Moving back to Canada with motor home and car

[nancy1956]

Hi folks.
My husband and I are planning on moving back to Canada after being in the U.S for a few years. Anyone here attempted it? How hard is it to bring a motor home and car back. Looks like we know what documents are needed but we are told we need an aes/itn # and to get a broker. Not sure why we need a broker. Any info would be welcome.

[Fred1609]

Welcome to the forum. Theres a lot of threads that you can search thru regarding moving vehicles from the US to Canada.....and it does sound as easy as an Inspection at Canadian Tire to get the out of province and RIV decal. A friend bought a 5er in Minnesota and drove it back to BC and had no issues. Very simple. Start with this link https://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&rct=j...69411363,d.cGU

[Ron_H]

Check the website for the Registrar of Imported Vehicles. This is the official body that controls vehicle imports and their website contains both listings of vehicles that can be imported as well as an explanation of the process and steps you need to follow.

As you have been living outside Canada for some time there may be additional considerations worth checking out, such as possible tax exemption. They are happy to talk with you on the phone so I suggest getting their number from the website and give them a call.

[BFlinn181]

One thing you might do before starting the 'official' process is check that your vehicles will meet all requirements of Canada. One issue I know some folks have had to deal with is daytime driving lights. Many U.S. vehicles have this feature also, but if not equipped, you can take your time now to choose who and how you add this and other required features before you get get to the border.

[Skip426]

Welcome to iRV2.
There are brand new regulations in place for exporting vehicles from the USA. April 30th?
These new regulations , may be easy to work through, if you have been paying taxes in the USA, the majority of problems reported have been by Canadians trying to buy units in the US and importing by themselves.
As other members have stated , first thing to do is to check the Canadian government site with regard to your vehicle's eligibility for import into Canada. You will be allowed time to have your RV brought up to the standards that it doesn't meet, once it is in Canada.

[Gordon Dewald]

Originally Posted by Ron_H

Check the website for the Registrar of Imported Vehicles. This is the official body that controls vehicle imports and their website contains both listings of vehicles that can be imported as well as an explanation of the process and steps you need to follow.

As you have been living outside Canada for some time there may be additional considerations worth checking out, such as possible tax exemption. They are happy to talk with you on the phone so I suggest getting their number from the website and give them a call.

Good advice. I am pretty sure there is a tax exemption after a year but talking to them will be the best thing to do.

[nancy1956]

Thank-you everyone for the help. We now have all the documents we need and we are going to hire Livingston Brokers for the AES/ITN # for $300.00. Yes we are paying taxes in the U.S but don't want any hassle with the U.S border. We just got a recall letter for our 2009 HHR for the ignition key. We had it fixed twice in the past 4 years. Some dealer in Tucson just ordered a new ignition for us since most GM dealers have a 2 months waiting period. Hopefully we won't have to wait that long. Both our vehicles are on the R.I.V as good to cross in Canada. I called them and also the U.S and Canadian border at Sweet Grass. Hopefully all will go smoothly. Still need to fill up some B4 forms for the tax exempt for all our stuff. Lots of work. Thanks again folks

[Ron_H]

Originally Posted by Skip426

Welcome to iRV2.
There are brand new regulations in place for exporting vehicles from the USA. April 30th?
These new regulations , may be easy to work through, if you have been paying taxes in the USA, the majority of problems reported have been by Canadians trying to buy units in the US and importing by themselves.
As other members have stated , first thing to do is to check the Canadian government site with regard to your vehicle's eligibility for import into Canada. You will be allowed time to have your RV brought up to the standards that it doesn't meet, once it is in Canada.

The biggest change is the process by which you go through the US export part. The new system requires you to go online for data entry and you need an account for that. I have not checked into what all that entails yet. though the new regulations came into effect in April, the old system can still be used through to October of this year.

It is imperative that you check to be sure your vehicles are eligible for import. If your MH is not on the eligible list it simply cannot be imported and no amount of change or updates will alter that. For those that are eligible, about the only thing you have to do beyond passing a basic safety inspection is enable day time running light. Some MHs are easily enabled and others require a small kit with a relay - not costly. Your odometer can read in miles or kilometers, it does not matter, but metric speeds must be displayed. If KM/HR are not already displayed on your speedo, a simple conversion sticker is all that's required to pass.

[nancy1956]

Everything is good. I called R.I.V again and we verified both our vehicles and they will pass no problem. Both have running daylight and anti theft device or what they call engine immobilizer which is required in Canada. We changed our speedometer to Kilometers as per the HHR owner's manual. As long as the speed reads in kilometers it is accepted. Broker will get us the AES/ITN number for $300.00. Biggest thing is to fill out B4 of everything we own. We are full time RV'S so that will be time consuming. We just received a recall letter for the ignition switch for the HHR and the dealer has ordered one and we should have the car done in 2 weeks max. The dealer is now getting 5 to 7 new ignition a week. Also a GM letter of called GM VEHICLE INQUIRY SYSTEM SUMMARY with the dealership stamp on it is accepted by the R.I.V as opposed to paying over $200.00 for a recall letter. I now have a case # with the R.I.V. Hopefully things will go as planned. Thanks for all your input.

[Ron_H]

That's great to hear.

Welcome back home

[britcon]

Other thing to consider is GST and PST on vehicles. As you are returning to Canada they may be classified as " settlers effects " which should reduce / eliminate taxes ?

[nancy1956]

Being away for 12 years qualifies as returning Canadian residents which makes us tax exempt on anything up to $10,000.00. We will pay GST on the difference on the M.H and car. Alberta only has GST. So we get a little break.
Thanks everyone for your helpful input.