Just went through this a couple days ago...03 arctic cat from Wa state to BC, Canada. This info was sent to me from the Us Costoms in Blaine Wa. Hope this helps( once the sled is cleared for export by the U.S. Customs..you proceed to the Canadian customs with the sleds title/bill of sale...at the canadian customs you will fill out a form 1 Registerd Import Vehicles (RIV) form. Pay approx $206cdn to process this form. Pay the gst on the sled and you are on your way. Once you are home you must get a letter of recall for your sleds VIN # forward this letter to RIV and once that letter is received they will issue an inspection form. From there you go on to get your sled registered etc...
Please read through entire information packet, it should answer many of the questions that you have. If you still have questions, feel free to e-mail us with your question(s) and we will be happy to help you.
Bureau of Customs & Border Protection Phone: (360) 332-2632
Vehicle/Equipment Outbound Team Fax: (360) 332-2639
9901 Pacific Highway E-Mail:
cbp.blaine-export@dhs.gov
Blaine, WA 98230-9299
Export Hours: 8:00am – 3:30pm Monday-Friday
NO EXPORTATIONS AFTER 3:30 PM
NO EXPORTATIONS ON WEEKENDS or HOLIDAYS
(Holiday Closures for 2008: Jan 1, Jan. 21, Feb 18, May 26, July 4, Sept 1,
Oct 13, Nov 11, Nov 27, Dec 25)
Required Documents
These Documents must be on file with our office for 3-business days prior to export!!!
1. U.S. CUSTOMS & BORDER PROTECTION / NICB VEHICLE / EQUIPMENT EXPORT WORKSHEET (This document is always required)
2. Title/Certificate of Ownership, which includes Salvage title, rebuilt title, or flood title. (Because Washington State does not issue a Salvage title the required document to export a salvaged vehicle out of Washington is a PUBLIC DISCLOSURE FORM, which can be obtained from the Department of Licensing in Olympia. Contact Washington State Department of Licensing Public Disclosure Section at (360) 902-3760 for further information). An affidavit in lieu of title is NOT sufficient for export.
3. Bill of sale, this can be a hand written document between buyer and seller. If vehicle was a gift a letter of gift can be substituted for bill of sale. If you are the titled owner of the vehicle a bill of sale is not required.
A few common exceptions
1. Vehicles that are being financed through a U.S. based lender generally do not have a titled issued for that vehicle. In this case a letter from the lien holder allowing you to export the vehicle to Canada is acceptable. A letter, from the finance company granting permission for that vehicle to leave the country, can only be used in lieu of title by the individual(s) originally named on the loan, and not by a person to who the vehicle is being sold to.
2. Off road vehicles often do not have titles issued to them in those cases an invoice can be used in lieu of title.
3. Brand new vehicles bought from dealerships will not have a title. A Manufactures Statement of Origin, (MSO) or a Certificate of Origin can be used in lieu of a title.
Once all of the required documents have been obtained, FAX, hand deliver, or scan and e-mail them to our office 3-business days prior (at a minimum) to actually exporting the vehicle to Canada. During the export process, which starts when the paperwork is submitted, the vehicle MUST remain inside the United States and may NOT be taken to Canada.
The 3-business days are calculated from the time that we receive the export application. An example of this is, if we receive the application on Monday, the vehicle would be ready for export on Thursday, at the earliest, provided that there are no holidays during that time. Another example would be, if we receive the application on Thursday, the vehicle would be ready for export on Tuesday, at the earliest. Keep in mind that weekends and holidays do NOT count towards the 3-business day requirement.
Remember, the vehicle must be in the United States for the 3-business days. There are no exceptions to this requirement. If it is discovered that the vehicle did not remain in the United States after the export application was submitted, the exporter is subject to penalty and monetary fines as well as seizure of the vehicle. So do NOT take the vehicle outside of the United States once the application is submitted.
If the vehicle is already outside the United States and an export is required, the vehicle must be brought back to the United States prior to the application being submitted and it must remain inside the United States for the 3-business days, plan accordingly. Again, weekends and holidays do NOT count towards the 3-business day requirement.
Checking Status
DO NOT ASSUME THAT OUR OFFICE RECEIVED YOUR FAX!
1 to 2 days after submitting the export application to our office, send us an e-mail requesting an update on the status of your export application. Send the e-mail to:
cbp.blaine-export@dhs.gov. In the e-mail, ensure the following information is included:
- Year
- Make
- Model
- VIN (Vehicle Identification Number)
- State the vehicle is titled in (this is not always where the vehicle was purchased)
If you are unable to contact our office via e-mail, you may call our office at (360) 332-2632 and leave a message. In the message include the following information:
- Year
- Make
- Model
- State the vehicle is titled in (this is not always where the vehicle was purchased)
While it is often thought that more information is better, in this case, it is not. Please only include the information listed above.
Date of Export
After the 3-business day requirement has been met and your vehicle has been cleared for export, bring the vehicle and all of the original documents that had been previously submitted. That would be:
- Title / Certificate of Origin
- Bill-of-sale / Gift letter
- Vehicle Export Worksheet
Present these documents to our office during our normal business hours. These hours are 8:00 am – 3:30 pm Monday through Friday, excluding US Federal holidays.
Directions
To get to our office, exit Interstate 5 (I-5) at exit 275 and proceed through two stoplights, Boblett Street and H Street. After the second light, continue up and over a small hill. At the bottom of the hill, there is a pull out on the left side of the road, which you will enter into and park (this is just past the duty free on the right side of the road). In the vehicle pull out, there is a small building with green letters, which reads KIOSK on it. Park next to that building and enter into the Customs and Border Protection building. Be careful when crossing in front of the traffic that is traveling southbound into the United States. Our office is located on the left side of the lobby, just past the first counter.
