You can always ask one of the RS sponsors if they can come close to the deal you can get down in the states. You'd be surprised - worth a try. I never buy car stereo shit down south, because I can get good deals up here without the hassles. Plus, I like supporting small businesses up here.

nah the deal i can get is already a smoking deal, its just the additional taxes and duty piss me off.


Anytime we bring something in or any shop we gotta go thru these procedures


shipping, duty, exchange rate, 12% taxes
:bullshit: it really adds up quite a bit

^ Why not install it in the states?

^

like i said i dont know any shops down there, but i will put that into consideration.


Coils i got my eyes on, if somehow i can avoid taxes and duty it will be about $400 dollar cdn difference

:(

Just spend wisely and you will not be worrying about duties/taxes.

Here's my strategy:

1. I have a BMO US credit card
2. My bank staff rates exchange cash at market rates (zero spread)

This is my weekend trip... Never waited for more than 30 mins at the borders (both ways)

Day 1
After work, get to the border at 6pm. I arrive in portland by 12-1am depending on rest stops. Sleep in a hotel.

Day 2
Shop tax free

Day 3
Shop tax free, leave at 4pm. Depending on rest stops, I get home at around 1030pm.

On average, total cost for gas and hotel shouldn't be more than $50 a person.
Posted via RS Mobile

whats the percent on duty when you cross the border if you have to pay?

If its such a smoking deal then even with the duty it should still be well under the price up here. Dont see why you keep complaining.

When i go down i factor in the duty on most big purchases anyways. And if i dont get taxes after declaring, its just a better deal for me.
Posted via RS Mobile

Yeah, I got caught before trying to sneak stuff back.
I got fined, and supposedly got a black mark.
I think i've crossed the border 15 times since, they've never checked my car since.

If you go on a weekday at Point Roberts, they are nicer.
I think out of the last $2000 I brought back, they waived me across for $1500 of it. Just declare, it's less hassle, and you might just get it tax/duty free anyways.


I wish I knew her. I really don't mind so much when I have to pay duties now. It just means I get to walk in and say high.
She's pretty serious though.


Point Roberts.
No pictures.

Why?
Cause she does wear the full uniform and gun.
I dun wanna get shot.

they should scrap that $50 day limit already, wtf does $50 get nowadays ..jack shit.

How many people?
its a great deal, but knowing if im capable of saving another $400 would be pretty sweet too, than i can pick up some sway bars at the same time
:D so not complaining trying to figure out the best strategy

Pussy

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:;)




btw

how much did u get fined, did they strip the shit out of ur car like u were hiding cocaine or sth

Never mind stripping the car...... they strip searched him......... all cavities. then they ripped him a new one......... sorry, couldn't resist. Now if the hot babe was in charge, that's a different story. Good enough for an episode of Brazzzers, LOL.

I never have problem crossing the border. My gf & I usually go down there for a day & come back with ~ $300 worth of stuff. Everytime they just waived us thru.

^

whats the average rate for one night?
$100? $150? $200?

^ I dun think there's an average rate. It really depends on the guard & wut he felt like at the time. I think the way to look at it is cost/benefit. They'r gonna taxe u 12%. How much do u have to bring back before it is worth it to do all the paper work? The other thing is they have to go thru each item and assign tax/duties accordingly. If u bring back 10 items that r worth $30 each, they have to go thru each item and categorize them, all for $36 of tax, maybe eve less. Is it worth their time? Most likely not.

sorry i think i meant average price to stay one night at the hotel lol

Don't confuse duty with taxes.

Border guards can choose to charge taxes (12%) if you're over your personal exemption limit. Stupid how they base it on the price you paid AFTER tax (so you get tax on top of tax).

The best way I can describe duty is a "penalty" they charge for items that aren't "duty free", such as alcohol or cigarettes. The duty rate is different depending on the item.

^ i won't say it's penalty, it's import tax

lol, stay in dirty motels for 60-70 a night. Or u can always sleep in ur car.

ewwwwwwwwwwwwww dirty motels
:rofl:


reminds me of the movie that a couple stayed at a ghetto motel and got robbed/killed? forgot what it was called

the movie is 3-4 years old i think

where is the nearest red lobster?

I'd have to ask my one night stand. ;)

4231 196th St. Lynnwood, WA

4 people, at least 3-star hotels. On average, I can priceline it to be about $35-50 each night.

btw, hotels in Portland are much cheaper compared to Seattle.

One trick with hotels, the ones slightly away from Interstates are on average $5-10 cheaper than the ones directly near Interstates.

Oh how I love red lobster..

Well, if they go by the book, anything under 24 hours is $0 limit. It's only after 24 hours you get the $50 exemption.

Nexus is a must if you go down regularly. Its on average about a 90 minute wait on any given weekend if you go around 10am. Nexus is usually 10 minutes or less but I've had days when it's been a 20 minute wait.

To be honest, I don't really shop at the stores in Bellingham. It's usually not that great a deal. I'll buy as much as I can online and have it shipped to my mailbox and do one big pickup once a month. I might go more often now that I work in Surrey and I'm only 15 minutes away from the border. I always factor the taxes in as well into my price to make sure it's still cheaper than here before I buy.

For you Nexus guys who have drove over recently, I heard that you don't even have to fill in the TDC anymore - you can just verbally declare. Is that true?