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Trading pins across the border

Comox-rocks

Member
Aug 27, 2014
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Vancouver island
Ok i know what happens when one delivers stateside or import back into Canada for straight sales. How does a cross border trade work? Looking at sending my royal rumble to Seattle plus cash for an AC/DC pro. Will I pay pst/gst on full value or difference? How will homeland treat me?
 

DRANO

Super Member
Nov 15, 2012
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Mississauga
I would suggest seeing if the US collector will cross the border with the game and you guys can do the trade on Canadian soil... and here's why.

1) Neither customs officials will give you a pass onthe value of your machine in the 'trade'. Your machine's perceived value will simply be treated as a cash value. So, if you're thinking of suggesting that you only pay tax on the cash portion of the deal, that likely won't fly. They will want to know the purchase value of the AC/DC and that is what you'd be taxed on.

2) In my experience, US buyers coming into Canada get almost no hassle when bringing a pin home. I have rarely heard of any US citizen getting dinged for taxes on purchased goods... especally goods of US origin. They seem to simply have different import/export policies on personal items than the Canandian side. For this reason, if you can get him to travel to (and cross) the border, you both should win.

3) If you bring a game into the US yourself, US officials will want to know why. If you state that you are planning to sell (or trade... makes no difference), you will be seen as doing business in their country without permission to do so. It wouldn't go well and I think anything above $2K in value will get further scrutiny.

4) Using a shipping company in either direction to cross the border is an expensive proposition. You will not only pay for transport, but you will also need to get a broker involved and they charge stupid fees for processing your goods through customs. As mentioned above, you can do this yourself for free or you can likely bypass it altogether if the other guy is willing to cross and meet you on this side of the border.


Lastly, I don't work for the government and what I've written above is purely based on my own anecdotal experience. Your mileage may certainly vary.

Good luck!
 
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DRANO

Super Member
Nov 15, 2012
2,821
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Mississauga
call the border guys and ask .

Yeah, I've tried this too.
If you do call and get a favorable response, make sure to take down the information of the agent you spoke with and where they are stationed. You will invariably run across a different agent at the border and a lot is left up to individual discretion from what I have noticed in the US side. The Canadian guys/gals seem a bit more consistent.

Bottom line is that, if you're adding $1K in cash on top of your game (for example), there is no chance that you will only be paying tax on the $1K. That much I know for certain. You will be taxed on the cash value of your purchase... regardless of whether you paid for it in greenbacks, sea shells or chickens.
If you try telling a customs agent that your minty AC/DC is only worth $1K, be prepared for a fun day.
 
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