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Smart Shopper Importing Car into Canada from US
4518 messages, Last post on Dec 06, 2009 at 11:43 AM
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Replying to: tonytan1999 (Mar 19, 2006 12:49 am) Bought the Caddy from a Cadillac dealer in Alabama. Paid no sales tax. Had all the bill of sale documents. Drove the car with Alabama plates to Canadian customs. Paid GST and $100 air conditioning tax. Had to pay a small amount of duty based on the value of the car.Used the bill of sale to calculate this. They check the price against their own guide. If you try to bring in a $20,000 car and have documents that say you paid only $8,000, you are in for a pile of trouble...be honest and you find it pretty easy...we spent less than 30 minutes at the border. Registered the car in Ontario...paid the Ontario sales tax, had the safety certificate done, and put Ontario plates on it. When all was said and done, I think he saved about three grand over buying a similar car in Canada. But he was adamant that he wanted a car "with no salt on it!". Good luck in your efforts. Doug
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Replying to: dougb10 (Mar 19, 2006 5:08 am) Thanks so much for sharing the info. Just wondering if you could confirm/provide some more details for us: 1. Did you use a temp Alabama plate given to you by the dealer at the time of sale? Or did you get your own license plate from Alabama Department of Motor Vehicle? 2a. At the border, did you use the bill of sale as the "title document" which documents not only the ownership info but also any liens agaisnt it. I don't think the bill of sale can serve this purpose sufficiently. 2b. If you did title and register the car on your own, did you or your old man have any residency status in Alabama? What document did you have to produce in order to get the registration? 3. What temp operating permit and insurance did you use to travel from Alabama to Ontario? Or did you risk with insufficient coverage/licensing for the short period of time? 4. Did you notify the US customs and completed the US export formalities? 5. Did you buy the car in your own name or did your old man go with you? Was the car later registered in Ontario in your father's name? Was there a transfer from yourself to your father when you registered the car in Ontario? Besides the GST and other RIV fees, did you have to pay only the 7% PST, or both the 7% PST for registering the car first and the 7% social services tax for the ownership transfer? Thanks a lot for your help
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Replying to: tonytan1999 (Mar 19, 2006 9:03 pm) 1. We bought the car from the major Cadillac dealer in Birmingham...we phoned ahead and told them what we were looking for...they even offered to pick us up at the airport. The car we bought had Alabama plates on it. We left them on and didn't take them off until we screwed on the Ontario plates once we got back to Ontario. (the Alabama plates now adorn the inside of the outhouse at the cottage up North!) 2.The bill of sale from the dealership had all the necessary stuff saying who owned the car. 2b. We had no residency in Alabama....Dad just had his own residency and`license information. 3.Dad got some kind of letter from his own insurance company in Ontario showing the Cadillac was covered for the journey home from Alabama. 4.I don't recall anything being done at the U.S. customs. We told them we had bought the car in Alabama and were bringing into Canada where we lived. They just waved us on through to the Canadian side...this could be VERY different now though, so you had better check thoroughly. 5. The car was always in my Dad's name. We had to pay 7% GST at the Canadian border and 8% Provincial Sales tax when we got our license plates in Ontario. We did this deal in January...drove home through a huge snowstorm...a very long two day drive. The guys at the Cadillac dealership were concerned about us enough that they even phoned home to Dad's home in Ontario to see if we made it OK...pretty classy! They also had a great sense of humour....told us that his car "had never been driven up a hill or against the wind"! Do your homework before you go....a few phone calls to customs should clarify things and avoid hassles. Doug |
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Does anyone know the procedure for buying a new vehicle from Michigan and exporting it to Canada without paying the Michigan sales tax? I am interested in purchasing a new Acura or Honda but was told I would have to pay the Michigan sales tax unless the dealer delivered the car to the border? Does anyone have experience with this and can comment? Are there any differences between Michigan and New York with respect to state sales tax? Also, if the car is delivered by the dealer to the border, where will I get the temporary permit to drive the vehicle on the roads in Canada? Is this given to me at the border when I pay the Canadian taxes and appropriate registration fees? I am concerned if they deliver the vehicle that I will not receive the appropriate permit to drive the vehicle to my own ministry of transportation office to get my new license plates. Finally, while according to the Cdn government information there doesn't appear to be a problem in importing the MDX or Pilot, does anyone know any specifics about what modification would be required? Thanking you in advance for any advice, Paul |
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http://www.riv.ca.com/ has a list of the approved US vehicles that can be imported into Canada along with other info you need............... BTW: You shouldn't have to pay Mich. sales tax because you are not registering it there but in Canada..... |
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Replying to: geo9 (Mar 21, 2006 8:24 am) I went to the RIV website and all it says is that all Honda/Acura vehicles can be imported. I assume I can call RIZ or Canadian Tire and find out the specifics. I am concerned about the Michigan sales tax, from the code: 8-4.9 When going to Canada or Another Country. If the purchaser is taking delivery of the vehicle in Michigan and transporting in to Canada or another country, 6% Michigan sales tax is due. If the vehicle is being delivered by the dealer or dealer’s representative outside of the State of Michigan, sales tax is not due. (See Sections 8-5.10 and 8-5.11 and Chapter 3, section 3-9 for more information) I am concerned if I truck the vehicle across, are there any issues with the agent showing up at either border with my purchased vehicle. I know I would accompany them, but this may become more complicated. Could I get a dealer's plate and then drive it to Canada this way myself? Has anyone gone through this experience? plesome
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Replying to: plesome (Mar 21, 2006 9:20 am) the vehicle in Mich. you would have to pay sales tax. It don't work that way in NY ! Call Mich. DMV direct and ask................ Ask about a temp. plate too or use a dealer plate.
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Replying to: plesome (Mar 21, 2006 9:20 am) That being said, to get the car across the border, you will need to first have US customs verify that the car has not been stolen, etc. before allowing it to cross. (This is why you need to fax the paperwork a few days in advance of your crossing, so that US officials can run the appropriate checks.) Canadian customs will not let you import the car unless you present this paperwork from US officials. Re: taking delivery in Ontario or elsewhere in Canada, I would guess -- and this is just a guess -- that it would be difficult to find a dealer who would actually deliver the car to Canada, because the dealership would probably require export licenses, etc.. But rather than worry about it, you could simply ask each dealer whether they can export the car across the border for you, and find out for yourself how easy or difficult this might be. Not sure if this would work, but to avoid the tax, I'd research the possibility of taking delivery in another nearby state, such as Ohio or Indiana, to see if you can avoid the Michigan sales tax. I would research the DMV websites of these other states to see what their rules are re: registration, sales tax rules for cars not being registered in that state, etc. as a possible loophole that might help you to solve your tax problem. But whether this will work, I don't know. |
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Replying to: geo9 (Mar 21, 2006 10:02 am) |
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Hi, When you finally sort things out, could you post your experience. I am also thinking about doing the same but in few months. regards, |
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