A Canadian Buying/Importing a Boat from USA to Canada

[Laksmi]

We are looking into buying/importing a 54'/55' Wooden Motor Boat from California or Washington to Victoria, Canada.
We know we will have to pay Duty and Taxes in Canada.
Question #1: Do we have to pay taxes in the States?
Question #2: If we would buy the boat from California, would it be possible to ship the boat to Canada? (being a wood boat)

[MVDarlin]

Take delivery offshore, no state sale tax, do not buy wood hull.

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[travellerw]

If you can prove the boat was built in the USA or Canada, then there is no Duty!

[Laksmi]

Originally Posted by MVDarlin

Take delivery offshore, no state sale tax, do not buy wood hull.

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Thank you MVDarlin, I am a woodworker and I do like wood boats.

[Lepke]

I'm surprised you can't find a boat in BC. I bought this wood boat there.

[Laksmi]

Originally Posted by Lepke

I'm surprised you can't find a boat in BC. I bought this wood boat there.

Hello Lepke. We have been looking for the last 8 months with no luck.
We are looking for a live-aboard around 50', walk around queen or the space to make one, altogether 2 cabins, lean on diesel, pilot house, decent keel length, we dont like to live in a dungeon, need airflow down below.
we dont need bells & whistles but space is important to us, we like wood, Tupperware would be ok. We do like trawler style, "Alaskan, DeFever, Kadey Krogen (fiberglass). Our budget have to be below $175000.

We sailed from 1982 to 1989 with our 2 young kids on board halfway around the world on a 40' Freedom Center Cockpit. It was wonderful and we were young and small space did not bother us. Now is a different story, live a board in BC all year long with rain in the winter, different than south east Asia.

We are still looking and listening and who knows with the winter season starting soon, we might see something in BC.

Thanks for your concern and if you see something, let me know I would be really grateful.

Michel & Jan

[bobofthenorth]

You will have to pay, at a minimum, GST when you enter Canada. If you are a BC resident you will pay HST on entry. If not you will eventually get an invoice from your province for the applicable PST.

Duty will be payable if your boat was built in a non-NAFTA jurisdiction.

In my opinion shipping any boat over 40 feet LOA will be prohibitively expensive. For a boat that size the trip north along the west coast is not trivial but neither is it impossible.

R.J.(Bob) Evans
www.travellingwithgeorge.blogspot.com

[Seymore]

Is there an exemption for GST/HST for an antique vessel?

[bobofthenorth]

Sorry. I missed answering the US tax question. While I am not a US tax authority I can tell you that we did NOT pay any US taxes on our US purchase. We did however have a 3 month window to get the boat out of the US in order to avoid Washington state taxes.

R.J.(Bob) Evans
www.travellingwithgeorge.blogspot.com

[groundtackle]

Bought my boat in USA in 2013 and brought it to Sidney BC.
No us fees except what I paid to the Marine Documentation Service which is a private co I. Anacortes that will look after all the registration paper crap that needs to be done to get the boat registered in your name in Canada.
http://www.marinedocservice.com
I recommend you get in touch with them.
Nick


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