Importing a bike from the States to Canada

[Pine Sol]

before i left alberta, i bought a tansit plate, to which i was told was only valid in canada. i picked up my bike from Michigan, went to the michigan motor vehicle department and got a transit permit, to which i was told was only valid for usa. i mounted it on some cardboard, clear taped it, and mounted it like a license plate (as the bike didnt have a windshield). drove west across the states to idaho and north to sweet grass, zero problems across the states, crossed the boarder, cdn customs, never asked about the license plate, even thou he did come out and check the bike over. legally, i should have swapped the plates, but was to lazy, drove back to calgary with the usa transit plates.
again, zero problem.

hope this helps


ps, the transit plates for usa were us$10, and the cdn transit plates were something like cdn$30

[Spiritwalker2222]

Originally Posted by Pine Sol

before i left alberta, i bought a tansit plate, to which i was told was only valid in canada. i picked up my bike from Michigan, went to the michigan motor vehicle department and got a transit permit, to which i was told was only valid for usa. i mounted it on some cardboard, clear taped it, and mounted it like a license plate (as the bike didnt have a windshield). drove west across the states to idaho and north to sweet grass, zero problems across the states, crossed the boarder, cdn customs, never asked about the license plate, even thou he did come out and check the bike over. legally, i should have swapped the plates, but was to lazy, drove back to calgary with the usa transit plates.
again, zero problem.

hope this helps


ps, the transit plates for usa were us$10, and the cdn transit plates were something like cdn$30

Did you have insurance on the bike? The insurance company I use wouldn't insure a bike until the ownership is completely transfered over to Canadian owenership.

[Pine Sol]

if i could insurance... anyone should be able to...

i live overseas (se asia) and came back to north america this time, with a (hk) drivers abstract, an international endorsement, and my hong kong drivers license, i had been in contact with my old insurance company of 15yrs ago. the broker was glanced at my papers, and charged me slightly more cause my drivers license wasnt a canadian. he knew that i was retrieving and importing my bike into cdn.

i contacted nearly every insurance agency in north america, and he was the only one, that would give me insurance (slightly more, cause of non-cdn drivers license)

the insurance company is with "Nordic Insurance Company of Canada"

hope this helps

[MCP]

I just found a Unigo trailer in the US,

does anyone know what is required to get this trailer into BC?

Since its not a bike, the regs must be a little different.


Thanks

[gumbellion]

the big thing is make sure its got a 14 digit VIN number. other than that pretty straight forward.
No VIN=trailer wont get in

[Maggot12]

Originally Posted by MCP

I just found a Unigo trailer in the US,

does anyone know what is required to get this trailer into BC?

Since its not a bike, the regs must be a little different.


Thanks

And you don't need the 72 hr ahead at the border. Super easy to bring a trailer across as it's not motorized.

[grumpybear]

I brought back a new tent trailer this summer. Doing the paperwork was easy but the border guard was only really concerned about 3 items: the 14 digit VIN number, any safety recalls and bill of sale. The guard did leave the comfort of the AC'ed office and go outside to check the VIN and description. It took longer to get the RIV inspection at Canadian Tire than to do the importation process.

grump

[jkdwings]

Hey guys, quick questions about the Recall Clearance Letter that is required:

1. Is this needed at the Canadian border crossing to get into the country, or not until the inspection once in country?

2. My understanding is that this letter can be obtained at any authorized dealer with the VIN, and easiest to get from an American one. Is that correct? It's a KLR, so any experience specifically with Kawasaki would be great to hear. I know BMW Canada charges an outrageous fee to produce that letter; is it similar or possible with Kawi Canada?

That's all I've got for now.

Regards,

Jason

[Maggot12]

Originally Posted by jkdwings

Hey guys, quick questions about the Recall Clearance Letter that is required:

1. Is this needed at the Canadian border crossing to get into the country, or not until the inspection once in country?

2. My understanding is that this letter can be obtained at any authorized dealer with the VIN, and easiest to get from an American one. Is that correct? It's a KLR, so any experience specifically with Kawasaki would be great to hear. I know BMW Canada charges an outrageous fee to produce that letter; is it similar or possible with Kawi Canada?

That's all I've got for now.

Regards,

Jason

Recal letter comes after import and you fax it to RIV. No kawi experience but all my letters i got from the head office in the US from whatever brand i brought across the border.

[petebcca]

In BC you can get an interim insurance binder on your newly purchased bike. mine cost about $60 for 10 days. You just need to have a copy of the title and a bill of sale or fully paid invoice. Washington state allows dealers to issue day trip permits and ICBC says these permits are valid in BC as well. No tax in WA on new or used bikes if a Canadian resident. but the dealer wouldn't sell me a Ducati so settled for a SuperTenere!

[v4forever]

Originally Posted by MCP

I just found a Unigo trailer in the US,
does anyone know what is required to get this trailer into BC?
Since its not a bike, the regs must be a little different.Thanks

Brought my Unigo across with just a title and bill of sale. No 72 hour checks required.
Still have to go though the RIV process.

[Moto North]

Hey Guys,
Seems most of the info here is regarding road bikes. I'm looking at an enduro bike in the US. Its an old '82 Can-Am so was orriginally from Canada anyway. Any idea what is needed to bring this in? Also, it has never been plated in any way in the US but I'm hoping to be able to get it blue plated at some point. I have an old '78 that I plated years ago, even though it orriginally had just the off road registration, I was able to get a local shop give me an inspection certificate and I think thats all I needed at the time to get it road plated. Anybody have any recent experience doing this with an unplated US i mport?
Thanks

[Maggot12]

You won't have to do anything. It's older than 15 yrs and doesn't take part in the RIV process. Just throw it in the back of your truck and claim it as you would clothing or parts.

[Pac_Man]

Originally Posted by Pine Sol

ok, i keep meaning to post this info... (this is from my bad memory last month)

You are lucky they gave you this. I tried 3 different dealerships in the US to see if they would print this out. ALL of them sad 'NO WAY' If you take a look at the top of the document is has a warning to the dealership NOT to hand this document out. All the dealerships said that BMW US and BMW CANADA have made an agreement not to provide this document. If you call BMW Canada they will charge you $500 for the form!!!

Long story short, there is a private 'guy' in Canada that will do it for you for a couple of hundred. Not sure if that has changed in the past year or so

[DaveBall]

I have imported many bikes that all were of 25 years old, therefore no duty was required. I am now thinking of importing a used Japanese bike from USA that is less than 10 years old. I have tried searching the Canada Excise websites for what the current duties would be, can't seem to find any real information.

So for any of you that may have imported a Suzuki, Yamaha or Kawasaki, that is less than 10 years old and on the RIV list, what kind of Duty did you have to pay. I fully understand the RIV fees and HST, along with any documentation required.

Any info would be greatly appreciated.