Buying/importing a car from the US into Canada
 

I know many on this board travel frequently between the US and Canada, and bring stuff back from time to time. I'm wondering if any of you have recent experience with buying a car in the US and bringing it back home to Canada.

The reason I'm interested in doing this is primarily because of price, but also there's more selection in the US for the car I want. I have a broker who will be checking the auctions and banks to locate a prospective car, so that part won't be an issue. If I find one I like, I plan to fly down, check it out, and drive it back - so my main concern is how things are handled when I get to the port of entry.

The process seems pretty straight forward based on the following website...

http://www.riv.ca/english/html/how_to_import.html

Basically, if the car is on the list of admissable vehicles, and you have all the necessary paperwork...

• title
• registration
• insurance
• sales receipt
• statement of compliance label
• recall clearance letter

...it should be a piece of cake.

So... has anyone done this recently? If so, did you have any surprises at the border crossing? If you were to do it again, what would you do differently? Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

TIA

And you'll be asked to pay the GST on the vehicle if its brand new.

Sanosuke!

Is GST charged for new cars only?

The car I'm interested in is a 2003 model... so I'm hoping no GST.

A couple of things:
1) You will almost certainly have to install daytime running lights as these are on very few American registered vehicles. This will cost you $100+ depending on whether you go aftermarket or to the dealer.

2) If the car you are looking at is not part of the auto pact / NAFTA, you will likely get hit for duty on the vehicle.

Interesting issue. You may be right. But by the same token, it may be that any duties paid in the US might be reimbursable?

As the price difference between Canada and the US, which used to favor Canada, now seems to be inverting, we may see more of this sort of question being raised.

Check this website.

www.faheyimports.com

very useful -- enter VIN# and it will give you all the taxes/fees in detail and the process how to do it

-mike

Thanks for the info Lev

Great site Mike - Thanks!

I pulled a VIN off EBay motors for a similar car and it looks like duty will be charged at 7%.

I looked into this a couple of years ago. In addition to GST, you will also have to pay import duty of 6.1% if the car has been manufactured outside of North America (although I think you're OK if it's made in Mexico, which many VWs are). If I were doing it today, I'd find the car on eBay, since there are many reputable sellers, both private and franchised dealers.

Importing...
 

1) Be sure to clear the title of the car with US customs before you roll up to the border - do this several days in advance in order to avoid delays in crossing over.
2) Have a valid sales contract in hand when you make the declaration at Canadian customs - this is required for Duty and GST calculation. If you were to, hypothetically, declare that you paid less than the actual purchase price, you better have good backing as the Customs agents have access to E-Bay and any other auto auction site, in order to check prices on equivalent cars.
3) Any non-US/Canadian/Mexican made autos will be assessed a 6.1% duty upon importation. Make sure you have the available funds in cash, debit or credit card.
4) Watch out for washed-title cars - and take little comfort in Carfax or similar title verification services - they are all but useless.
Good luck.

. or cars that were 'washed' in New Orleans during Katrina.

Thanks WillFly... excellent info. I made some calls today and it looks like I can expect duty/gst @ 13.1% total, and compliance mods could run as high as $3000 to $5000. So the costs are adding up. It's still very attractive though - but I'll have to crunch the numbers some more.

I did it - and you have to wait 3 full business days
 

I recently brought a new one across with no problem. You have to be very careful to follow the instructions at the Registrar of Imported Vehicles - you can talk to them - and then simply do each step. Or hire someone. The US demands that the title be faxed to them three full business days ahead of the entry - or you are sent back. You get the fax number and have the dealer send it after you've made the deal. Then you call a few hours later to confirm they got it. The site says 72 hours but this definitely does not include weekends and holidays. And they are only open for business 9-4. The Canadian side then collects your GST and you pay the RIV fee ($206) to the cashier. You'll also need a letter from the manufacturer that there are no outstanding recalls - they will only write it if you prove that you own the car. On a new car, the dealer can write the letter but it must be on a letterhead that includes the car brand. Then you go home - you can drive without plates (but do have insurance - or have it trucked. The RIV will send a form that you take to any Canadian Tire for an inspection of compliance. And you also need a mechanical safety inspection certificate. Take the whole business to a provinicial licence office and you get your plates. A few weeks later the RIV sends you a compliance sticker. BTW, there was no duty (I assume that if the car is legally in the US it is considered domestic - if you brought it in direct from overseas, that's another story) and the modifications are usually minor. For some new cars, the savings can be very substantial - and the taxes are based on what you paid so they are lower as well. People ask me how much I saved. I tell them I didn't save anything - I spent money. But if I would have bought the car in Canada, it would have been about 20% more, so I wouldn't have bought it at all. This does not get any laughs but it does get you to think about what you're doing. The thing I liked most was that the whole price is available up front in detail on www.kbb.com, including dealer cost and incentives and suggested markup. Freight is included, and there is no PDI or administration fee. So the salesperson can simply quote you the price with no funny business. You have a greater selection of models. Note that Toyota dealers in the Buffalo area will not sell a car to people from Canada as they have a no-compete deal with Ontario dealers. This is not company policy. There are dealers in Canada who sell cars on the web (through Car Cost Canada) who are clearly bring them in across the border. You can do much better on your own.

The globe and mail has had a few articles on this import trend in the last few days.

Canadian cars more expensive than in U.S. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...cialGlobeAuto/

Seeking a cheaper car? Cross the border http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...der+car+prices

The massive gap in prices that led Americans to flood into Canada to buy vehicles has vanished, so that now Canadians can save thousands of dollars if they purchase a new car in the United States.

"Canadians buying luxury sport utility vehicles will save as much as $14,000 if they buy them in the United States, auto industry analyst Dennis DesRosiers said yesterday in his annual comparison of vehicle prices between the two markets."

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry7780/3.7.1)

If I were looking for a new car, I might be inclined to research a couple of prices in the US and present that together with the newspaper article above. Add in C$1000 to the lowest price, or whatever your time and airfare would be worth to go to the US, and offer that to a dealer close to home. You never know what might happen - they might be willing to take a bit of a bath to keep their sales numbers up. Of course the downside is that you won't collect and AP miles this way.

Problem with this is the car dealer doesn't have much margin to play with, so there is no way they can meet (or even come close to) US pricing. The manufacturers are the ones making the juicy profit on the exchange (after taking a bath for years) aqnd it will be up to them to rejig pricing.