GOOD advice about bringing STUFF over THE BORDER!!!! THANKS!

Well, today my car got searched for the fourth time (third time in a row!) as I crossed the border from Point Roberts back towards Vancouver. As with every single time they've searched my car, they haven't found any illegal substances or undeclared goods.

I figure they must be looking for WMDs or something along those lines (weapons of mass destruction). Or maybe they've decided that I'm a suspicious character and that they need to observe me at every opportunity-- I'm half-Indian, after all! And I work a good job! And I have a fast car! There must be something up with me! ...Or maybe they suspect that something's up with me, since I usually purchase *technology* items that have been manufactured overseas! Man, with all those cheap electronics, I've *got* to be plotting something!

Or maybe they're just bored-- every time I've been searched has been a time when nobody else has been pulled to the side to pay duties...

On the positive side, it seems that their searches of my car keep getting quicker and quicker. Today's must've lasted about a minute, maybe two. The first time lasted almost 15 minutes and they pulled the carpeting away from the walls of my trunk...

...Or maybe they think something's up with the smell coming from my trunk-- my trunk seals leak, and I'm sure I have strange new breeds of mould growing in my spare wheel well...

Argh!

i would search you if you always look like this

So if I'm coming back to Canada from the US with 1000USD+ worth of items in one day...(computer+camera)...would I have to pay more tax since I have about 1200cdn worth of stuff?? or Would it be better to make a couple trips?

unless you're feeling up to paying ~180 CDN of tax, plus duties, i'd say you go to the states for a nice little vacation, come back, bring ~750 with you. for the computer, use it a bit, open it, yadda. [unless it's a gift]

and go back / get someone else to come to canada. also, take a bag with a broken comp that you can leave there, so if say customs marks down that you took "one computer" with you, you're taking "one computer" back. just not the same one. =P

Originally Posted by xIcewind

unless you're feeling up to paying ~180 CDN of tax, plus duties, i'd say you go to the states for a nice little vacation, come back, bring ~750 with you. for the computer, use it a bit, open it, yadda. [unless it's a gift]

and go back / get someone else to come to canada. also, take a bag with a broken comp that you can leave there, so if say customs marks down that you took "one computer" with you, you're taking "one computer" back. just not the same one. =P

I can't imagine spending 7 days down in Pt.Roberts for "sightseeing"

take a road trip down to michigan or something. visit the campus' of famous universities, go tour somewhere.

or just camp there for 7 days. =P

you can always pray for the best - your chances of being searched aren't very high, but don't whine when you're hit and then they find it undeclared.

Originally Posted by xIcewind

take a road trip down to michigan or something. visit the campus' of famous universities, go tour somewhere.

or just camp there for 7 days. =P

you can always pray for the best - your chances of being searched aren't very high, but don't whine when you're hit and then they find it undeclared.

I'm most likely gonna pay the tax and not take the risk. It's the duties I'm worried about...even though the word of mouth is that most electronics do not have duties.

Originally Posted by timmy!

Thanks for the heads up HighFlyer



You mean people bringing back laptops from the US and YYZ(what's that?-just an example?) customs asking them for their Canadian reciepts to prove it if they bought it in Canada before they left for the US?

that's exactly what you should do....you should make a list of all the items you're taking across...ESPECIALLy if it's a lot.

whoa.. this thread was 2 years old...

Originally Posted by jazziman

whoa.. this thread was 2 years old...

I used the "Search" button...to revive this puppy from the dead.

For legal reasons I'd never advise anyone to try bringing stuff back into Canada without declaring it at customs if you know there's likely to be duty/taxes payable. That being said... I have brought in a bottle of 180 proof rum (Stroh) w/o getting caught (it was my friend's car anyway ) but on the other hand I had to forfeit some supplement pills on a Saturday evening because they contained a banned ingredient and the mall had already closed and I didn't want to stay overnight. These were both pre-9/11.

buy an external enclosure and than when u take it down, stick da burner or HDD or whatever in it, and also take a laptop down wid u, can say u R burning music 4 frenz cause piracy legal in Canada LOLz.