Thinking of purchasing a car from the U.S and importing it into Canada? Maybe you are planning this because of the low costs of vehicles in the U.S as compared to Canada? Well before you do, read this guide to ensure you are saving money.
Should You Buy a Car From the U.S Instead of Canada?
The short answer is, yes – in most cases! This is because Canadians pay 20% more than what Americans pay to purchase a car. Since most of the auto manufacturers are located in the U.S, locally manufactured vehicles always cost less. This means if a car costs between $25,000 and $30,000 in the U.S, a Canadian may pay $5,000 to $6,000 extra for it.
Car manufacturers justify this price difference by saying they need to make up for the lost dollars in importing the vehicles from their U.S manufacturing plant to the Canadian showrooms. However, many Canadians are not buying into this excuse and exploring import routes on their own.
However, keep in mind, there are many fees, taxes, and duties associated with car import into Canada. So even if you do it yourself instead of hiring a car shipping company, expect to pay a few thousand bucks.
Let’s Look at the Car Import Costs:
Many people who benefit from the import of cars from the U.S to Canada are the ones who get NAFTA vehicles that are manufactured or assembled in the U.S, Mexico, or Canada with at least 55% content. This is because these vehicles have no duties, saving a good amount of money on imports. However, there are some more costs associated with import, be sure to consider them before buying and importing a car from the U.S:
- Sales Taxes: There are different taxes associated with car import including the GST (typically 5%), and PST (depending on your province). Then there’s the AirConditioning tax of $100.
- RIV: There’s also an RIV fee that’s imposed on the import of vehicles and it varies depending on your province because you have to pay GST or QST tax along with it. Find out the RIV fee for your province here.
- Import Duty: There’s also a 6.1% import duty fee if your car is non-NAFTA.
- Emission Excise tax: This one is applied to fuel-inefficient vehicles with 13 or more litres usage per 100km. It ranges from $1,000 to $4,000 depending on how many litres your car consumes per 100km.
- Car Transport Cost: If you use a Canada auto shipping company, you will have to pay their fee as well which can range from a few hundred dollars to a couple of thousand dollars depending on how long the distance is.
- Safety and Emission Inspection: Depending on your province, there will be a safety and emission inspection fee. Call the motor control department of your province to find this out.
Importing the Car Into Canada:
If you still think the overall car cost is going to be less than what it’s costing you in Canada then you can proceed with the import process. Here’s a general overview of the process:
Get in touch with a reputable dealer, inspect the car with a 3rd party automobile inspection company and purchase it if everything checks out.
Contact RIV Using:
- Contact Number Inside North America: 1-888-848-8240
- Contact Number Outside North America: 1-416-626-6812
- Toll-Free Telephone for Canada and U.S: 1-888-848-8240
- Email: [email protected]
And ask them about additional car inspection requirements. Be sure to contact them before buying the car to ensure the vehicle you are purchasing is admissible in Canada.
Hire a car transport company to move your car from the U.S to Canada and that’s pretty much it. Feel free to talk to us if you need any help with importing to and from Canada.
Media Contact
Company Name: Easy Auto Ship
Contact Person: Eric Ray
Email: Send Email
Country: United States
Website: https://diytransport.com