A bad case was a Twin Astir imported in an owner to owner DIY buy-n-ship
deal=
al. It arrived with current Dutch airworthiness and registration
certifica=
tes which didn't get the new owner far with the FAA. IIRC, straightening
t=
hat mess out took almost a year.


It was actually on a German CofA, but bought from Dutch owners who flew it
German registered. No Export CofA inspection had been done before shipping
(they had a tight deadline on delivering it to the docks). It then was a
question of either flying in an LBA-approved inspector to do it Stateside,
or get the LBA to produce a letter of conformity (which I think is what
happened). First one is quick but expensive, second takes longer but is
cheap. No Export CoA inspection means no Export CoA, means no US CoA (just
a valid European CoA will not do for importing it into the US).
Deregistered the aircraft is a paperwork issue only, and can be done at any
time from anywhere.

DIY import is no problem or hassle, but take time to get it right first
time and save a lot of hassle.