How much tax will I pay to bring a pair of skis back into Canada?
September 17, 2018 9:57 PM Subscribe
I am thinking of buying a pair of used skis in Denver, and bring them back to Vancouver. The price will be $999 USD, i.e. approx $1300 CAD. The personal exemption is $800 for my 2-3 day trip. There are no duties on skis, but do I pay PST/GST on the excess ($500) or the entire value ($1300)? Just trying to figure out whether I'm really gonna be saving much.
Response by poster: b1tr0t, these are not helpful suggestions. Have you ever been subject to secondary interrogation by customs/immigration officers? It isn't fun (especially for minorities such as myself), and certainly isn't worth it just to save a couple hundred bucks. Please focus on providing a knowledgeable answer to my original question.
posted by wutangclan at 10:27 PM on September 17, 2018 [14 favorites]
posted by wutangclan at 10:27 PM on September 17, 2018 [14 favorites]
Best answer: From the CA site:
duties and taxes are applicable only on amount of the imported goods that exceeds CAN$800.
So about $78can
(IANYBCG) iamnotyourboardercrossingguard
posted by sammyo at 10:41 PM on September 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
duties and taxes are applicable only on amount of the imported goods that exceeds CAN$800.
So about $78can
(IANYBCG) iamnotyourboardercrossingguard
posted by sammyo at 10:41 PM on September 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: thanks sammyo ... hoping that is true because the CBSA calculator yielded a tax payable of $160 ... perhaps I'm splitting hairs.
posted by wutangclan at 10:45 PM on September 17, 2018
posted by wutangclan at 10:45 PM on September 17, 2018
In my recent experience, importing an iPad pro and a large amount of wine (separate trips), I was excruciatingly honest with border control, went to the cashier to pay my dues, and was waved through without having to pay. I can't promise that this will be your result, but it really seems like they are looking for bigger fish at the cashier's booth than trying to recoup $50-$200 from honest travellers.
posted by some chick at 7:36 AM on September 18, 2018
posted by some chick at 7:36 AM on September 18, 2018
Best answer: (IANYBCGE) iamnotyourboardercrossingguardeither
Bear in mind that sometimes rules like this are interpreted...differently, shall we say? I've had CBSA officers tell me that I owe on the entire amount (given a similar situation to yours, where it's one item, not a number of items, totalling over $800CAD), not just the difference, while others have told me exactly what sammyo found, as well.
And, as some chick said, I've had variable experiences with just being waved right through. YMMV. Either way, make sure you have a bill of sale/receipt from whomever you are buying them from.
posted by liquado at 12:38 PM on September 18, 2018
Bear in mind that sometimes rules like this are interpreted...differently, shall we say? I've had CBSA officers tell me that I owe on the entire amount (given a similar situation to yours, where it's one item, not a number of items, totalling over $800CAD), not just the difference, while others have told me exactly what sammyo found, as well.
And, as some chick said, I've had variable experiences with just being waved right through. YMMV. Either way, make sure you have a bill of sale/receipt from whomever you are buying them from.
posted by liquado at 12:38 PM on September 18, 2018
Response by poster: Thanks y'all. At this point I've decided that the difference in tax payable is not worth worrying about given that the used item being considered is such a good deal -- I'll put on my big boy pants and pay the tax either way.
posted by wutangclan at 8:07 PM on September 20, 2018
posted by wutangclan at 8:07 PM on September 20, 2018
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posted by wutangclan at 10:06 PM on September 17, 2018