Last month, I presented to you a post about importing my car into Canada. At that point, I had not obtained vehicle form 1 (the import form) because I was told I did not need it at the border. In actuality, I DID need it, and so I had to take a trip all the way out to Pearson airport (on the other side of Toronto) to get it. But now, the whole process is done, and my car is (almost) plated.
So, let's sum up, shall we? For an American temporary resident in Canada, I needed the following things to import my little Toyota to Canada. Things are listed in the order I got them.
-An Ontario driver's license. This is pretty simple to get, and you only have to bring proof of residence. I got it back in March, and I now have my real license instead of the paper one. They confiscated my Pennsylvania license and gave me a copy in case I should ever need it.
-Vehicle form 1. Very important and absolutely essential. I went to the back entrance of Pearson and got it. Because I am a temporary resident, all fees were waived, and I got a beautifully signed and stamped receipt and Vehicle Form 1 for a grand total of..... $0. There were no RIV fees, no air cond fees, no gas mileage fees.
-Safety and emissions inspection. To get the car plated in Ontario, it needs to pass the Drive Clean program. Additionally, it needs to pass the safety requirements to get a Safety Standard Certificate. Total cost should be around $100 for both of these. Princess was a little lacking, so I needed some work done to pass safety (see below).
-Daytime running lights. Ugh. HUGE ripoff. I have the option of turning Princess' lights off; hence, they needed to render that impossible, to the tune of over $200. I asked them if I could just turn the knob to keep the lights on all the time, and they said no. So now the lights are constantly running (except when the car is off, of course). I don't like it, but it's essential for Canada.
-New brakes. This was 100% my fault. They told me in Pennsylvania last October that the brakes were rusting, but by the time I took Princess to get inspected, the brakes were totally rusted through. New rotors and everything needed. My total bill with the lights, safety, emissions, and brakes came up to about $700. But now my little trooper is all fixed up and roadworthy.
-Title and registration. I already had these. I'd say they're essential to the process, but I think only the title is. Because I had my registration, they just took that. I made copies of them beforehand because I didn't know what they would take and keep. See below for what they did with them.
-Insurance. Oh boy. My insurance in Ontario is over 100% higher than it was in the U.S. I got it through CAA, and I was walked through the process very professionally. I also purchased roadside assistance. My temporary insurance cards were emailed to me, so I could present proof of insurance.
I gathered allllllll these essential things up, trooped over to my local Service Ontario kiosk which is also a branch of the Ministry of Transportation, and obtained....
-My license plates! Imagine me holding up my plates like Link holds up the Triforce. That's how momentous this was. The plates + registration for 1 year came out to about $90. The Pennsylvania title was stamped "registered in Ontario" and given back to me. The Service Ontario staff member helping out the guy who did all this for me said it was because "these things cost like $150 in the States, and we don't want them to have to get a new one." This is the first time Ontario has expressed interest in saving me money. However, my PA registration was confiscated, and I didn't get it back. Instead, it was replaced with an Ontario registration, which doubles as a title essentially. So I went in with all the stuff above, and I left minus my PA registration, but with an Ontario registration and front/back plates.
-Holes drilled in the front of Princess. Poor Princess doesn't have a place for a front plate, only having been plated in Georgia and Pennsylvania, which do not require front plates. I have to get holes drilled and bolts put in, but this should only be about $20. This is the last thing I need to do before she becomes truly Canadian!
So yeah, the process is long and costly, and I'm so, so glad it's over.
So understand what you mean regarding car insurance. I'm with Allstate and I hate, hate, hate them. I'm paying exactly twice as much as I used to pay with Geico when I was in grad school city. Here they "confiscated" the title of my car. They claim I could get it re-issued at the border, but as you know grad-school city and border-city are not the same. And I'm glad you didn't need to pay the import fees (see, I was right on this, hehe .... just kidding, I'm getting off my soap box now). This reminds me that I need to check my papers and if I get to keep my current position or switch to a different one within the school I need to do the emissions and all those tests again, since it's been 2 years since I moved here and had that done. Great to hear Princess is all legal now. And yes, I had to drill 2 holes for the ON plates too, as grad-school city only had the back tag.
ReplyDeleteI know, I had Geico too! I really appreciated them; they were so helpful when I hit a deer. I'm surprised they confiscated your title, but I have a feeling they might have taken mine too had I not had my registration with me.
ReplyDeleteYou were so right about the fees! I was so worried, but it ended up being ok. Perhaps this Saturday, I will take Princess in for her minor surgery, and then we'll go back to the U.S. for graduation. I am way more excited than I expected to be.
I am starting a 2 yr postdoc at U of T this summer, and the car import situation is still confusing even after reading your very detailed and helpful posts.
ReplyDeleteI read somewhere else that a 2 yr postdoc does not need to import, register, and license a car in Canada. Is your postdoc longer than 36 months?
Also, my sponsoring institution told me that I can apply for a work permit at the border. We'll see how it goes!
I suppose you don't have to do all those things, but the truth is, my car was licensed in Pennsylvania, and I no longer live in Pennsylvania. I live in Ontario. So when they sent me the registration renewal form, I couldn't truthfully say I had any residence in Pennsylvania. With respect to the work permit, you can indeed do that, but I thought that since I had time, I'd get done with the paperwork beforehand.
ReplyDeleteWhere did you go at the Pearson airport to get form 1.
ReplyDeleteYOu do not need to visit Pearson aiport. There is a Canada Customs office at 5425 Dixie Road, Mississauga (free parking), and at 1 Front Street West, Toronto where you can get a Form 1.
DeleteHi I am moving to Ottawa this saturday with my Toyota camry (2004) and will be staying there temporarily in work visa for 12 months (at the most 15 months).
ReplyDeleteCould you please let me know if you had to pay the sales tax in Ontario (I saw it is around 13% of market price).No one really mention about that. Is it coz its not needed? I owned this car for almost 3 years, so when I move there will the tax be estimated based on the original price for which I bought it, or based on the current market price.
Finally which is wise, to take the car over there or buy a new one?
Thanks
There are a couple of places you can go to get Form 1. Don't go to the actual Terminals (1 or 3), because it's not there. It's around the back end of the airport, accessible by Dixie Road. It looks like there are a bunch of service entrances, but you can go that way. It's a long road that keeps taking you around the back of Pearson, and the import place is right after employee parking.
ReplyDeleteAs for the other person, no, you don't have to pay that 13% tax on your car if you're just going to be coming in, working temporarily, and then going back to the U.S. Definitely take it with you. It's way cheaper to do that than buy a new car here, because then you would have to import that car back to the U.S.
Actually, you do not require daytime running lights. Under Ontario regulation 611 - aka the safety standard certification - daytime running lights are not required. There is some confusion here, and the government officials and automotive service centers tend to get this confused.
ReplyDeleteWell that's good to know now.... I was wondering how ALL of these Ontario cars were cruising around without their lights on, and now I know. I just wish my safety inspection place had known!
DeleteNice and good Article you tell us, it is very effective ,, information for us and ,, just share more pictures of car ,, new model
ReplyDeleteCar import
Did you ever have to formally "export" your car from the US? Or did you just cross the border into Canada, and then do all of this once you were in Canada?
ReplyDeleteNever had to formally export it. Did all of this once I was in Canada. You can get Form 1 at the border, but I was mistakenly told I didn't need to.
DeleteGreat but the process of import cars seems so hassle.
ReplyDeletevery nice to hear..hope that your business will pursue..great job
ReplyDeleteSo what happens if you decide you like Canada and want to stay? Will you have to pay some extra customs duties on Princess since she wouldn't be destined to go back to the U.S. any more?
ReplyDeleteI've in that situation - I've been living in Canada two years and am on the verge of getting my permanent residency. I'm torn on whether I should get a (cheaper) car in the U.S. and take it here, or just buy one here, and face the possibility that I may eventually have to import it to the U.S. if I go back...
I'm back in the U.S. now, but had I applied for PR and stayed in Canada, then yes, they would have made me formally import the car. Princess would have been 13 years old by then, which meant she could have been exempt by a good amount of the import taxes, though. If you get a car in the U.S., it's got to be pretty old. Otherwise, you'll get hit with import taxes, AC tax, and if you're not fuel efficient enough, you've got to pay that tax, too.
DeleteAnd what did you have to do to get your car back into the US and registered in MI?
DeleteThe downside of living in the US is that you are the last one to experience the awesomeness of the newer release car. That’s why there are some that like to import cars.
ReplyDelete