How to Ship a Car from USA to Canada

When moving from the U.S. to Canada, you may decide against driving your own car to the Great White North. Instead, you may wish to have your vehicle shipped by an international auto shipping company with an excellent reputation and extensive experience in international vehicle transport.

Shipping cars across the U.S./Canada border is a common occurrence, but the auto shipping process is not that easy or straightforward, and there are many details and paperwork to be taken care of for a smooth experience.

It’s important to understand the car shipping process from the USA to Canada a bit better so that you avoid making a costly mistake during an already stressful move abroad.

Read on to learn how to ship a car from the U.S. to Canada with minimum hassle and no headaches whatsoever.

What you need to know when shipping a car from the U.S. to Canada

Vehicle import regulations in Canada are pretty straightforward and are considered favorable for car imports from the United States. However, they are still too complicated to be handled without professional assistance.

Here’s what you need to know when shipping your car from the U.S. to Canada:

• All vehicle imports are handled by Transport Canada – a federal institution in Canada that promotes safe, secure, and environmentally responsible transportation. Also, border requests are handled by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).
• All vehicles that are about to be imported into Canada must be verified using the Registrar of Imported Vehicles (RIV). RIV offers on its website an Importer Checklist – a useful tool that can help you find out your car’s eligibility and make the entire vehicle importation process as trouble-free as possible.
• Your car must be admissible to Canada. The official website of Transport Canada offers a set of criteria that determine the eligibility for admission of vehicles to Canada. Some of those criteria are maximum vehicle age, permitted vehicle types, weight restrictions, and so on. Click here to access the Imported Vehicles Compatibility List.
• Cars cannot be imported into Canada if they happen to be on a safety recall list. Contact your car manufacturer and make sure your specific car model is not on a vehicle recall list.
• Some car manufacturers will not recognize the warranty of a vehicle in Canada that was bought in the United States. Again, get in touch with your car manufacturer to find out their warranty coverage.
• All the import paperwork must be ready (see below). You are expected to submit an Electronic Export Information (EEI) using the Automated Export System (AES). Also, the Canada Border Services Agency will require Vehicle Import Form – Form 1 (E-form), your title and ownership, and valid identification. RIV lets you create an E-form directly from their website.
• All vehicles that are imported to Canada have to be inspected by RIV within 45 days of the date of importation. At the time of the inspection, the Vehicle Import Form – Form 1 and the Federal Inspection Form must be presented. After the inspection, a Canadian Statement of Compliance (SOC) is received.
• The car importation process itself will cost money: the RIV registration fee will cost about $300 but there are also expenses for duty, excise tax, provincial taxes based on your destination location, and licensing fees.

The good news is that when you hire one of the best international car shipping companies to move your vehicle to Canada, they will take care of all those complicated details for you so that you don’t have to worry about any car import requirements, criteria, or paperwork.

Experienced car shippers will know exactly what to do and when to do it, so your only concern will be where to find such reputable car shipping companies from the U.S. to Canada (see below).

What to Know Before Moving to Canada

Necessary documents for shipping a car to Canada

And what about the required car shipping paperwork? As mentioned above, all vehicles imported into Canada from the United States of America will require the completion of an E-Form using the Registrar of Imported Vehicles (RIV). Besides the import paperwork, you’ll also need the following documents:

• Original Bill of Lading
• Bill of sale or purchase invoice
• Completed EPA emissions form (3520-1)
• Personal identification

Your international car shipping company will help you set up the required documents so that the entire auto-shipping process goes as smoothly as possible.

What’s the average cost of shipping a car from the USA to Canada?

The average cost of shipping a car from the USA to Canada is between $700 and $2,500.

It’s important to note that the cost of shipping a car from the U.S. to Canada will be strongly influenced by several key factors:

• Destination. The car shipping price will depend on the starting point (the U.S. city or town you’re shipping the car from) and the destination (the Canadian city or town you’re shipping the car to). In general, it’s cheaper to ship your vehicle to Toronto and Vancouver than to a much more remote Canadian province.
• Total mileage. The greater the distance is between Point A and Point B, the higher the cost of shipping a car from the U.S. to Canada will be.
• Season. The time of the season you wish to have your vehicle shipped to Canada will affect the shipping costs. For example, there are fewer shipments to the northern Canadian provinces during the winter months, so the car shipping costs to any of those provinces will be lower because of the reduced demand.
• Transportation method. The method of transportation you choose will affect greatly how much you pay for shipping your car north of the border. Basically, you can choose between ENCLOSED or OPEN transport. Base your decision on the value of your vehicle and the overall level of protection you want for it. It’s easy to see that the open transport method will be cheaper because your car will be transported on a specialized trailer with other vehicles and that’s why the final cost will be lower.
• Type of vehicle. One important factor that will greatly influence the cost of shipping a car from the USA to Canada is the type of vehicle you’re shipping. Needless to say, the overall dimensions and total weight of your automobile will be critical because they will determine how much space your car takes on the transportation carrier.
• Insurance. You have to have international car shipping insurance before shipping your car from the U.S. to Canada. In most cases, the car transportation company you choose will offer you proper coverage either through their insurance program or from a third-party insurance company they work with. On average, car shipping insurance from the USA to Canada will cost around 1.5%-2.5% of the estimated value of the vehicle: about $300-$500 for a car valued at $20,000, or about $600-$1,000 for a car valued at $40,000.
• Other factors. Various other factors such as gas prices, import duties, and regulatory fees will also affect the vehicle shipping cost one way or the other.

Car shipping rates can vary greatly, so to learn exactly how much it will cost you to move your car from the U.S. to Canada, all of the above factors will have to be taken into account for your specific case.

Therefore, your international car shipper only can provide you with an accurate car shipping quote.

Moving to Another Country: All You Need to Know

How to save money when shipping a car from the U.S. to Canada

Ideally, you’ll manage to find a few good ways to pay less money when moving your car from the United States to Canada. Some of the cost-saving tricks may work out well for you while others won’t be possible at all.

Are you willing to save some money from the international car shipping process?

• CONSIDER having your car shipped to Canada during the off-season, if possible at all, when the demand for international auto shippers is lower and you should be able to get a better deal than during the peak vehicle shipping season.
• DELIVER the vehicle to the nearest port by yourself, whenever possible, so that you don’t have to pay the cost of ground transport to the port in question.
• OPT for the roll-on, roll-off (RoRo) transport method where the cost will be less and the car shipment will usually get completed faster. However, it’s not the most reliable way to ship a car to Canada from the U.S. because your automobile will be exposed to the harmful effects of the weather – sun, wind, rain, dust, etc.

Also, bear in mind that door-to-door auto shipping, as opposed to terminal-to-terminal car shipping, is the most popular method of shipping a car from the United States to Canada. It involves a scheduled pickup of your car from a place that you specify (for example, your current home) and delivery to the destination Canadian province and city of your choice.

How to Cut Moving Costs and Expenses

How to prepare your car for shipping to Canada

When shipping a car from the USA to Canada, it’s important to prepare your own vehicle for pickup by the international car shipper on the scheduled pickup date.

Keep in mind that there are certain requirements that you will have to follow for a smooth car shipping process:

• REMOVE all personal belongings from your car in preparation for the inspection process. The only items you can leave inside the automobile are a child seat and the standard car equipment such as a spare tire, hand tools, an emergency kit, a jack, and so on.
• DO NOT REMOVE your car’s license plates.
• REMOVE any detachable exterior car accessories such as an antenna, spoilers, roof racks, etc.
• GIVE your car a thorough wash on the outside.
• INSPECT carefully the exterior of your vehicle and document any existing damage, if any, by taking notes and taking high-resolution photos of those problematic areas. That way, if new damage happens to appear after the shipment, you’ll be able to prove it.
• CHECK whether the car battery is fully charged and secured well in its place.
• CHECK whether the emergency brake is operational.
• LEAVE only around 1/4 of fuel in the gas tank.
• DISABLE the alarm system of your vehicle.

How to Prepare a Car for Shipping: Car Shipping Checklist

How to find the best international car shipper to Canada

When moving to Canada, your decision to take your automobile with you without driving it by yourself to the destination Canadian province and city will lead to the moment when you have to hire the services of a reputable international shipper to the neighboring country.

Here’s how to find the best car shipping company from the USA to Canada:

• USE our Vehicle Shipping Cost Calculator to get in touch with top-rated auto car shippers with many years of experience in international vehicle transport.
• COMPARE the car shipping quotes from the USA to Canada you have received. Pay close attention to the vehicle shipping rates and the specific conditions of the car import process.
• READ auto transport reviews from customers about the car shipping companies that you’re considering as your future partner. It’s important to know just what their clients have rated their vehicle transportation services to Canada so that you can make an informed decision in the end.
• SELECT the international car shipping company that you think is the right one for you. Once you make up your mind, book their services without delay so that you know you’ve marked that important task as complete.  

Driving Your Car vs Shipping Your Car