Sell Machine Tools from the UK, Ireland & Benelux

Selling to a German buyer from abroad: the short version

MBR is headquartered in Eschborn near Frankfurt and buys used machine tools in Germany and from sellers across Europe, including UK engineering shops, Irish precision-parts makers, and Dutch and Belgian job shops. This guide explains what actually changes when the seller is on the other side of a border, and what does not.

What does not change: the data we need, the initial assessment, payment confirmed before pickup, and the fact that we organise dismantling, loading, transport and the shipping documents. What does change is the paperwork at the border, and that depends on whether your machine is inside the EU or outside it.

Inside the EU: Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium

Ireland, the Netherlands and Belgium are EU member states, so a machine sold to a German company moves inside the single market. There is no customs declaration, no import duty and no border inspection of the goods.

For VAT, a sale of goods between two VAT-registered businesses in different member states is normally an intra-Community supply. In practice that means:

You invoice without VAT and show both VAT identification numbers on the invoice (yours and ours). We provide our German VAT number with the offer.
The buyer accounts for acquisition VAT in the destination country — that is our side, not yours.
You keep evidence that the goods were transported to another member state on file: the CMR waybill from the carrier and the pickup confirmation are the usual documents. We make sure you receive them.

Your tax adviser confirms the wording and the reporting (for example the EC sales list) for your own business; the mechanism itself is the standard one for B2B goods trade in the EU.

Outside the EU: the United Kingdom

Since 1 January 2021 Great Britain is outside the EU customs union and VAT area. A machine sold from England, Scotland or Wales to Germany is an export from the UK and an import into the EU. Two consequences for your sale:

Customs paperwork is part of the pickup. An export declaration leaves the UK with the goods and an import declaration enters Germany with them. We organise this with the transport, in the same way we organise the dismantling and the loading. For the sale itself you normally do not need a customs agent of your own; the offer states what we cover.
UK VAT treatment. An export of goods out of the UK is normally zero-rated for UK VAT, provided the seller holds evidence of export within the time limit set by HMRC. The documents that provide that evidence — the export declaration reference and the transport documents — are the ones we organise, and you receive copies for your records. How you report the sale is a question for your accountant; our job is to make sure the proof of export exists.

Import duty and import VAT on the German side are the importer’s matter and are dealt with on import. For you as the seller they do not create a liability; they are part of the cost of the deal, and where those costs sit is stated in the offer.

Northern Ireland follows its own arrangements for goods, so if your machine is in Northern Ireland, tell us when you send the data and we will state what applies in the initial assessment rather than assume.

What we need from you

The same dossier as from any seller, plus the location:

Manufacturer, model, build year, control type
Spindle or operating hours as shown on the control
Five to ten photos: overall views, control screen, nameplate, table or chuck, any visible damage
Site details that matter for pickup: floor level, door and crane access, whether the machine is still connected
The country and postcode where the machine stands

From this you receive an initial assessment. Once all the information is in, the offer usually follows 24–48 hours on working days after we have all the details. For a single machine the whole process from first contact to pickup usually takes 7–15 working days.

Payment and pickup

Payment is by bank transfer in euros and is confirmed before the machine is moved — that applies in Birmingham, Cork or Eindhoven exactly as it does in Stuttgart. If you need a sterling amount or another reference currency for your books, we state the euro figure and the reference rate in the offer.

Pickup is organised by us: dismantling, securing, loading, transport and the shipping documents. Whether those costs are included in the price or shown separately depends on the machine and the site, and the offer states which. You do not have to arrange the logistics yourself.

What this page is not

It is not tax advice. The VAT and customs mechanisms above are the standard ones for business-to-business trade in used machinery between the UK, the EU and Germany, described so that you know what to expect. Your accountant or tax adviser confirms the treatment for your own company, and we provide the documents they will ask for.

If you want to compare this with selling locally, the guide Sell machine tools: the complete guide sets out the channels — selling it yourself, marketplace, auction house, direct buyer — with realistic timelines and net proceeds. For what your machine is worth, start with What is my CNC machine worth?.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you buy machine tools located in the UK?

Yes. Since 1 January 2021 a sale from Great Britain to Germany is an export out of the UK and an import into the EU, so customs paperwork is part of the pickup. For you as the seller the process is the same as anywhere else: send the basic data and photos, receive an initial assessment, agree the price, and payment is confirmed before the machine leaves your premises. We organise the export documentation together with the transport.

Is selling from Ireland, the Netherlands or Belgium any different from selling inside Germany?

Commercially, no. All three are EU member states, so there is no customs border and no duty. A sale between two VAT-registered businesses in different EU countries is normally treated as an intra-Community supply: you invoice without VAT and quote both VAT numbers, and the buyer accounts for acquisition VAT at home. Your tax adviser confirms the invoice wording; we provide our German VAT number and the transport evidence you need to keep on file. This is general information, not tax advice.

Who handles customs when a machine leaves the UK?

We organise the export declaration and the transport documents as part of the pickup, in the same way we organise dismantling and loading. What you keep on file as the seller is the proof that the goods left the UK, which supports zero-rating the sale for UK VAT. Your accountant decides the exact treatment for your business; we make sure the paperwork for the shipment exists. This is general information, not tax advice.

Are prices different for machines outside Germany?

The valuation method is the same: brand, model, build year, spindle hours, control and condition decide the value, measured against current demand in the markets where that machine resells. Transport and, for the UK, customs handling are real costs of the deal, so where they sit — on our side or reflected in the price — is stated in the offer, not discovered afterwards. Whether dismantling, loading and transport are included depends on the machine and the site, and the offer says which.

In which currency do you pay?

In euros by bank transfer, as a rule. Payment is confirmed before pickup — no machine moves on the promise of a later transfer. If you need a sterling or another currency amount for your books, say so when you send the data and we will state the euro figure and the reference rate in the offer.

How long does a cross-border sale take?

For a single machine, usually 7–15 working days from first contact to pickup, the same as a domestic sale. The first estimate follows after receiving the basic data; the offer usually follows 24–48 hours on working days after we have all the details. A UK pickup needs the customs paperwork prepared before the truck arrives, which we plan into the schedule; it does not normally extend the overall timeline.

Do you also buy from the Nordics, Poland or other EU countries?

Yes. MBR buys from sellers across Europe and sells into a buyer network in 15+ countries on 3 continents. The EU rules described here for Ireland and the Benelux apply to every EU member state; for Switzerland and Norway, like the UK, a customs export is part of the pickup. Send the location with the machine data and we will tell you in the initial assessment what applies.

Selling Machine Tools from the UK, Ireland and the Benelux to a German Buyer