export a car from us to canada as a new immigrant

[wrocky88]

Hi everybody,

I am a student in U.S. I will complete my program soon and go to Montreal to finish my new immigrant procedures. I want to buy an used car in U.S and drive it to Canada. Here is my problem:

1. Can I drive my car without paying US state tax to Canada? If I don't pay the tax, I will not have the registration. I just have the title and insurance.

2. I am a new immigrant. Can this car account for a tax-free stuff of a new immigrant? I heard that when new immigrants pass through customs, they will file the tax-free list like furniture. Can I put my car on it?

Thank you so much.

Grace

 

[zardoz]

Hi everybody,

I am a student in U.S. I will complete my program soon and go to Montreal to finish my new immigrant procedures. I want to buy an used car in U.S and drive it to Canada. Here is my problem:

1. Can I drive my car without paying US state tax to Canada? If I don't pay the tax, I will not have the registration. I just have the title and insurance.

2. I am a new immigrant. Can this car account for a tax-free stuff of a new immigrant? I heard that when new immigrants pass through customs, they will file the tax-free list like furniture. Can I put my car on it?

Thank you so much.

Grace

Maybe this will help? http://www.findthebestcarprice.com/how-to-import-a-car-to-canada/
And this http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/how-to-bring-car-in-canada-t99093.0.html;msg1344361#msg1344361

 

[Alurra71]

Hi everybody,

I am a student in U.S. I will complete my program soon and go to Montreal to finish my new immigrant procedures. I want to buy an used car in U.S and drive it to Canada. Here is my problem:

1. Can I drive my car without paying US state tax to Canada? If I don't pay the tax, I will not have the registration. I just have the title and insurance.

2. I am a new immigrant. Can this car account for a tax-free stuff of a new immigrant? I heard that when new immigrants pass through customs, they will file the tax-free list like furniture. Can I put my car on it?

Thank you so much.

Grace

You can not drive your car without legally registering it in the state in which you reside. You will have to obviously pay tax on that when you do this. You must have the registration / title and insurance available for inspection before they will even stamp the title to be allowed to export it into Canada. I do believe you must have owned the car for at least 6 months before you import it to canada. The care must have a clear title with no lean on it, otherwise, you will need a permission letter from the lien holder that they do in fact allow you to remove the car from the US to Canada.

 

[wrocky88]

You can not drive your car without legally registering it in the state in which you reside. You will have to obviously pay tax on that when you do this. You must have the registration / title and insurance available for inspection before they will even stamp the title to be allowed to export it into Canada. I do believe you must have owned the car for at least 6 months before you import it to canada. The care must have a clear title with no lean on it, otherwise, you will need a permission letter from the lien holder that they do in fact allow you to remove the car from the US to Canada.

Thank you for your reply. I know some Canadian buy their cars from US because the selling price is cheaper than Canada. Can I import my car in this way? I will move to Canada in less than three months, so I cannot own the car for at least 6 months. I am wondering can I land first, then come back to US to buy a car and drive it to Canada? I think I don't need to pay the US tax in this way. Do you think it is a possible way to save money?

 

[Alurra71]

Thank you for your reply. I know some Canadian buy their cars from US because the selling price is cheaper than Canada. Can I import my car in this way? I will move to Canada in less than three months, so I cannot own the car for at least 6 months. I am wondering can I land first, then come back to US to buy a car and drive it to Canada? I think I don't need to pay the US tax in this way. Do you think it is a possible way to save money?

They do this, but then get nailed paying GST on the way back into Canada for importation. You were talking about bringing the car in tax/duty free when you immigrate. Those are two different scenarios.

 

[wrocky88]

Do you know how much tax I need to pay when export an used AUDI Q5 from US to Vancouver?

 

[links18]

Do you know how much tax I need to pay when export an used AUDI Q5 from US to Vancouver?

Not enough information given to answer this:

What's its ebay value?
Are you importing this as settler's effects or not?
Does it have air conditioning?
Is it more than 15 years old?

You are potentially liable for the following: GST/HST, PST (when registering it in your province if there is no HST), duty (if the car was not manufactured in North America), air conditioning fee, RIV fee.

If you are importing as settler's effects then there is no GST/HST/PST or duty. If the car is more than 15 years old then you do not have to pay the RIV fee. Also, remember before you register it--you will have to have a provincial safety inspection (and RIV inspection if applicable) and pay to fix whatever they say is wrong with the car--and believe me they will probably find something wrong.

Good luck!

 

[wrocky88]

Sorry for bothering guys again. Is it for sure that if I want to import the car as a new immigrant I have to own the car at least 6 months?

 

[links18]

Sorry for bothering guys again. Is it for sure that if I want to import the car as a new immigrant I have to own the car at least 6 months?

From the CBSA website on what constitutes settler's effects:

15. In some cases, settlers wish to acquire goods in other than their homeland (e.g., while they are en route to Canada), and problems arise at the time of importation when not all of the ownership, possession, and use requirements have been met. As vehicles are frequently involved, the following criteria have been developed to assist settlers in such cases:



" (a) the vehicle must have been owned and possessed by the settler, in accordance with the conditions described above, prior to his or her arrival in Canada;
(b) in addition to having owned and taken possession of the vehicle abroad, the settler must have been legally entitled to operate it in the free environment abroad (e.g., have a valid driver's licence) and have actually driven it on the open roads abroad for some distance, prior to the date on which the settler arrives in Canada. (note that a test drive using dealer licence plates or a drive only on the manufacturer's or dealer's premises does not qualify);
(c) the vehicle must have been licensed and insured (temporarily or otherwise), in the name of the settler, for use in the free environment abroad during the period it was used;
(d) documentary evidence is produced at the time of accounting to substantiate that the above requirements have been met;
(e) all of the remaining requirements of tariff item No. 9807.00.00 are complied with; and
(f) The vehicle is eligible for importation into Canada in accordance with Transport Canada's laws and requirements."


You must have owned the vehicle, taken possession of it and put it in to use prior to arriving in Canada. There does not appear to be a six month rule.

 

[wrocky88]

If I want to buy an used car in U.S. before entering in Canada, do I need to pay U.S. taxes? I check the U.S. exportation website, it is said that the custom will check the title, bill of sale and registration. However, I won't have registration paper if you don't pay the taxes in U.S.

p.s. I will transfer the car as importation not as immigration tax-free item.

 

[PMM]

Hi

If I want to buy an used car in U.S. before entering in Canada, do I need to pay U.S. taxes? I check the U.S. exportation website, it is said that the custom will check the title, bill of sale and registration. However, I won't have registration paper if you don't pay the taxes in U.S.

Yes, you need to pay the US taxes to register in the US>

 

[wrocky88]

I have to pay the double taxes? U.S. and Canada? I want to transfer the car as importation not as immigrant duty free item. I will buy a car and drive it to Canada immediately.

 

[links18]

I have to pay the double taxes? U.S. and Canada? I want to transfer the car as importation not as immigrant duty free item. I will buy a car and drive it to Canada immediately.

In many states you can apply to have the tax refunded if you remove the vehicle from its jurisdiction within a certain period of time. Also, many states actually do allow non-residents to register vehicles. If you are a non-resident at the time you register, you may not need to pay tax. You might also be able to get a temporary transit permit from either the state you buy it or your home province.

You need to do some research.

 

[J.M.]

This website ought to be able to answer most of your questions: http://www.riv.ca/importingavehicle.aspx

Importing a vehicle can be complex and costly. You will also need to check what the individual province requires as well.

For instance: If you were importing the vehicle to Alberta, you would have to at least do these things:

1. Notify U.S. Customs and Border Patrol at your chosen crossing 3 days in advance that you will be exporting a vehicle.

2. You must register with Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) in the the Registrar of Imported Vehicles program (RIV) prior to arriving at the crossing (Obtain Vehicle Import Form 1).

3. U.S. Customs will inspect the vehicle/documentation and will tell you if you need to pay anything in regards to exporting.

4. After clearing the U.S. side of things, you will need to provide Form 1 (And the other required documentation) to CBSA who will then verify that the vehicle is admissable into Canada. You will also be required to pay the RIV fee.

5. You will be issued an RIV inspection form and you will have a certain amount of days to have your vehicle inspected and modified as directed on the form in order for your vehicle to be in compliance with federal regulations. (You must make the appointment at a government-recognized inspection facility and pay for the inspection and modifications).

6. Once that is completed, you will then need to comply with provincial licensing requirements. Since Alberta is my example, this will include a second inspection called the Out of Province Inspection which will have to be reserved and paid for by you.

7. Once completed, you can obtain insurance for the vehicle and subsequently register the vehicle.

These are just the basics and there is a lot more to it than the way I outlined it. Basically visit that site and follow the instructions in order to get a rough idea of what will be required of you.