How long does it take?

It's the question everyone asks first, usually with a flight already booked. The worry is understandable: you're moving your life and you want to know when the car will be on your driveway. Most of the timeline is predictable, though, and the part that isn't is mostly in your hands.

Why we don't quote a single door-to-door figure

We don't publish one headline figure for Gulf to UK, and that's deliberate. The time it takes at the Gulf end varies too much from one car to the next.

One customer has a Dubai car with no finance and no fines, and it's ready for collection quickly. Another has a company-registered car, a bank clearance letter to chase and a toll account to sort out. Same emirate, very different start.

So instead, your quote gives you timings for your car. It means the number you plan around fits your situation.

Stage one: quote, settling up and export plates

The quote itself is quick. Once you've accepted it, the clock really starts with settling up: paying off any finance, getting the bank clearance letter, and clearing fines and tolls such as Salik and Darb.

Then the car comes off the local register, which in Dubai means export plates and an RTA export certificate. How long this takes depends on you and on the authority, which is why it's the stage with the widest spread.

Our guides to settling up before you leave and export plates and deregistration go through both in detail.

Stage two: collection, loading and the sea

Our agents in the Gulf arrange inland collection and get the car to the port. For UAE cars, we use shared containers from Jebel Ali, and a dedicated container is available on request. RoRo is also available.

Your loading date depends partly on the next available shared container sailing. Being a little flexible here can save you a surprising amount of waiting.

At sea, a container usually takes 3 to 6 weeks. RoRo from Abu Dhabi is around 2 to 4 weeks. Shipping lines choose their routes depending on conditions at the time, which is one reason sea time is a range rather than a fixed figure. There's more on the options on our shipping page.

Stage three: arrival, unloading and customs

Containers are unloaded at our own site in Castle Donington, Derby. The car doesn't sit in a third-party yard waiting for someone to get round to it.

HMRC must be told about the car within 14 days of arrival. We're HMRC CDS authorised entry agents with our own in-house customs staff, so we make that declaration ourselves rather than passing it to someone else.

That's why having your documents to us early matters so much. If the paperwork is complete before the car lands, customs is a formality rather than a delay. You can follow each step on our customer online portal.

Stage four: conversions and testing

Gulf cars need a few changes for UK roads, typically a rear fog light, an mph speedometer and headlight adjustment. We do these in-house, so there's no waiting for an outside garage to fit you in.

What happens next depends on the car's age:

We are the first privately owned IVA testing centre for passenger vehicles in the UK, so the IVA test happens on the same site as everything else. The car isn't loaded onto a lorry and booked in somewhere else.

Cars over 40 years old may also qualify for the historic tax class. Our classic cars page has more on older imports.

Stage five: DVLA registration and home

Once the car has passed any test it needs, we register it through our dealer-level DVLA account. That usually takes around 10 working days.

Then it's UK plates on and either collection from Derby or delivery to your door. If you're not ready for the car yet, perhaps because you're still between houses, storage is available. The registration page covers this stage in more depth.

What you can do to speed it up

Most of the variable time is in the first stage, which means most of the gains are yours to make.

• Settle finance, fines and tolls early, ideally before you've even fixed a collection date.
• If the car is registered to an employer or leasing company, start the transfer straight away.
• Send us copies of your Mulkiya or Istimara, passport and proof of ownership as soon as you have them.
• Be flexible on shared container sailing dates. A week either way can make a noticeable difference.
• Keep your local bank account and phone number open until the car has been collected.

Do those, and you've taken most of the uncertainty out of the timeline. The rest is our job, and we do it on our own site with our own people. When you're ready, ask for a quote and we'll give you the timings for your car.