Guide to Importing US Vehicles *revised!*

[007WRX]

I successfully made it to Washington. A note, I drove through 3 states with expired registration. I had to do this because the DMV offices are not opens on weekend and they will not do trip permits over the phone. Do I suggest this, no. There were about a million cops on i-5 the whole way home.

I scanned/emailed my forms to the border today.

[Mr. Mayhew]

Originally Posted by lowside67

A question, by PM:



Answer:

That is completely, and blatantly 100% false.

From the RIV:

I was in the middle of writing back a rebuttle to this, when i decided to call RIV about it first. They instructed me to call CBSA and ask as it is a tax and.....

You are correct. This is huge news to me as we have been under a completely different impression as our former customs broker had been quoting us including the green levy, even on 05 -06 vehicles. This matter has been taken care of and I have clarified this with my staff. I apologize for the indiscretion in our information, and i hope you beleive me when i say that we were misled as well. In the end we would never charge a fee we were not charged for ourselves, if we didnt end up having to pay for the green levy we wouldnt have charged you for it either.

Please do not think for a second we would try to lie to get extra profit in any of our deals. Anyone who has dealt with us before (im sure there are a few people on here) can attest to the fact that we are very unlike alot of other dealers in the way that we are very straight up and honest.

My sincerest apologies on behalf of my staff and I, hope you understand that we thrive on referalls and repeats, so we cannot afford to get a bad name by doing anything shady and this was a genuine error. I will also have you know that we have never charged a green levy to anyone, as we do not do very many V8s other than pick-up trucks (which are exempt). If we had we would have caught this error sooner and once again i apologize.

[lowside67]

A question, by PM:

Regarding payment of taxes & fees at the border:

Hi, at the border when importing a car, how do I pay for Duty and GST. Can I pay it all with cash or all on credit card?

Whats the easiest way?

Answer:

They will take cash for any amount, though over $10,000 and they will make you fill out a standard anti-money laundering questionnaire. Interac they will take to any amount so this is also a good option but you may need to raise your limit. Visa they will only take to a $500 maximum per card, but you can pay with 8 cards if you need to. I do not believe they will take a personal cheque.

[DragonsMaw]

Updated link for the admissibility list:

http://www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/safev...ist2/VAFUS.pdf

Inspection requirements:
http://www.riv.ca/ModificationAndIns...uirements.aspx

God their site search engine is useless, use the sidebar links instead. Can you edit these into the original post?

Edit: The main page on importing from the U.S. All the Transport Canada guides and regulations are listed from here. http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/s...-index-445.htm

[KevinI]

Hey Lowside,

First of all, thank you for the awesome thread. Very resourceful and helpful. However, I do have a few questions. And Yes, I have read the entire thread, lol. I'm buying a 1990 Nissan 300ZX TT from a Dealership in Everett for $8300 Cash/Money Order/Bank Draft, etc. Therefore, the car being 20 Years old, I already know that I am not required to pay the Fuel Excise Tax. It was written multiple times that the Fuel Excise Tax only applies to cars that came into production after March 2007. So that is not one of my questions, lol.

1. Now, first question is about the Vehicle Export Worksheet. It is written in your thread that this Form must be completed 3 Business Day prior to the vehicle crossing the border, no exceptions. What if more than three days passes? Does it expire or something?

2. As for the Insurance Binder from ICBC, do I get that before I leave to pick the car up? And then when I'm down there, there is another insurance I have to get - the trip permit? Therefore, I need the ICBC Insurance Binder AND the Trip Permit from the DMV?

3. Is the Provincial Inspection and the Federal Inspection two different inspections or the same thing? Is the Federal Inspection not required but the Provincial Inspection is required? What about the RIV Fee? Is RIV Fee waived along with the Federal Inspection or do you just do one, or what?

Those are the three subjects I'm most confused about. I've never done anything like this before, therefore, I'm a little scared and just don't want to make a big expensive mistake. Any and all help is greatly appreciated.

So in closing, just to make sure I got this down right, all I have do is as follows:

1. Get the Vehicle Export Worksheet from the Blaine US Vehicle Export Office
2. Pay for and get the ICBC Insurance Binder
3. Get my GF to drive me down to Everett to pick up the car for $8300 USD. Then get the Trip Permit from the DMV.
4. Drive the car to the Blaine Border Crossing and pay the Exchange Rate, A/C Tax, 6.1% Duty and 5% GST. (I am exempt from paying the Fuel Excise Tax and Federal Inspection since the car is older than 15 years old)
5. Pay the Export/Import Form Fees (according to Part 3, Step 2D)
6. Go to ICBC to get the car Insured and Registered and Pay the 7% PST
7. I'm Done?!

If there is anything I'm missing please let me know.

Thanks again,

Kevin.

[chromechevy]

Are there any companies out there that do all the paper work run around and bring the vehicle into Canada for a fee? Of course I would do all the inspection stuff etc...

Would 07/08 BMW m5's be admissable?

[bcrdukes]

^
Doing the inspections and necessary modifications are as easy as the paperwork process, in fact, it is easier.

Check the Admissibility list with Transport Canada to see if there are any restrictions in bringing that particular year/model in.

[chromechevy]

Really? Sounds so complex lol.

I checked that list, but it's really generic. It says BMW and the years, nothing about individual models...

[lowside67]

All BMW models are eligible. However, there is a fuel excise tax ($3000 on SMG models, $4000 on 6spds) on the new bodystyle M5s brought into service after March 20, 2007.

Edit - updated date, March, not May.

[chromechevy]

If I am buying say a 2006 m5 does that excise still apply being a smg?

What if I buy a 2007, with inservice date feb... Will I be okay? Or will the excise tax still effect me?

Confused

[lowside67]

Originally Posted by lowside67

All BMW models are eligible. However, there is a fuel excise tax ($3000 on SMG models, $4000 on 6spds) on the new bodystyle M5s brought into service after March 20, 2007.

Originally Posted by chromechevy

If I am buying say a 2006 m5 does that excise still apply being a smg?

What if I buy a 2007, with inservice date feb... Will I be okay? Or will the excise tax still effect me?

Re-read what I wrote. ANY vehicle put into service (ie has an in-service date) after March 20, 2007 is subject to it. Doesnt matter if it's an 06 or an 08. Since February 2007 is before March 2007, no you do not have to pay the fuel tax.

-Mark

[chromechevy]

Thanks Low... Im just last minute tripping out...

[freakshow]

hey lowside, i've added some info to your guide at my post here: http://www.revscene.net/forums/showp...1&postcount=97

feel free to take from it what you want (if anything at all).. thanks again for an awesome guide!

[jep]

If I buy a vehicle from California with expired tags and drive it to Washington is the "trip permit" from California DMV enough to legally drive it to Washington or do I have to buy a permit for each state I drive through? (ie. Oregon and Washington)

[chromechevy]

Transport Canada website isnt too specific, says may require these modifactions...

Anyone know which modifactions a 03-06 Mercedes SL55 or E55 would require? 05-08 Corvette c6? Perhaps costs?

Bumpers? Speedometer?

[jsd125]

Hi, I was hoping someone can help me on here.

I'm purchasing a car in California that has a title that states "Salvage Certificate". can i use this document as a title to the vehicle or do i need to get a "salvage title".

I tried contacting the DMV in California but they don't accept calls from outside of the state. Also, I tried to call Oregon to see if i can get a trip permit and they said I have to get it from the titling state.

the car was a salvage car that has been repaired and is drivable.

Any help would be great, I sent in the salvage certificate to US customs and will call tomorrow to see if its good to go or not.

Has anyone else purchased a car with a Salvage Certificate???? not salvage title.

[V.I.Guy]

I got the inspection part of it figured out, but what papers do I need? Case= 1996 Integra, brought up by owner, broken into two years ago, and been sitting since. Is there paperwork he should have, that I need?

CHeers!~

[ipwn]

Originally Posted by jsd125

Hi, I was hoping someone can help me on here.

I'm purchasing a car in California that has a title that states "Salvage Certificate". can i use this document as a title to the vehicle or do i need to get a "salvage title".

I tried contacting the DMV in California but they don't accept calls from outside of the state. Also, I tried to call Oregon to see if i can get a trip permit and they said I have to get it from the titling state.

the car was a salvage car that has been repaired and is drivable.

Any help would be great, I sent in the salvage certificate to US customs and will call tomorrow to see if its good to go or not.

Has anyone else purchased a car with a Salvage Certificate???? not salvage title.

A bit late but I'm pretty sure a Salvage Certificate would suffice. If you don't mind me asking what kind of car are you planning to get?

I got a salvaged and repaired 09 Accord Coupe for $12,000 last year. Pretty much brand new, runs great, and I love it.

Good luck on your purchase

[AstulzerRZD]

Hi lowside!

I have a few questions pertaining to your guide.
I was wondering what the B3 mentioned in the first post was, and how you could find out when a vehicle was put into service. Thanks!

[Backy_Boy]

http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/cto/2392447988.html

i want to import this vehicle. the owner is willing to sell it for 14500. to get someone to bring it to canada and registered how much will it cost in total. pm me if you import cars

[dbl_m]

I have a quick question, when importing a car from the US with a Salvage title does it have to have some other inspection other than the standard federal and provincial in order to get registered and insure? Thanks in advance

[NLY]

Originally Posted by dbl_m

I have a quick question, when importing a car from the US with a Salvage title does it have to have some other inspection other than the standard federal and provincial in order to get registered and insure? Thanks in advance

bump with same question

thanks

[lowda9]

Anyone have a rough idea how much it would cost me to import a 1993 integra from washington? It's my car and don't know if it would be a good choice if importing it is going to cost more than what the car is worth, a couple grand.

[gdhillon]

Has any1 imported a snowmobile?

[gdhillon]

Also, what craigslist urls are close to the peace arch border?