Buying a Boat in Canada

[wcsailor]

Can someone direct me to information regarding procedures for buying a boat in Canada, registering it in Oregon, and mooring it in Washington state?

TIA

[Ike]

I used to help people with this all the time. It's very simple. The US and Canada have a Mutual Recognition Agreement. Boat made in Canada are accepted in the US. The only difference is the lable. In Canada it a Conformance Label. In the US it's a Certification Label, and may not be required. That depends on the type of boat. Call the following number in the US Coast Guard Office of Boating Safety. They can send you some info on importing a Boat. (by now this may be on their web site at Boating Safety Division. ) 202-372-1073 or FAX 202-372-1934

[Lancerbye]

If you buy a boat in Canada you will be subject to paying GST and PST unless it is bought in a none PST Province. If you make the deal an offshore deal You will not have to pay those taxes ( most dealers can accomadate that) register it in Oregon, Oregon may want some taxes but Washington state will want State registration and taxes if you are there more than 90 days I believe. If you were a Candian resident with an Alberta address, bought the boat offshore, and registered it in Canada, moored it in Washington you would pay no taxes until you re-entered Canada and would then be subect to GST.

[Connemara]

Originally Posted by Lancerbye

If you buy a boat in Canada you will be subject to paying GST and PST unless it is bought in a none PST Province.

Which is, if memory serves, only Alberta. And the seacoast of Alberta is rather like the seacoast of Bohemia ... pretty much non-existent.

Doesn't mean there aren't boats there, but the selection is likely to be small.

Connemara

[wcsailor]

Thanks for the info. The boat is American made, owned by a Canadian, registered in Canada, but moored at Pt. Roberts, WA. I'll contact the Coast Guard and the Oregon department that handles boat registration. Thanks again! I'll post what I find out for the benefit of the members here.

[Ike]

If the boat is at Point Roberts it's already in the USA. So the question becomes moot. Just buy it and register it.

[Pblais]

If the boat is at Point Roberts it's already in the USA. So the question becomes moot. Just buy it and register it.

Peter is of course correct. It's already here! You will only need a proper title to secure registration. US Documentation requires some additional paperwork. State registration will require a title and release of the current WA registration. You may or may not want one over the other. For obvious reasons you want a proper title to the boat after you pay for it. That would clearly be a first step. Talking with WA would be a good idea too. If you keep the boat in WA, OR won't care if you live in Oregon or not but WA will care. Registration is where the boat is and not where you live.

[andrejsv]

Originally Posted by Ike

It's very simple. The US and Canada have a Mutual Recognition Agreement. Boat made in Canada are accepted in the US.

Does that mean you can document a Canadian vessel? (or is it still restricted to US-built only, regardless if the owner is an US citizen?)

[Vasco]

You can document any vessel you have title to as long as it meets the minimum tonnage requirement.

[andrejsv]

Sorry, what I was thinking was regarding documenting a vessel for coastwide trade or fishing. I think you are right that documentation for just recreational (no paying crew) can be done with a foreign vessel.

[schoonerdog]

For our South African made boat which was registered in Brazil, we needed to import the boat first before being able to purchase it. It was around I believe 2% of the value of the boat.

[Ike]

I see the question has been answered. The Jones Act does not apply to documented yachts.

[GordMay]

Vessels may be documented in three categories: pleasure, commercial, or commercial with a pleasure endorsement.

Goto: USCG National Vessel Documentation Center, Home Page

Requirements that must be met before a vessel can be documented:
1. The owner must be a United States citizen*.
2. The vessel must be five (5) net tons or over**.
3. Vessels which are not required by law to be documented may be documented if the requirements of a. and b. above are met. This includes vessels used exclusively for pleasure and vessels used in foreign trade.

* A foreigner is now allowed to be "in command" of a U.S. documented recreational vessel. The regulations were relaxed in 1996, only for recreational vessels, and this mainly benefits those who want to bareboat charter a documented vessel to a foreigner or a U.S. citizen who has a foreign spouse or boat partner.
For all other endorsements of documented vessels -- coastwise, fishing, and registry - a U.S. citizen must still be in command" of the vessel.

** Tonnage Guide Simplified Measurement
http://www.marinetitle.com/reference/31448.pdf
USCG Marine Safety Center (MSC)

For those wishing to put a foreign-built recreational vessel into coast-wise service, usually yacht charters, there is now a small boat solution to the longstanding federal Jones Act requirement that all U.S. ships in coastwise trade be U.S.-built.

Until 2000, the only way to get an exemption was for the boat owner to apply to his or her congressman for a Private Relief bill that often took years to get through Congress.

They can now get a small boat waiver from the Maritime Administration in little over a month. The program is open to small passenger vessels carrying no more than 12, that are over five net tons, and more than three years old. A request can be filed by e-mail and a notice is then published in the Federal Register with 30 days allowed for comments.

[4reba]

Well. I read everything on this and other sites, called Customs, C.G. (also in Point Roberts AND Bellingham), took all the documents,bill of sale,etc and came back to Oregon with no boat. The boat, US built, was bought by Canadian, moored at Point Roberts. C.G. said boat registered in Canada CANNOT be sold in U.S. waters. Boat must go back to Canadian waters. get release form THEN can come back to Point Roberts. Or pay a US Customs Broker to do for us. I think all this "untold" or "mis" info is a way for these brokers to get money because when you find/buy a boat, you are stuck with a sail back to Canada or paying broker to do it. We made at least 8 calls to insure no snags, they made it sound like everything would be okay and was anything but.

[Vasco]

Originally Posted by 4reba

Well. I read everything on this and other sites, called Customs, C.G. (also in Point Roberts AND Bellingham), took all the documents,bill of sale,etc and came back to Oregon with no boat. The boat, US built, was bought by Canadian, moored at Point Roberts. C.G. said boat registered in Canada CANNOT be sold in U.S. waters. Boat must go back to Canadian waters. get release form THEN can come back to Point Roberts. Or pay a US Customs Broker to do for us. I think all this "untold" or "mis" info is a way for these brokers to get money because when you find/buy a boat, you are stuck with a sail back to Canada or paying broker to do it. We made at least 8 calls to insure no snags, they made it sound like everything would be okay and was anything but.

Something amiss here. My buddy sold his US built Canadian documented (registered in Canadian lingo) boat in Charleston to a US citizen. The boat did not have to come back to Canada. In fact the boat has never been in Canada. I think if you read the US cruising permit (required for non US flagged boats sailing in the US), it says the boat cannot be sold or advertised to be sold in the US unless the duty has been paid. Being a US built boat no duty was required. I would try again. The bureaucracy is so big you seldom get the right answer the first go around.