Canadian car in South Carolina

August 13, 2024 9:40 AM

A student will be heading from Canada to go to university in South Carolina. He is planning on bringing the car he regularly uses, which is registered to his mother, but he's on the insurance. I can find very little information on this other than general 'it'll be fine' comments. Will it be fine?

I know that a car can be in the US for a year before it needs to be registered, does that time re-set at every entry?

I found some things mentioning that it might be useful to have a notarized letter from the registered owner, confirming that the student is allowed to have the car. The registration adds a confounding issue but I haven't been able to find much and the South Carolina DMV hasn't gotten back to me.

We will be making sure the insurance company knows that the car will be in the US.

Is there anything else I'm missing? This can't be that unique of a situation, but the research hasn't given me the definites I was hoping to find.

posted by platypus of the universe to Travel & Transportation (2 answers total)

Best answer: Every state is different and I've never lived in South Carolina. I'm confident though that the university will have an office for international students (there are a variety of names these get - might be called international student services, etc.). Contact them and ask them what will be required. They will be the experts of this specific situation. There also may be requirements specific to on-campus parking.
posted by coffeecat at 10:37 AM on August 13 [2 favorites]

The notarized letter would be a good idea, especially if the student's last name differs from that of the registered owner. Make sure the student is listed as an insured driver on the proof of insurance card/paperwork. Agree with the above post that the university's international student services office should have answers to all of these questions.

Would also suggest that AAA membership is relatively cheap peace of mind.
posted by xedrik at 12:27 PM on August 13