Importing Non-USA FJ45

[AYM707]

Hi fellow Canadians

After spending 10+ in the Middle East, we are finally beginning to think about coming home to Toronto. The thought of parting with my beloved FJ45 is unbearable. Lucky for me, my wife wants to keep all the furniture and as a trade off; I keep my truck.

Here's my Beast...

I did a search on Transport Canada and since its older than 15 years, its all good. But Transport Canada also mentioned there maybe other rules / restrictions specific to Ontario.

Has anyone imported a non-USA vehicle into Ontario? Would I have to modify it to get it registered? It is GCC (Middle East) specifications. What fees / charges am I looking at? How long is the process? Any info would be most appreciated.

Cheers...Amer

 

[cruiserpilot]

Importing Older Vehicles into Canada - Transport Canada

That's where I'd start. Get on the phone, talk to someone. You are coming in to the east coast by boat I presume?
Shipping from where? Have you sourced a shipping company yet? Seems like Halifax would be the best place to start
looking for inbound shipping companies and anyone in Halifax would probably be able to assist with paperwork.
I don't think it's really too complicated with an older classic vehicle. You could hire a shipping broker,
that way you have no concerns with errors in paperwork resulting in seizure.
My experience has been Canada Customs and Border Services are really concerned that you claim the actual
value of the vehicle. DO NOT undervalue the truck. They will get really nasty, then they'll be more so.

 

[FJACS]

Because it's a classic it's exempt from the requirements of a new car such as conversion of spedometer to km/h, daytime running lights, etc - you can bring it in as is. It will need to pass an Ontario safety inspection, and if you are in the GTA anything 1988 and newer would require an emissions test. 1987 and older are exempt.

I would call transport Canada and Canadian Border services. Make sure to ask CBSA about any export paperwork they might require you to have.

You should be able to find a shipper that can get it to Montreal.

 

[cruiserpilot]

I remember a fellow I met in Austin Tx. Reverse story, he bought an HJ61 in Calgary and imported it into
the US. He hired a broker and had the truck shipped. Said it was the smartest thing he could have done.
All the paperwork was done properly, no fuss. No issues or fines or problems.
So my recommend would be to find a broker, maybe find someone in Halifax who specializes in
vehicle imports into Port of Halifax, I'm sure a yellow pages search in Halifax would be constructive.