on importing used cars from other countries.

Although there are some of these cars on South African roads, many are grey models that were brought back into South Africa after crossing a border and then illegally registered with local licence plates.

Despite this, a major company offering imports to South Africa from Japan recently announced it had introduced “affordable used cars” for import to South Africa.

The company’s website boasts a “Ship to” feature for many African countries, including those that don’t allow the registration of imported second-hand cars for use on their roads.

When selecting South Africa as the country of destination, the FAQ on the website claims there are “no restrictions on the import of new or used cars.”

The only requirements mentioned are that imported vehicles be right-hand drive models, just like in South Africa, and that a duty of 20% applies to car imports.

The appeal of buying from the company is obvious, as the prices of these used cars are much lower than comparable models in South Africa.

When MyBroadband visited the company’s website, we found models selling for as low as R15,000.

The checkout process is also incredibly straightforward. Customers can pay for their chosen vehicle within five minutes.

The only personal information the website requires is a name, address, and cellphone number.

After entering bank card details and selecting “Place Order”, users are alerted that the payment may not be for the full costs, which can also include shipping charges, carrier fees, and handling fees.

Used car import rules in South Africa

What the website fails to mention is what is required to register the vehicle so that it can be used legally on South African roads.

Considering South Africa’s import rules for used cars from foreign territories, the vehicle will not be cleared by customs without a special import certificate from the International Trade Commission (ITAC) of South Africa.

ITAC confirmed to MyBroadband that importing used vehicles into South Africa was strictly controlled to ensure they were safe and to protect the local manufacturing industry.

Given the low prices of the cars, they could take a big chunk of sales from affordable locally-made models like the Volkswagen Polo Vivo.

Applications for the importation of used vehicles are considered only for the following reasons:

• The vehicle was owned by an immigrant in another country prior to getting a permanent residence permit issued by the Department of Home Affairs.
• The vehicle was owned by a returning South African who had it registered in their name for at least six months while employed abroad.
• A physically disabled person requires a specially modified vehicle and can supply relevant supporting documents.
• The imported car is a racing vehicle and the applicant is a national or international racing driver. 
• The car is considered a vintage model, being 40 years or older, or is regarded as a collectable.

The only requirement on this list that the models on the Japanese exporter’s website could meet — being a vintage or collectable car — does not apply to the vast majority of cars on the platform.

ITAC said it could not take any action against foreign-registered entities advertising vehicle export services.

However, it warned those wishing to buy from the company to first contact ITAC Import Control before arranging an import.

“It would be a costly exercise for the applicant to ship the vehicle back to Japan (or wherever) if ITAC would not consider a permit application due to the applicant not meeting the requirements,” ITAC said.

“Applicants wishing to import a used vehicle into South Africa, should contact Ms Aarifah Ahmed via [email protected] for clarity on requirements needed to have a vehicle imported.”

MyBroadband queried the Japanese car exporting platform, asking why it accepted payments for cars that could not be imported for use in South Africa. However, it did not provide feedback by publication.

One reader who contacted the company for further information was told they could not buy a used car to drive on South African roads.

Instead, the cars that the company imported were sold to buyers in other countries.