Transfer of title with international car shipment?

Question

I am going to purchase a car from a private party in the U.S. and ship it overseas to my relative. As far as I understand from conversations with some freight forwarders I do not need to register the vehicle here in the U.S. The question I have is what info should be put in the original title (the one I receive from the original seller). Do I need to put myself as a buyer AND the relative abroad as co-buyer?

What is the normal practice which would allow me to clear the car 1) with the US customs 2) with the destination country's customs which will be done by my relative.

Thanks!

Answer 1

Assuming you know the risks of purchasing anything sight-unseen from an seller you have not met, your second question is the more relevant one, plus the unasked question of registration in the foreign country.  

Registration of a vehicle often requires meeting their standards.  Fuel type, fuel efficiency, pollution, safety gear and so on are all factors that, depending on the importing country, could prevent the car from ever being driven there.  You need to check into that aspect first, to make sure that the vehicle you're purchasing can be used overseas.  

Import duties are often quite high on vehicles and not necessarily tied to the declared shipment value on the bill of lading.  Some customs inspectors use the manufacturer and vehicle weight to determine duties or taxes on arrival.  Most customs operations are by class of item, not manufacturer model, and value.  You should also investigate at the destination what the duties and taxes will be on arrival.  

Paperwork for shipments is fairly simple since you are the purchaser and you are delivering to a third party directly from the seller via a transfer agent.  The question will arise, however, of what the declared value actually is, since the recipient is not paying.  For example, you pay $5000 for the car and the delivery paperwork shows a declared value of $100 for customs purposes -- what is the true value to be taxed on import?  

Moreover, the insured value of the shipment might be used to gauge whether you are making a gift to the recipient but the taxes are still to be assessed at market value.  

Clearing US Customs is very straightforward, unless some option in the vehicle requires ECCN clearance, which is doubtful, but I have heard that some specialty items do exist.  

So, you can just ask your transfer agent to take care of the export side paperwork after you have figured out the destination issues.  

As to title, your own name works during shipment and once in country you can transfer title to someone else.  It may require the transfer to be notarized at the consulate of the country of destination.