How does the calculator work?
The calculator estimates the total cost of re-registering a foreign-plated car to a Spanish plate on Mallorca. You enter the first-registration date, the original list price, the engine displacement and the CO₂ emissions of your vehicle. From that we compute the Spanish vehicle registration tax (IEDMT) including the official depreciation table used by Hacienda, plus the DGT fee, the ITV inspection, and the typical costs for new plates and headlight conversion. Optionally you can include a Gestoría fee if you would rather not run the paperwork yourself.
The data the calculator needs is on your vehicle registration certificate: first-registration date in field B, engine displacement in field P.1, CO₂ emissions in field V.7 (European V5C / Zulassungsbescheinigung). You can look up a realistic market value via Autoscout24, Mobile.de, AutoTrader or local Spanish equivalents. Spanish tax authorities take the lower of the official table value and the actual market value, and the calculator factors that in.
What does the total break down into?
Registration tax IEDMT (Impuesto Especial sobre Determinados Medios de Transporte)
The largest line item. The Spanish vehicle registration tax is a one-off levy at import. The rate depends on the vehicle's CO₂ emissions: 0 % up to 120 g/km, 4.75 % up to 160 g/km, 9.75 % up to 200 g/km, and 14.75 % above. The taxable base is the vehicle's residual value. Hacienda applies a flat depreciation rate depending on age - around 60 % for a ten-year-old car. Older cars therefore often come out cheap in tax terms even if their CO₂ values are high.
ITV inspection
The Spanish technical inspection (ITV) is mandatory; your home-country MOT or TÜV does not transfer. The plain inspection fee on the Balearics is around 40 to 60 EUR. If the headlights need to be converted to drive on the right, or if you need a re-test, expect 50 to 200 EUR of garage time on top.
DGT fee and new plates
The DGT (Dirección General de Tráfico) charges around 100 EUR for issuing the Spanish registration document (Permiso de Circulación) and updating the registry. The physical plates are made by any print shop or workshop and cost 15 to 30 EUR for a pair.
Optional: Gestoría
A Gestoría handles the forms, appointments and the trips to the authorities for you. Typical fee is 250 to 500 EUR flat. If your Spanish is limited or your time is tight, hiring one usually saves several weeks of waiting. The DIY route is possible but slow.
Who actually has to re-register?
Once you become resident on Mallorca (empadronamiento plus NIE/residencia), the law gives you 30 days from registration to re-plate any foreign vehicle. This deadline is in article 7 of the Reglamento General de Vehículos and has been enforced more strictly in recent years. Driving on foreign plates beyond the deadline risks fines of 200 EUR upwards and the vehicle being impounded at a roadside check.
Tourists and people who keep their main residence abroad can keep driving the foreign-plated car. For longer stays beyond six months the legal situation becomes grey, and insurers can refuse cover. When in doubt, take an hour with a Gestoría or a lawyer.
Re-register or buy locally?
Rule of thumb: for vehicles worth under 5,000 EUR, the re-registration cost is often 25 to 35 % of the vehicle's value. In that case buying a used car locally in Spain is usually more economical - and you skip the ITV conversion and import paperwork. For newer or higher-value vehicles with low CO₂ values, bringing the car generally pays off. The calculator gives you the actual numbers for your specific decision.
What the calculator does not cover
- Transport costs from your home country to Mallorca (ferry or moving company, typically 600 to 1,200 EUR depending on route)
- A new Spanish car insurance policy, which you need to take out alongside the re-registration
- De-registering the vehicle in your home country, if you have not done that yet
- Special cases like camper vans, classic cars, or imports from non-EU countries
Frequently asked questions
How long does re-registration take end-to-end?
Plan for four to eight weeks. Getting an ITV appointment takes one to three weeks, Hacienda processing the IEDMT takes two to four weeks, and the DGT registration another two to three weeks.
What paperwork do I need just for the calculator?
Only your vehicle registration document. You can estimate the market value roughly - the calculator still gives a useful number with approximate inputs. For the actual administrative process you additionally need the title document, the Certificate of Conformity (CoC), your NIE and your empadronamiento.
Is the calculator binding?
No. It is an estimate based on publicly available tax tables (Orden HFP of the Agencia Tributaria), the DGT fee schedule and typical workshop prices on Mallorca. The official IEDMT assessment is issued by Hacienda. Variations of 10 to 15 % up or down are possible, particularly when the market value differs significantly from the official table value.