Things You Must Know When Importing a Kit Car Into Canada
If you have been looking at various kit cars and have decided on which one you want to build. Excellent!
Now, being aware that in Canada you will, in all likelihood, have to import it from the USA or overseas, you will quickly discover the Canadian federal DOT web page that states "Kit cars 15 years old or less - None are allowed".
So at seeing this you probably think the dream is dead. But wait a minute! how come I see all those Cobras and other kit cars at car shows and on the highways?
The reality is that if you know how to approach it you can import and build a kit car in Canada and this article will provide you with the background and the basics required to get it done.
Until the 1980's kit cars were allowed into Canada without restriction, but in response to a number of complaints about poor design and unsafe vehicles on the road the Federal Department of Transport adopted a policy of not allowing any kit cars into Canada at all, unless the kit car manufacturer was willing to have the cars certified under Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (MVSS) criteria.
The federal Dept. of Transport was given the job of enforcing the regulations and in so doing realized that under the Canadian constitution every citizen has the right to build their own car if they choose to do so.
As a result of this constitutional reality, the DOT developed a system where in, as the regulation states, kit cars are not allowed, but starter kits are. kits The difference between a kit car and a starter kit is that the starter kit is essentially a kit car that has no components for the brakes, steering, suspension, fuel, or electrical systems.
So, armed with this background knowledge what follows is an outline of the steps necessary to import an as yet un-built kit car into Canada.
The first thing you will need to do once you have decided what kit to build will be to get in touch with the manufacturer and ask them if they will be willing to remove all parts for the previously mentioned systems from the kit.
If they are willing to do so they will need to generate a pack list for the starter kit that accurately reflects the reduced number of parts being shipped as part of the kit.
If the manufacturer will not do this you must move on in your search as anything less is a contravention of the act and it is you that will suffer not the manufacturer if the authorities discover any irregularities.
Assuming you have found a manufacturer willing to work with you and you now have the paperwork in hand you will need to send a copy of the packing list to the Canadian federal DOT along with a covering letter explaining that you wish to import a starter kit containing only the parts shown on the attached packing list. Ask them to let you know it you were to submit this packing list if you can expect to have it approved for entry into the country.
Assuming that they respond in the affirmative, you will then need to pay for the kit and ask the manufacturer to sit on it until you obtain the necessary approval to import letter from the DOT. This can take as long as four weeks so be prepared to wait.
Obviously because of the need to pay in advance you will want to assure yourself that the company you are dealing with is an honest and reputable firm.
Once you have the approval letter in hand you are then free to bring the starter kit into the country. The best way is to have it trucked in commercially and engage the services of a customs broker.
I say this because Canada customs agents are accountable to no one and if you are there in front of them they do not need any excuse at all to detain you and even impound your kit until they decide to release it, where as with a commercial shipment if they have an issue they deal with your customs broker.
On the subject of customs brokers, you will want to shop around as prices can vary from a few hundred dollars to thousands of dollars for the same service, In addition you want to ensure that the customs broker you choose has dealt with kit cars in the past, not production cars but specifically kit cars as they are a unique commodity coming across the border and present unique challenges with regards to the correct paperwork etc.
So, assuming you have done all of the above, if you kit is manufactured in the USA you will only be charged the appropriate taxes for your province and voila your starter kit is now a legally imported kit.
As for the parts that you had the manufacturer delete in order to have the kit meet Canadian starter kit status, the best way to deal with those is to purchase them from another company in the US or Canada.
Under no conditions can you have the kit car manufacturer ship them to you as a separate shipment since that contravenes the federal regulations and if caught you stand at best to lose your car and at worst to lose the car and face to possibility of still fines and possibly even jail time.
One last point, If a manufacturer tells you they will split the kit up into several different shipments, thank them politely and move on the the next supplier.
Even though they may tell you "We do it all the time for Canadians" do not participate. As stated earlier, it is you as a Canadian citizen that will suffer not them and there is no statute of limitations on illegally importing goods into Canada.
If you do not have the correct paperwork you could be stopped years from now and be required to show the documentation authorizing the cars importation into Canada, or getting the car our of the country within 24 hours. Failure to do one of these two choices will see the car seized without recourse by you.
Bottom line on importing kit cars into Canada is the only way to do it is the right way! Anything less is at best risky and at worst very expensive.
Eldon Beix has been importing kit cars through his company Western Canada Cobras - - on behalf of Canadian customers for more than 12 years and has successfully imported in excess of 400 cars during that time. The information offered in this article is based on his experiences.