Europe is the one destination where your belongings never go into a container, never sit in a port, and never change hands. One crew loads the vehicle at your door in Britain and unloads it at your door in France, Spain or Poland, usually within the week.
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The transport side of a European move is the same as it was: a removal vehicle, a ferry or the tunnel, and a drive. What changed in 2021 is that the United Kingdom became a third country for customs purposes. Every household move between Britain and the EU now needs an export declaration on one side and an import declaration on the other, plus evidence that the goods are yours and that you are genuinely moving your home.
None of it is difficult, and the relief that makes your belongings duty and VAT free is generous. But it is administrative, it has deadlines, and the documents differ by country. That is now the main thing a European mover is actually being paid for.
Loaded at your door · Across the Channel · Unloaded at the other
Road freight is priced on the space you occupy in a vehicle and the distance it drives. Volume decides which of these makes sense.
A full house · your load only
The vehicle carries nothing but your belongings and drives straight to your new address. Fastest, most flexible on dates, and the only option if you want loading and delivery on days you choose. Usually the right answer for a three-bedroom house or larger.
A flat or part of a house · shared vehicle
You pay for the metres you use and share the journey with other consignments going the same way. Considerably cheaper, and the reason our departures run weekly rather than on demand. The trade-off is a delivery window of a few days rather than a fixed date.
A few boxes or a single room
Students, second homes, a room of furniture for a relative. Too small for a removal vehicle to be worth booking, too large and too valuable for a parcel service. We consolidate these onto the scheduled runs.
When the dates don't line up
European completion dates rarely match British ones. We hold goods in containerised storage in the UK, or with our partner at destination, and deliver when your keys actually exist.
Door to door, from UK collection to delivery at your European address. Dedicated vehicles are at the quick end; part loads wait for a scheduled departure.
| Destination | Part load | Dedicated vehicle |
|---|---|---|
| Northern France, Belgium, NetherlandsParis, Brussels, Amsterdam, Luxembourg | 4–8 days | 2–3 days |
| IrelandDublin, Cork, Galway | 4–8 days | 2–4 days |
| Germany, Denmark, Switzerland, AustriaBerlin, Munich, Zurich, Vienna, Copenhagen | 5–10 days | 3–5 days |
| Southern France, Spain, PortugalNice, Barcelona, Madrid, Lisbon, the Algarve | 6–12 days | 3–6 days |
| ItalyMilan, Rome, Tuscany, Puglia | 6–12 days | 4–6 days |
| Nordics and Central EuropeStockholm, Oslo, Warsaw, Prague, Budapest | 7–14 days | 4–7 days |
| Greece, Bulgaria, Romaniaand the far south-east | 10–18 days, and sometimes better by sea | |
Drivers' hours are regulated and tachographs are not negotiable, so a long run to southern Spain or Greece includes mandatory rest. Anyone promising Andalusia in two days is either using two drivers or misleading you. Customs clearance at the border is usually a matter of hours when the paperwork is right, and days when it is not.
Quoted as one price, delivered as one service. Anything not on this list is named in your quotation rather than discovered later.
The relief is called transfer of residence, and it exists across the EU on broadly common terms. Meet them and your household goods enter free of duty and VAT. Miss one and you can be charged on the value of your own furniture.
These conditions are set at EU level and applied by each member state, with local documents on top. We prepare the declarations and tell you exactly which certificates you need to obtain yourself, because several of them can only be issued to you in person.
Customs requirements differ by member state and change. We confirm the current position for your destination at survey and give you a written checklist before anything is packed.
The relief is common; the paperwork is not. These are the documents that most often need obtaining by you rather than by us, and several take weeks.
Paris, Lyon, Provence, Dordogne
An itemised inventory in French, proof of your French address, and evidence you are leaving the UK. Expect a certificat de changement de résidence in some prefectures. Furniture lifts and street parking permits from the mairie are routine in cities.
Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Andalusia
The most document-heavy destination we serve. You will need an NIE number, padrón registration at your new town hall, and usually a baja consular or change of residence certificate. Start these before you leave, not after.
Lisbon, Porto, the Algarve
A NIF tax number and a certificado de bagagem from the Portuguese consulate in the UK, obtained before the goods travel. The consulate appointment is the bottleneck, so book it early.
Milan, Rome, Tuscany, Puglia
A codice fiscale, proof of Italian residence and a declaration of transfer. Rural Tuscan and Umbrian access is the practical problem: single-track lanes and gateways that a full-size vehicle cannot enter.
Berlin, Munich, Vienna, Zurich
Registration at the local Anmeldung office and a customs declaration to the Zollamt, usually presented in person. Switzerland is outside the EU and has its own form and its own rules on alcohol and vehicles.
Dublin, Cork, Galway
A PPS number and proof of transferring residence. Straightforward as European moves go, and the shortest crossing, but it is still a customs border and still needs the declarations.
Read our full road freight guides to France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and the Republic of Ireland. Not listed? We move to every EU member state plus Switzerland, Norway and the Balkans. Tell us the country and we will send the document list for it.
British streets were mostly built for vehicles. Much of continental Europe was not, and it is where road moves go wrong.
Working backwards from your moving date.
Book the survey. Start any document that needs an appointment: consulate certificates, NIE numbers, tax registrations. These are the long poles.
Confirm the quotation and the departure. Send us your destination address so we can check access and book any permit or furniture lift.
We complete the valued inventory and both customs declarations. Set aside anything prohibited, and empty the fridge and the shed.
We pack and load over one to two days. The vehicle is sealed and the seal number recorded on your paperwork.
Tunnel or ferry, customs at the border, then straight to your address. We call you the day before with a delivery window.
Volume first, then distance, then whether you need a dedicated vehicle or can share one. A one-bedroom part load to northern France and a four-bedroom dedicated vehicle to the Algarve are different by an order of magnitude. Use the volume estimator on our home page for a sense of scale, then let us survey and quote in writing.
In the vehicle, sealed, at a secure guarded compound. On a longer run the driver's mandatory rest is taken at a monitored truck stop, not a roadside lay-by. On a part load, goods may be consolidated at our depot before departure, where they are held in your own containerised storage rather than loose on a warehouse floor. We will tell you which applies to your move.
Food is the one that surprises people. Since Brexit the EU prohibits personal imports of meat and dairy products from the UK, which includes the opened packets in your kitchen cupboards. Empty the fridge and the larder. Alcohol can travel but sits outside the transfer of residence relief, so it must be declared and duty is payable — a serious wine collection needs a decision and a budget, not a hopeful box.
Three to four weeks is comfortable, and eight is better if documents like a Portuguese certificado de bagagem or a Spanish padrón are involved. Part loads run to a schedule, so a specific week matters more than a specific day. July and August are the busiest months on every European route.
Below roughly a two-bedroom flat, a part load is almost always cheaper and the extra few days rarely matter. Above a three-bedroom house, a dedicated vehicle usually costs little more once you account for the volume, and it buys you fixed dates at both ends. Between the two we will price both and show you the difference.
Someone does, to direct where things go and sign for the shipment. It does not have to be you — a friend, a relative or an agent with written authority works. What matters more is that the customs paperwork was correct before the vehicle left Britain.
Not inside the removal vehicle, but we arrange vehicle transport alongside the move. Registering a UK car in the EU means an import declaration, a certificate of conformity from the manufacturer, and a technical inspection, and the cost varies enormously by country. Ask before you assume it is worth bringing.
Constantly, and the return leg is often cheaper because vehicles are coming back anyway. You will need HMRC Transfer of Residence approval before your goods arrive in Britain. Apply early: in summer the decision can take several weeks, and the load cannot clear without the approval number.
Tell us where you're heading and roughly when. A consultant will come back within one working day to arrange a survey.