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Very short notice, but my family of three may be moving to Puerto Rico in the next 7 weeks. Our first concern is our cars. We have a newer Honda Odyssey van and I'm worried that it is too large of a vehicle to use on a daily basis on the roads down there and for parking.
Disclaimer, I have never been to Puerto Rico, but i'm basing these assumptions off of living in Europe for four years, and a US minivan would have been a large vehicle there.
From what I have been told so far, is to not expect to pay the import tax, so that is not a factor as of now.
Recommendations? Should I take the $3-4k dollar hit on a quick sale and pickup something a little older/smaller?
I looked into moving my car from TX to PR and, when you combine the shipping cost with the import duty (Import Duty from a US State to a US Commonwealth! WTF?) it just didn't make sense as it was a significant % of the value of the used car. If you've found a way around the import duty please let me know! This is one of the most significant parts of the territory's revenue so I'm skeptical.
I'm going off a lot of assumptions here, but I'm a service member so I get "X" amount of vehicles (based off # dependents) imported with no fee. If this turns out to not be the case, then there is no way I am keeping the van.
No idea about selling it afterwards. In Germany, you could sell your US car once it had been in the country for a year.
your car will be fine. it will be less fine if you want to go exploring thru the windy hills.
roads aren't that tiny but the hills will do a number on your brakes especially as your car is automatic. depends on how strong the engine is, going uphill can be a pain too. but really you'll be fine.
if you could see it without paying import taxes you might have a money maker on your hands. trade it in later for a corolla 1.8
I'm retired Army and when I retired the Army paid for my car to be shipped here and they paid the import tax on it. If you are active duty and keep your permanent residence in the states you can keep your stateside tags on the vehicles. Don't quote me but if you sell your vehicle while here you don't have the tax because actually Uncle Sam did. I recommend buying a Toyota or Mitsubishi for down here because of our road system. They are little workhorses and I prefer to drive my mirage more than my ford because its smaller and decent on gas. Welcome to Puerto Rico and I hope you and your family enjoy our island paradise and THANK YOU for your sevice
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