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www.snowbirds.org
CSA TRAVEL INFORMATION GUIDE
Travelling back to Canada –
Bringing items to Canada
Can I Bring (Import) an Automobile to Canada?
While the majority of members drive their Canadian registered automobile to the United States in
the fall and return with it to Canada in the spring, other members consider purchasing a second
vehicle in the U.S. that is used and stored exclusively in the United States.
What many individuals do not realize is that deciding to subsequently bring their U.S. vehicle to
Canada – whether just for the summer months or permanently – is more involved than merely
driving it across the border. Vehicles arriving from outside Canada are technically being imported and
subject to Canadian vehicle operating standards as well as import duty and taxes.
If you are not a dual U.S. citizen, U.S. lawful permanent resident (green card) holder, or have a U.S.
visa that in essence grants you the “right of abode” and re-entry into the United States, you will not
be allowed to casually bring a U.S.-registered vehicle into Canada on the premise that you do not
need to pay duty and taxes as you will be taking it back to the United States next year. Without “the
right of abode”, you cannot provide a 100% guarantee of your re-admittance to the U.S. next year,
and therefore, the vehicle is deemed to be imported permanently to Canada. It is important to note
that owning a vacation property in the United States does not change your immigration status at the
border, and therefore does not grant right of abode in the United States.
If you plan to import a vehicle into Canada, it must comply with all Canadian import law. It must
meet the requirements of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), Transport Canada and the
Canadian Food Inspection Agency before it can be imported.
Transport Canada defines a vehicle as “any vehicle that is capable of being driven or drawn on roads,
by any means other than muscular power exclusively, but does not run exclusively on rails. Trailers,
such as recreational, camping, boat, horse or stock trailers, are considered vehicles, as are wood
chippers, generators or any other equipment mounted on rims and tires.”
It is important to note that not all vehicles manufactured in the United States can be imported into
Canada. To assist individuals wishing to bring a U.S. acquired vehicle into Canada, Transport Canada
maintains a list of vehicles admissible from the United States. This program covers passenger cars,
trucks, vans, jeeps, chassis, cabs, trailers, motorcycles and snowmobiles less than 15 years old; off-
road vehicles manufactured after May 1, 1988 and buses manufactured after January 1, 1971. This
list should be checked before purchasing a vehicle abroad and most certainly before starting out for
the return trip to Canada with a non-Canadian purchased vehicle.
If your vehicle does qualify for importation, you will need to register it with the Registrar of Imported
Vehicles (RIV) program when you report to the CBSA office on arrival in Canada. The current
registration fee is $195.00 CAD + GST/HST. You will also be required to pay any other customs and
duty assessments. Within 45-days of its arrival, you will need to make any necessary Canadian safety
modifications (such as constant-on running lights) and have the vehicle inspected. Until this work is
completed, and it passes the federal inspection from RIV, you will not be able to obtain registration in
your home province/territory.
If your vehicle is eligible for importation into Canada according to both CBSA and Transport Canada
requirements, you will be required to pay any assessment that could include duty, excise tax and the
federal goods and services tax (GST). Provincial or territorial sales tax will be paid when you obtain