Vancouver customs on a tender for yacht in transit

[parsiparla]

The situation is that we are buying a new (OC) tender, which will be delivered to Seattle this summer, while we are spending a few months in Vancouver. We will be on tourist visas the whole time as we're from Europe, i.e. NOT Canadian (or US) residents.

If we sail down to Seattle from Vancouver, pick up the tender, and sail back to Vancouver, are we going to get into trouble with Canadian (or US?) customs?

Importantly, we aren't Canadians or Canadian residents, will be spending less than 3mo in Canada, before moving south to US for - again - less than 3mo, and then moving on to Mexico for a longer stay.

I don't even know where to start looking

[TrentePieds]

It is unlikely that you will get a reliable answer to that question in this forum. AFAIK none of us in this forum are qualified Customs Appraisers and therefore we cannot know the current regulations with precision.

The thing to do is to get the answer from the horses mouth! Call Canada Customs and Border Services Agency on 1-800-461-9999 (toll free anywhere in North America).

I would also suggest that before you enter Mexico you contact Mexican Customs (or a customs broker). You will, of course, keep your sales invoice for examination by relevant authorities, won't you?

Bonne chance!

TrentePieds

[parsiparla]

Thank you TrentePieds!

[HeywoodJ]

I think you may be overthinking this. Is your boat already in Canada? Does it have a tender? Was all of that covered by your temporary importation when you checked in to Canada (https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/travel-v.../menu-eng.html)? Why do you think a few-days-used tender would be different under that scheme than one that has been used for 10 years? You will be checking out of Canada, and then checking back in. When you check back in you may, in theory, have to provide an equipment list (never been asked for one in Canada, but if Border Services notices the new dinghy they may ask).

Your main boat, your tender, and all your other separable equipment are temporarily imported under CBSA tariff 9803.00.00. The CBSA guidelines on that say:

Visitors to Canada
1. Visitors may import certain goods for their own use in Canada as “personal baggage and conveyances” duty and tax-free, provided all such items are reported to the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), are not subject to any restrictions, and are exported at the end of the visit.
2. Goods that remain in Canada at the end of the visit become subject to the applicable duty and taxes and to seizure and forfeiture if not reported to the CBSA.

Documentation (Accounting)
3. For the purpose of tariff item No. 9803.00.00, conveyances and baggage, other than consumable goods, do not need to accompany the non-resident at the time of his or her arrival in Canada, and the non-resident is not required to be present or personally declare such goods at the port of entry. No accounting will be required for conveyances and baggage classified under tariff item No. 9803.00.00 and these goods may be released without the need for CBSA documentation.
Note: Where goods are not personally imported by a non-resident, it is recommended that documentation, which demonstrates how the conditions set out in the Regulations Respecting the Temporary Importation of Baggage and Conveyances by a Person Not a Resident of Canada have been met, accompany the conveyance and baggage at the time of importation. This information will assist border services officers in determining whether the conveyance and baggage are eligible for duty-free entry under tariff item No. 9803.00.00. Goods which are deemed ineligible will be subject to regular duty and taxes.

In the US if it is delivered here then customs duties will already have been paid? Or you are dealing with a customs broker to arrange for re-export?

[hycslim]

Hi

As a Canadian boater who frequently crosses the border this should not be an issue for you. After all you will be a foreign sailor visiting Canada and the dinghy is part the equipment on your boat. If you were a Canadian citizen showing up with a new dinghy you would be obliged to pay the applicable sales taxes, just make sure you have proof of ownership of the dinghy. It would be a good idea to have the registration numbers on the dinghy before arriving at the border, btw they are mandatory in most states I believe.

BTW when we checked in at Shelburne NS this summer with a couple of US boats, everything was done over the phone and no one was ever asked about their dinghy.

Enjoy your trip to Canada

Allan Gray

[Bellinghamster]

After reading your post a few times I'm less clear about what you are asking.

You didn't say anything about checking out/in of the US and CAN as you travel between them. That is a definite necessity! Crossing the boarder, picking something up and returning without going through customs both ways will get you in a heap of trouble since that's considered smuggling, and yes, they are monitoring closely for such activity.

As for the new dinghy: it will be "included" in the process of you checking back into Canada through customs and will need to be declared along with your other belongings, but shouldn't cause any difficulty or expense since you're a visitor (provided you bring it out of Canada when you leave for Mexico).

Snipped from https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/travel-v...c-rnc-eng.html
"What you can bring with you:
As a visitor, you can bring certain goods into Canada for your own use as personal baggage. Personal baggage includes clothing, camping and sports equipment, cameras and personal computers. This also includes your mode of transportation, including vehicles, private boats and aircraft.

You must declare all goods when you arrive at the first CBSA port of entry. Our BSOs check goods you are bringing in or taking out of Canada to verify what you have declared. If you declare goods when you arrive and take them back with you when you leave, you will not have to pay any duty or taxes. These goods cannot be:

used by a resident of Canada;
used on behalf of a business based in Canada;
given as a gift to a Canadian resident; or
disposed of or left behind in Canada."

US entry requirements and process can be found here: https://www.cbp.gov/travel/pleasure-boats
but would be good to also study up on details and others experiences of the process on noonsite or other boat-travel websites.

[parsiparla]

Hi everyone - thank you all so much for this. Invaluable!

HeywoodJ - thank you! That is *exactly* what I was (unsuccessfully) looking for. Really, really appreciate it.

hycslim - that's super helpful to know this should be routine, thank you! ��

Bellinghamster - don't worry i'm absolutely not contemplating not doing customs procedures when entering/leaving countries, especially wrt the US. They have many guns.

[stormalong]

As an American that visits Canada by boat annually there is no problem. As a European it may be different. One of the questions upon entry to Canada is: Do you have any goods you will be selling in Canada? Just answer no.

Reporting entry by phone you may not even see a customs officer.

This may be different for Europeans. I have seen a non American boat waiting for a customs officer to arrive at Bedwell Harbor.