Shipping a vehicle from Greece to the USA

The decisive question for a vehicle leaving Greece for the United States is not what the shipping costs. It is whether that particular car is allowed in at all. The US does not judge a vehicle on arrival; it judges it on whether it was built for the American market in the first place, or is old enough to be exempt. We check that before we discuss anything else.

What we ship on this lane

From Greece to the USA, by container out of Piraeus. Which US port it arrives at depends on the delivery address, and we confirm it with you before loading:

• Passenger cars, on their own or alongside household effects in the same container.
• Motorcycles, on a purpose-made frame.
• Classic and historic vehicles, with reinforced packing and lashing.

How it works

Eligibility check on the vehicle → inspection and photography → deregistration at the Greek tax office → undercarriage cleaning → loading and securing in the container → Piraeus → ISF 10+2 filed → export customs → vessel → EPA 3520-1 and DOT HS-7 lodged with CBP → import customs with our partner → delivery.

The two declarations that decide entry

Every vehicle entering the United States is accompanied by two declarations to Customs and Border Protection (CBP):

EPA 3520-1 - a declaration of conformity with federal emissions standards, submitted to CBP for passenger vehicles and highway motorcycles. Heavy-duty and nonroad engines use form 3520-21 instead.

DOT HS-7 - a declaration to NHTSA about conformity with the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS). The form has fourteen boxes, each one a different lawful basis for importation. Which box gets ticked is, in practice, the whole case.

Age is the pivot. A vehicle not built for the American market generally cannot be imported permanently unless an age exemption applies. NHTSA operates an age exemption from the safety standards and EPA a separate one from the emissions rules; the two thresholds are not the same, and both run from the date of manufacture, not the model year. The current thresholds are published by each agency - see the official sources below. We check the VIN and the build date before we confirm a loading.

What gets through, and what does not

Gets through

• A vehicle built for the US market, carrying EPA and DOT conformity labels.
• A vehicle within an age exemption, with the manufacture date evidenced.
• Temporary importation for a defined purpose - tourism, racing, exhibition - with the right HS-7 box and an undertaking to re-export.

Does not

• A European-specification vehicle newer than the exemption thresholds, without conversion by a Registered Importer.
• A vehicle with soil or plant matter on the undercarriage. It is cleaned before loading.
• Undeclared personal belongings inside the vehicle.
• Cargo whose ISF was not filed in time. ISF 10+2 is filed at least 24 hours before the container is loaded onto the vessel at Piraeus - not before arrival.

Documents you need

Greek side

• Deregistration at the competent tax office and the deregistration certificate.
• Your ΑΦΜ and electronic authorisation for our customs broker.
• Registration document and proof of ownership - CBP wants evidence of title.
• The owner’s passport and US immigration status.
• A bill of lading carrying the VIN.

US side

• EPA 3520-1 (or 3520-21 as applicable).
• DOT HS-7 with the correct box completed.
• ISF 10+2 before loading, and a customs bond for the entry.
• CBP 3299 for household effects travelling with the vehicle, where free entry as personal effects is claimed.

Official sources

• CBP - Importing a Car: the process end to end, the paperwork, and the undercarriage cleaning requirement.
• CBP - Importer Security Filing (10+2): who files, what, and when.
• CBP - Form 3299, Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles: the personal effects form.
• EPA - Importing Vehicles and Engines and Publications and Forms, including form 3520-1.
• NHTSA - Importing a Vehicle and the HS-7 declaration form.

Duty and other import charges are set and collected by CBP.

Other documents or procedures may be required, and each country’s laws can change without notice. Contact us and we will give you an up-to-date briefing.

Why us

The US lane has one distinguishing feature: the most expensive failure happens before the ship sails. An ISF filed late, an HS-7 with the wrong box, a vehicle two years short of the exemption - and the cargo sits at the arrival port with nowhere to go.

We have completed whole-household moves from Greece to the United States, and we work with our own customs brokers at Piraeus. The first thing we do is not a quotation; it is a check on whether your vehicle can go in at all.