Car Auction Export: License Plates and Export Papers for Your Auction Car in Holland
From ex-lease stock to bankruptcy lots: at the Dutch car auction vehicles are bought sharply for export every day. But between the winning bid and the drive home there are mandatory steps: RDW deregistration, auto export documents, export insurance and white export license plates. Auto Export Document in Hengelo handles this process daily for auction buyers and dealers from home and abroad. This guide walks you through the complete process, from auction type to border crossing.
What car auctions are there in the Netherlands?
The Dutch auction landscape can roughly be divided into four types of lots. Each type has its own opportunities and points of attention for export buyers.
Ex-lease and company fleets
Young used cars with dealer maintenance and full history, coming from leasing companies and company fleets. The showpiece of the Dutch auction market and a favourite with foreign dealers: transparent mileage, inspection history and well-kept condition.
Bankruptcy and business auctions
In a bankruptcy or business closure the trustee auctions the complete inventory, including passenger cars, vans and trucks. Lots often stand at the company location itself and must be collected within tight deadlines. Sharp prices, few guarantees.
Damaged vehicles
Insurers and repair companies auction damaged cars that are not economical to repair for the Dutch market, but get a second life abroad. Note: if the car does not drive, transport by trailer is needed and export documents without license plates are sufficient.
Government auctions
Domeinen Roerende Zaken auctions seized and surplus vehicles of the Dutch government. From police vehicles to luxury passenger cars from confiscation cases. Reliable provenance, but short viewing and collection periods.
You will find an overview of the major platforms such as OPENLANE, Troostwijk, BCA and VaVaTo in our car auction guide for Holland.
Bidding, winning, paying: how the car auction works
Almost all Dutch car auctions run online these days. You register, often with a business or dealer account, view the lot photos and vehicle data and bid within the auction runtime. When you win, you are the buyer and the invoice follows: the bid plus the buyer premium and any lot fees.
Then the clock starts ticking. Payment and collection deadlines are short, usually a few working days. Anyone who only arranges the export papers when the car already has to be collected runs into a time squeeze. Our advice: schedule the appointment for the export papers immediately after the sale, so plates and insurance are ready before the collection period starts to pinch.
Do you buy at auctions regularly? Then a fixed appointment routine pays off. Dealers who win lots weekly send us the registration numbers via WhatsApp and collect the complete export sets in one go.
Timeline after the sale
- →Day 0: sale and invoice from the auction
- →Day 0-1: forward the registration number to Auto Export Document
- →Day 1: RDW deregistration, export document, insurance and white plates ready
- →Day 1-5: collect the car at the auction location, drive legally straight away
- →Within 14 days: arrival and registration in the destination country
Why export license plates are the standard for auction cars
After the sale, an auction car stands on the auction site with no valid registration in your name. Driving on the old Dutch plates is not an option: on deregistration for export that registration lapses, and without insurance every kilometre is a risk. The solution is the temporary export registration with white plates, valid for 14 days and linked to an export insurance with green card.
Compared to a trailer, driving it yourself quickly saves hundreds of euros per vehicle, certainly towards Eastern and South-Eastern Europe. And unlike dealer plates, the white plate is personally linked to the vehicle and the export drive, so it is also available for private buyers.
Is the car going to a country outside the EU, for example the Balkans or Ukraine? Then we also prepare the EX-A export document, so customs at the EU outer border closes the export correctly.
White plates versus the alternatives
- ✔White export plates: 14 days of legal driving, recognised EU-wide
- ✔Trailer or car ambulance: needed for non-driving lots
- ✔Old Dutch plates: lapse on deregistration, not usable
- ✔Foreign temporary plates: only arrangeable after arrival
- ✔Green card: international insurance certificate, included in our package
The export process at our office in Hengelo
Provide the registration
After the sale you send us the registration number and your details. By phone, WhatsApp or email, also outside office hours.
RDW deregistration
We deregister the vehicle from the registration system for export and take care of the official RDW export document.
Insurance and plates
The 14 days of export insurance with green card and 2 white export license plates are ready within 15 minutes.
Collect and drive
You collect the auction car and drive legally to the destination. Outside the EU? The EX-A document travels along.
The fixed price for the export package is 200 euro: export insurance, white plates and documents. With the Type Approval Certificate added, 275 euro. All rates are shown transparently in our price list. Not sure what your lot needs? Our export services overview lays it all out.
Car Export Rates
| Service | Price from |
|---|---|
| Car Export Document part 2 | €50 |
| Car Export Insurance & Export Plates (valid 14 days) | €100 |
| Complete package – Export Document + Export Insurance + Export Plates | €150 |
| Export insurance extension, 2 weeks | €120 |
These are starting prices. Please note that online requests include administration and delivery costs, and requests outside office hours may carry surcharges.
Call, email or WhatsApp in advance to make an appointment.
Source: autoexportdocument.nl · 24 July 2026 · RDW-approved vehicle export office
Related export services
Read on about export after your auction purchase.
Car Auction Guide Holland
The major auction platforms and the export procedure in one overview.
Read the guide →Troostwijk Export Guide
Exporting commercial vans and machines from Troostwijk Auctions.
Read the guide →Export Insurance
14 days of liability cover with green card for the export drive.
More information →OPENLANE Export Service
Insurance and plates delivered to the OPENLANE hub Raamsdonksveer.
View the service →Contact and appointment
Book an appointment directly at our RDW recognized office in Hengelo.
Contact us →Contact Auto Export Document Netherlands
Get in touch directly by phone, WhatsApp, or the contact form
Contact Details
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24/7 by appointment · Outside office hours by appointment possible
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Slachthuisweg 135, 7556 AZ Hengelo · Easily accessible by car, ample parking available
Source: autoexportdocument.nl | Date: 14 August 2026 | Author: Team Auto Export Document NL, RDW recognized export company since 2016