Germany is Europe’s biggest car market and a natural place for Danish dealers and importers to buy, and the lane between the two countries is one of the main lanes on Haulio. This guide covers how a full truck load gets from a German pickup to a Danish forecourt, and what you can do to make it quick.
By the numbers: Germany recorded 6.5 million changes of ownership of passenger cars in 2025 (KBA). Denmark registered 78,100 imported used electric cars the same year (Statistics Denmark), many of them from Germany.
Where are cars usually collected in Germany?
Most loads start in a handful of areas: Hamburg and the north, Bremen and the port of Bremerhaven, the Ruhr around Düsseldorf and Cologne, and the south around Munich and Stuttgart. Pickups in the north are the quickest to plan because they sit closest to the Danish border, but carriers run full loads from every part of the country.
If you buy from several sellers in the same region over a week or two, a carrier can collect them on one truck. See our guide to filling a full truck load.
Which route do the trucks take?
Loads for Jutland usually follow the A7 north through Schleswig-Holstein, cross the border at Padborg and continue on the E45. Loads for Funen and Zealand continue east over the Little Belt and the Great Belt Bridge, or take the ferry from Puttgarden to Rødby when that is the shorter trip from the pickup.
Padborg is also one of Denmark’s main transport hubs, with compounds where loads can be split or stored if a delivery address is not ready yet.
What paperwork do you need?
Germany and Denmark are both in the EU, so there are no customs declarations. What matters is a clean handover:
- Release reference. Auctions, ports and dealer groups usually need one before they hand a car over.
- Keys and documents. Agree which documents travel with the car, and note them on the CMR.
- Photos and CMR at pickup. On Haulio, the driver photographs every car and signs the CMR at pickup and at delivery. Here is our handover checklist.
Registration in Denmark, and the registration tax that comes with it, is a separate step handled by you or your registration partner.
How long does delivery take?
Haulio delivers within 10 business days, and in 4 business days on average. Your quote or the accepted offer gives the expected pickup and delivery window for your load, and you can follow the truck live on the way.
How do you book a load from Germany?
You have two options. Post the load on the marketplace and let carriers on the lane compete for it, or place a transport order and we handle it. Not sure which fits? Read marketplace or transport order, or see the Germany route page.
Sources
- Autohaus / KBA: German used car market 2025.
- Danmarks Statistik: importerede brugte elbiler 2025.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need customs paperwork to move cars from Germany to Denmark?
No. Both countries are in the EU, so there is no customs declaration. You still need the car’s documents, and the car must be registered in Denmark before it is driven on Danish plates.
Does Haulio handle Danish registration tax?
No. Haulio moves the cars. Registration and registration tax are handled by you or your registration partner with the Danish authorities.
Can you collect from German auctions and ports?
Yes. Add the release reference, booking slot and opening hours to your order, and the carrier gets them with the pickup address.
Written by the Haulio team in Copenhagen. We run a car transport marketplace for Europe, primarily in and out of the Nordics, and write about what we see on it every day.
