MOT Query if moving from NI to UK Mainland

[Orion21]

Hope someone here can help me with this as I'm not having much luck with google.

If I have a car in NI and first registered there that is say 3 and half years old but I then move to England and as a result have to reregister the car in England when do I need a MOT?

NI MOTs do not start until 4 years yet UK mainland is 3 years so I'm a little confused as to what would apply here?

Similarly would it make it make any difference if the car was 2 and half years old when moving to England as to whether it needed its first MOT at 3 or 4 years old?

 

[daffy4895]

Not sure about the MoT test but you don't need to re register the car as Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland all you would need to do is change the address on the V5C.

I know this as I used to own a NI Zafira and it was never classed as an imported vehicle and it still had it's NI licence plate. Three letters and four numbers.

https://www.gov.uk/importing-vehicl...vehicles-between-britain-and-northern-ireland

Just done a quick read up 're' the MoT test and it will have to have one if it is three years old when it registered on the mainland

From a Department for Transport leaflet

Northern Ireland
If you propose to import a car or light goods vehicle first registered in Northern Ireland on or after 2
December 1985, you need only present evidence of its previous registration in Northern Ireland and, if
the vehicle is over 3 years old, a valid MoT roadworthiness certificate.

 

[rodenal]

3 years or over and it will need to be mot'd if you register it on the mainland I believe

You can keep the NI plate or ask for it to be allocated a new one

 

[Orion21]

Did not realise there was a distinction between re-registering the car and changing the address.

So sounds like that I would be able to change the address to one in England but keep the car registered in NI?

How do I go about doing that? Is it just a case of keeping the NI number plate?

 

[rodenal]

No you're doing the same thing by changing address. The gov.uk site has the correct form you need to fill in to notify them of the change, on that form it asks whether you would like a new plate to be allocated to the car