Importation?

[restwzeasy]

The past September we imported our 2004 Revolution from GA without major issues. It was a private sale and the main thing was to make sure to have a clear title document (you need the actual paper title document not just an electronic version) and have it signed in the appropriate spot by the seller. We also needed letters from American Coach/Fleetwood and Freightliner stating that there were no outstanding recalls.

We then sent an email to the appropriate border crossing which responded in about an hour telling us that we need to wait 72 hours before exporting the RV from US and importing it into Canada. 72 hours later, the US customs checked the VIN and placed a stamp on the title (about a 10 min process.) We then spent about 1 hour on the Canadian side filling in import form, paying the GST + about $200 import fee, and having the vehicle inspected to make sure we weren't transporting any prohibited items/people.

Couple weeks later (you have up to 45 days I think) we had it checked at Canadian Tire which was another 10 min inspection. They checked the VIN and daytime running lights. I was then off to a shop to have the RV safety certified and emission tested in Ontario and I was off to Service Ontario office to register it. There I had to pay the provincial taxes (rest of the HST) along with registration fees and the RV was licensed.

The Registrar of Imported Vehicles website had all the details we needed. The overall process was smoother than I expected.

[Akibase]

Your paperwork must be at US Customs 72 hours before you can bring the RV across the border. They will accept faxed copies from the seller, but they will not process the paperwork if it is not there 72 hours before hand. They made this very clear to me. I hope this helps. I had no other problems and saved a lot.

[restwzeasy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Akibase Your paperwork must be at US Customs 72 hours before you can bring the RV across the border. They will accept faxed copies from the seller, but they will not process the paperwork if it is not there 72 hours before hand. They made this very clear to me. I hope this helps. I had no other problems and saved a lot.

I read that in the documentation and I was surprised when I called the border office and all they told me to do was send the email with the VIN # in it. They didn't want any extra documents in the email. I had the documentation with me anyway. The experience ended up saving us a lot of money.

[Groveite]

The 72 hr rule must be for motorized vehicles....Took 10 minutes last night at the border and that included paying the GST. Just waiting for the online forms to activate (takes about 24 hrs they say) so I can pay the RIV $195 and get the inspection form...then inspect and hit the On licence bureau to pay the PST. Funny I thought that would have been harmonized too but I guesss not yet.
Ian

[Phazer]

I recently imported a motorhome from the states, and other than having to go thru Canadian Tire, everything has gone very smooth. I bought from a dealer in California, who faxed the papers to the border for me, so I'm not sure what all was sent. When I got to the border, I took my title into the lady in US customs, who took it across the room for a while and brought it back with a stamp of approval on it and said I was good to go. Is it just a paper saying who sold it to whom, and the VIN number, or is there more to it than that?

[hippy]

hope it is CSA stickered, read in another thread how a now bankrupt rv dealer in western Canada was bringing in and selling new trailers with no CSA, buyers didnt find out till later, and had probs with insurance or something, cant remember. i ran out to chk my new TT, and did find sticker. good luck

[bobmac]

Hippy

There is absolutely no problems with US built RVs providing the are built to the Recreational Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA) standard. An imported vehicle must be built to a "standard" per Cdn. federal regulations so the RVIA tag is fully acceptable. If you do your homework on importation and Canadian inspection, only vehicle related safety areas are checked (DRLs, tire pressure labeling, VIN labelling, etc). There is absolutely no requirement for an RV imported by an individual to comply to CSA standards. If it is new and being imported for sale in Canada presumably by a dealer then it must have been built to CSA standards. Insurance company underwriters understand these requirements and I have never been asked for anything other than a Canadian RIV inspection number to have a vehicle insured that I imported. In any event, there are only trivial differences between the underlying standards mostly in the electrical, plumbing and propane areas. By not having these standardized/ harmonized, we are supporting excess cost to the Canadian consumer and excessive employment in organizations like the CSA and electrical safety organizations in my opinion. That is the bottom line to part of the higher cost of things here.

[hippy]

"Well , thank yo's for some light on this.. I had purchased the trailer at the end of July 2011 and was to take it in for warranty work on the power awning. I was to get free storage with this purchase from the dealer for 20 years, who could pass it up.. Right, in the middle of October when taking it down to Canada 1 RV, they had went into receivership.. This is where it starts, turning to Keystone they put me in the direction of a place to have atleast the warranty work done. When they had asked me for the sticker number near the door is when i found that the trailer was not CSA approved. So they refused to do any work on this unit. Suggesting i let they approve it and cost anywhere from 500 - 1500 dollars. So when phoned back to Keystone they advised me that the trailer was not ASKED to be CSA approved when built.
This is where it gets real interesting, you are right about the law that isn't really there. But again the insurance company and camp grounds will need this for safety of there parks and others around [seasonal sites require] It is more of a dealer policy looking out for the consumer. Because i live in Winnipeg , Manitoba- Canada, I have heard that it is more higher on the leven for safety standards, with no disrespect to and other province or country. I am trying to find a legal way into this, and i think Keystone should be putting up the bill for the Manitoba cert. sticker or CSA aproval. It was there dealer in trust that was selling these units.

I really appriciate all the help and I hope that this may help others if in this situation."
Just some more info about CSA approval fo you to research, also anything electrical on rv has to be CSA approved, such as wiring, electric appliances, etc. If you type in CSA in the search bar you will find lots of posts regarding Csa approval problems. In Canada if you have a fire caused by a non CSA approved device you may have a denial on the claim. Bottom line... do your research.

[Groveite]

The process was about as easy as it could be given that you must deal with 2 levels of gov't and the private sector (Feds...Provincial licence bureau and Canadian Tire) . The longest part was waiting to get the RIV inspection form on line due to them being closed on the weekend. One oddity was that the GST was paid at the border crossing but the PST was not....I thought they were harmonized but I guess not. BTW no problem insuring it once it was plated in Ontario . The company is informed that it is from the US and have a copy of the bill of sale confirming that.
All in all a fairly painless process.
ian

[hippy]

good deal, how much do you think you saved?

[Groveite]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hippy good deal, how much do you think you saved?

Somewhere in the neighbourhood of 7000 on that particular unit....

[bill2011]

We drove a new Class A DP home in June. We paid around $ 450 for CSA certification. Had no issues in coming accross the border. All paperwork including title, recall certification, etc was emailed to the US border office by the dealer and we got through both customs offices in about 25 minutes. You do have to ensure that the motorhome is listed in the RVIA's list of vehicles allowed to be imported into Canada.

[JCM]

They need the 72 hours to check the title of the vehicle so that there are no liens etc. against the title. Intresting enough, if you buy a new unit it is still considered a used unit when you go to export it (from the US) and they still have to clear the title.

[dogpatch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Groveite The only hitch so far is that my insurance Co (Aviva /Elite) will not issue any insurance until it is registered in Ontario....Anyone have any experience with a workaround on that?

I just brought an RV back to Canada 3 days ago.
Go in to your Broker and ask them for a "Binder of Insurance". This is temporary insurance for travel from one location to another.