Moving back to Venezuela from the U.S.

Three stages, in order. Go through every task before moving on to the next stage.

1. 1

   Stage 1:Before you leave the U.S.

   Immigration papers, taxes, documents and money. Start months ahead.

   • Talk to an immigration lawyer about your case before you buy a ticket (read the box above).^[7][13]

   • Check that your Venezuelan passport is truly valid, not just "extended".^[26][28]

   • Get an apostille on the U.S. documents you will use in Venezuela: your children's birth certificates, marriage or divorce records, degrees, transcripts and the car title.^[19]

   • If you are not a U.S. citizen, ask the IRS for a departure clearance ("sailing permit", Form 1040-C or 2063) between 30 and 14 days before you leave. Appointments: 844-545-5640.^[16]

   • If you receive Social Security, confirm with SSA whether you can keep receiving it and how you will be paid in Venezuela.^[18]

   • Change your mailing address in person at a USPS Post Office before you leave: a change to an address abroad cannot be done online.^[17]

   • If you leave with more than US$10,000 in cash or monetary instruments, declare it on FinCEN Form 105.^[6]

   • Do not ship weapons or ammunition: Venezuela is on the U.S. list of prohibited destinations for defense articles.^[5]

   • Make a list of everything you ship, with the value of each item. Both countries ask for it.^[4][45]

2. 2

   Stage 2:The move and the car

   Get written quotes, check the license and hand in the car papers on time.

   • Ask for written quotes after the company has seen your belongings in person.^[40]

   • Check on the FMC list that the company is licensed or registered (we explain how below).^[38]

   • Present the car's original title and 2 copies to CBP, together with the car, at least 72 hours before it leaves.^[1][2]

   • The shipping company files the car in the AES system and gives the carrier the ITN at least 72 hours before departure.^[1][3]

   • Household goods shipped under a bill of lading (B/L) are also filed in AES.^[4]

   • Ask which Venezuelan port your cargo will arrive at and how long it will take.^[41]

3. 3

   Stage 3:When you arrive in Venezuela

   Customs, ID, the car and daily life.

   • Clear the car and household goods through customs with their declaration and the Certificate of Use (read the car section).^[45][50]

   • Get or renew your cédula (ID card) and passport at SAIME.^[28]

   • Register your U.S.-born children at the civil registry.^[53]

   • Register the imported car with INTT and get plates and RCV liability insurance.^[50][51]

   • Get a Venezuelan driver's license: INTT does not exchange foreign licenses.^[52]

   • Get your RIF (tax ID) on the SENIAT portal.^[55]

   • Open a bank account.^[56]

   • If you will practice your profession, revalidate your degree at a national university.^[54]

To take it out of the U.S.

• Title and copies. The car's original title (or a certified copy) and 2 complete copies.^[1][2]
• If you still owe on it. If the car has a loan or is leased, you need a letter from the bank or leasing company, on letterhead, with the VIN, names and phone numbers, and an original dated signature authorizing the export.^[1]
• 72 hours ahead. The documents and the car are presented to CBP at least 72 hours before export, at the place set by the port director.^[1][2]
• AES and ITN. Every used car is filed in AES, whatever its value. The shipping company usually does it; the ITN must reach the carrier at least 72 hours before departure.^[1][3]
• Penalties. US$500 for attempting to export a car without these steps, another US$500 for exporting it, and up to US$10,000 if the car is stolen or its VIN was altered.^[1]

To bring it into Venezuela

• Ordinary import: new cars only. The 2024 Customs Tariff only allows cars whose model year is the year of import or later to come in this way. A used car, for example a 2018, generally cannot enter this way in 2026.^[46]
• Baggage regime: the route for your used car. If you are Venezuelan or a resident, over 18, and lived abroad for at least 1 year (according to the Supreme Court, it need not be continuous), you can bring one car or motorcycle per person, of any make or model. It must have been yours for at least 11 months, certified before a Venezuelan consul. It is exempt from duties up to US$20,000; if it is worth more, it pays taxes.^[43][44]
• If a requirement fails. If you do not meet the baggage-regime requirements, customs can confiscate the car.^[44]
• Today's obstacle: the Certificate of Use. For the car and household goods, customs requires a Certificate of Use issued by a Venezuelan consulate, valid for 6 months. With the consulates in the U.S. closed, it cannot be obtained here today. Do not ship the car until you know how you will get it.^[25][45]
• Your household goods. Under the same regime, household items you used abroad enter without duties. You are asked for the Certificate of Use, invoices or titles, your passport (every page), the B/L or air waybill and the customs declaration.^[45]
• What we could not verify. The customs fee regulation sets a fee of 1% of the customs value, but we could not confirm whether it is charged on baggage, whether baggage pays VAT, or how the amount owed on a car worth more than US$20,000 is calculated. Ask a customs broker.^[44][48]
• Technical standards. The car must also meet Venezuelan technical standards (the SENCAMER regime) and have an emissions certificate from the Environment Ministry, besides the type approval INTT requires.^[46][50]

Once in Venezuela: INTT

• Imported-vehicle NIV certificate. It certifies the identification number of the imported vehicle.^[49]
• Imported-vehicle registration. They ask for your cédula, the invoice, type approval, the customs declaration (DUA) with the Andean Value Declaration, the B/L, and the exit passes from Bolipuertos and from the Resguardo Nacional.^[50]
• Plates. They ask for a PNB (national police) inspection and an RCV liability policy from an insurer authorized by SUDEASEG.^[51]
• Payments. Fees are paid through INTT's "Mis Trámites". The amounts are not published.^[50][51]

How much you would pay to import a car, based on its CIF value (cost, insurance and freight to Venezuela). First, a worked example; below it, try your own car.

Where the rates come from

• 20% tariff. For passenger cars (heading 8703), under the 2024 Customs Tariff.^[46]
• 1% customs fee. On the customs value, under the customs fee regulation.^[48]
• 16% VAT, plus 15% if it is a luxury good. VAT is calculated on the customs value plus the tariff and the fee. Cars with a customs value of US$40,000 or more also pay an extra 15% rate as luxury goods.^[47]
• Baggage up to US$20,000. Exempt from the tariff. Whether the fee and VAT are charged is not verified: that is why the calculator gives a range.^[44][48]

Options we found, not recommendations. Always ask for a written quote.

What it costs, in ranges

• Car from the U.S. (base ocean freight only). From Florida, about US$1,800–2,400; from Houston, US$2,100–2,800; from Baltimore or Newark, US$2,200–3,000; from California, US$2,800–3,600.^[29]
• Car in a container. US$1,900–2,800 in a shared container and US$3,300–6,400 in your own, depending on size; another company publishes US$4,000–8,500.^[31][32]
• Container for the move (freight only). 20-foot, US$1,500–2,200; 40-foot, US$2,800–3,500.^[37]
• Boxes and household goods per cubic foot. The market range published is US$25–50. To Lara (TEALCA zone 4), US$39 per cubic foot.^[34][35]
• Transit times. Cars take 5 to 18 days port to port from the East Coast and the Gulf, 20 to 30 days from California, and up to 3 to 5 weeks depending on the route. A moving container, 7 to 14 days when it is full and 10 to 20 when it is consolidated; door-to-door boxes, 20 to 40 days.^{[29][30][32][35][37]}
• Insurance. It is charged as a percentage of the value you declare. The industry talks of 1% to 3%, a general figure we could not confirm with an official source: ask for the exact percentage and what it does not cover before you sign.^[35]
• What they do not include. These prices do not include Venezuelan taxes or Venezuelan port charges, which we could not verify.^[31][35]

In the U.S.

• Apostille. Venezuela is party to the Hague Convention, so your U.S. documents need an apostille. State documents are apostilled by that state's Secretary of State; federal documents, by the State Department.^[19]
• What to apostille. The long-form birth certificates of your U.S.-born children, marriage or divorce records, degrees and transcripts, and the car title.^[19][53]
• IRS departure clearance. If you are not a citizen, the "sailing permit" (Form 1040-C or 2063) is requested between 30 and 14 days before you leave. IRS appointments: 844-545-5640.^[16]
• Social Security. Venezuela is not on the list of countries where SSA cannot send payments. If you are Venezuelan and not a U.S. citizen, you keep receiving benefits on your own work record if you have at least 40 credits or lived at least 10 years in the U.S.; dependents and survivors have extra requirements. We could not confirm how the payment reaches Venezuela: ask SSA before you move.^[18]
• Cash. More than US$10,000 in cash or monetary instruments is declared on departure with FinCEN Form 105.^[6]
• Mail. A change of address to another country is done in person at a USPS Post Office, before you leave.^[17]
• Weapons. Weapons and ammunition cannot be shipped to Venezuela.^[5]

What an apostille costs

In Venezuela

• Passport at SAIME. Paid in bolívares at the day's BCV rate. Ordinary: Ref. 108 from 3 months to 2 years and 11 months of age; Ref. 162 from 3 to 17; Ref. 216 from 18. The expedited ("habilitado") one costs Ref. 290, 310 and 350 for the same brackets.^[28]
• Children born in the U.S. To register them at the civil registry, bring their apostilled and translated birth certificate, the parents' IDs and records, the marriage certificate if it applies, proof of residence and 2 witnesses. It is free except for certified copies. Requirements may vary by registry office: the example is Chacao's.^[53]
• University degrees. They are revalidated at national universities such as UCV. If your curriculum matches the Venezuelan degree by 80% or more, you take exams; if not, you can request a "recognition" of studies.^[54]
• Driver's license. INTT has no procedure to exchange a foreign license. If you had a Venezuelan license, renew it; if not, get a first license, with the Certificación de Saberes (knowledge certificate).^[52]
• RIF. It is obtained online on the SENIAT portal.^[55]
• Bank account. At Banesco, for example, they ask for your cédula and RIF: you start online and finish with a visit to a branch.^[56]

What each one is, who runs it and what has been reported, with date and source.

We found no verifiable return programs run by the opposition or the diaspora.