Customs experience

Customs is a pain point for many people when traveling internationally. Post landing in Canada, you have to declare what goods you are getting into the country. There is difference between the 1st time landing and subsequent landings. We had a pretty smooth process when immigrating from USA to Canada. We would like to share our 1st time landing experience in Canada. Ultimately when you are prepared with your facts and documentation then you are all set. For us, the officers in Halifax just scanned the sheets we had prepared and didn't even open our bags!

Disclaimer - This is our experience in the Halifax airport but others could have it differently. 

How should you prepare if you want to send goods to follow?

Since you will be outside of Canada and landing for the 1st time in Canada, you might not be able to carry everything when you would be landing in Canada. You can also plan to send boxes via international carriers like UPS, Fedex, DHL from your current resident country. Usually it takes 4-5 weeks for the boxes to land in Canada. We shipped our boxes just a week before we flew to Canada. When we were packing, we made a list of items that we were packing in each of the boxes. What would your carrier i.e. UPS etc. need from you?

• List of contents in each of your boxes
• Estimated value of each of the items in each of the boxes
• Each of the boxes would have the following -
• List of contents in the box would be pasted.
• Address to which you are shipping the box
• If it is not your address then put "Attn : <Your name>" so that the officers know that it is your box.

A video to help you for the same.

What is the process of declaring the items you are bringing into Canada?

When you land in Canada as a permanent resident, make sure you have 2 lists -

1. Personal effects accounting document - This tells the custom officials what you have in your suitcases right now (Regardless of whether you are flying or driving). Download the PDF and here are some pointers for you -
• Importer's name - YOUR name
• Importer's address - The place where your shipment will arrive. It could be a friend's address or rented apartment which you might have booked.
• Country of origin - Place from where you are shipping. For instance Texas, US
• List of items that you are carrying in your suitcases and cabin baggage. If they are used items then state declare the same. If used, the value of the item would be the deprecated value. Use your best guess. You don't need receipts unless you are coming with an exorbitant package! For example - "Used books".
2. Goods to follow - This tells the custom officials what is coming in later. Download the PDF and here are some pointers for you -
• Importer's name - YOUR name
• List of ALL the items in ALL the shipments. For instance, if you have shipped 5 boxes then state the contents and net worth of ALL of them.
• Some example declarations -
• Used comforter, yoga gear, pillows
• Used clothes
• Used DVDs, used monitor
• Used computer peripherals (mouse, keyboard, modem)
• Used decorative items
• Used instant pot
• Used shoes
• Used hair dryer, iron

What are some things I should note?

1. When you immigrate as a permanent resident, you don't have to pay duty for the first time.
2. State everything truthfully. We got more than 10000 CAD and we stated it. No one asked us a thing.
3. State your used items as "used jewelry", "used clothes", "used electronics" etc. and state the depreciated value for the same. This is expected as you are immigrating permanently. As long as you are not bringing these items for business, you should be okay.
4. Have these letters ready with the value stated correctly and you should be fine.
5. Note for "goods to follow" -
1. If you are shipping to a friend's address, make sure that you also put your name as "Attn : <your name>" on the labels on the boxes so that the customs officials in Canada know that you are shipping items to a friend's address. Give your phone number and your friend's number too. That way there is no ambiguity on whose package it is.
2. On the day you land, once your passport is stamped at immigration, your luggage will be screened at the customs section. For your "goods to follow" list, they will give you an approval stamp on the document and that is your receipt.

What happens when your shipment arrives in Canada?

1. Once your shipment arrives in Canada, it first goes to the customs department.
2. The receipt you got on landing and the list on the actual shipment will be compared. 
3. Officers can also inspect your shipment, if they wish -
• They can call you or your friend (if you have given a friend's address) to verify the contents.
• That is why ensure that you do due diligence to create these lists and share the same with international carrier and custom officials on landing.
• If approved - They would deliver the package to that address. 
• If not - You would have to work with custom officials to clear up any misunderstanding and have them release your shipment. The custom officials have the right to confiscate your shipment if your declaration has been false.
4. For us the end-to-end process between shipping it from US, arriving in Canada and receiving the package was less than 1 month.

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Next steps -

• Get started with your life in Canada with this post.

Planning your move to Canada post PR

You have finally got the golden email and now can move to Canada. It is a special moment because you didn't think that it would happen but finally did happen. We are sharing our experience of moving from US to Canada. We were closing out everything and had to move to Canada in a month of getting the golden email.These were the options were considered!

Driving to Canada with all the items

1. If you are driving to Canada, your car shouldn't have any recall on it. It should have been fixed for it to be drivable on the Canadian roads.
• Our car had a recall but Toyota didn't have a fix and so we sold the car.
• Another thing is that US cars have a lesser resale value than Canadian cars. So something to think about if you want to import your US car.
2. Thing to note is that if you drive then the entry is possible only on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. So you are limited on when you can enter.
3. Distance matters - If you can accomplish the drive in a day then it might be worth it i.e. if you live closer to the border else you would have to plan on staying along the way between stops and accommodation for overnight stay if you plan on driving multiple days.
4. For us, due to all of the above reasons, the above option was out.

Flying to Canada and transporting items later

1. While this was the only option left, we did face a few hiccups here -
• Companies that offer ground transportation charge based on the distance and we got offered a minimum quote of 6000 USD for transporting items from North Carolina to Halifax, Nova Scotia. There were other companies that charged more. Even though we had jobs, our relocation reimbursement wouldn't have covered it. Besides there was no guarantee of  these items being delivered with quality.
• We landed up selling / donating bigger items like our sofa set, dining table, patio set etc. 
• We decided to go with UPS ground transportation and shipped 5 boxes for a total of 600 USD. We took 2 extra suitcases in the carry on and paid an extra 100 USD. That worked out really well in terms of price.
• Here is the interesting thing though -
• UPS customer service had messed up a little. Although we had customs clearance, they sent back the shipment to the US because the address was our friend's and not ours. (Although we had clearly mentioned the same in the notes). The confusion was cleared up and we got the package.
• 3 of our 5 boxes arrived without damage. That included our monitors and computer accessories. 
• However, 2 of them were damaged. Our instant pot was badly dented. That was a shocker because it was the sturdiest item and the dainty ones were intact.
• UPS reimbursed us the same for the damages after a call with their customer service.
• All of this was settled within a month of our arrival.

Conclusion - If you are shipping items, make sure that you wrap them properly. However, that's all you can do. Your shipment could still be damaged. Do not ship something that is very important i.e. what you cannot afford to lose.

How much money should you carry initially?

This is why they ask for proof of funds for express entry! The amount you have to bring will depend on the following factors. -

1. You have a source of income i.e. job in Canada - If you are in a situation that your pay check will start coming to you in a few weeks then you are in a good position. 
1. You need will need a bank check or cash as security deposit for your apartment. Depending on where you live you could be paying anywhere from 750 CAD to 2000 CAD as security deposit. 
2. Having an international credit card or Forex card can ease your situation a lot. This is because your Canadian bank account would only be activated when you land. You won't be charged transaction fees. If the card is not international, you will land up paying too much transaction fees. We used credit card for other expenses like grocery, gas and other purchases. 
3. For a family of 2, it would be good to plan for an initial expense of 4000 CAD for the 1st month. Between rent and getting your place setup, you could easily incur this.  This is for Halifax, Canada. But depending on which place you are going you could plan accordingly.
2. You don't have a source of income - If you are a student or plan to search a job once you land, you need to plan for at least 3 months, until you start having proper source of funds.
1. The same tips as above apply.
3. In addition, here are a few more tips - 
1. Bring the check book for your non-Canadian accounts with you. You can deposit a check and you can get Canadian dollars for it. Now, granted that banks don't have the best exchange rates but you could use it in case you run out of funds!
2. The major banks offer bonuses for opening new accounts. This is good initially as every bit counts. There are referral bonuses too and so make use of that.
3. Last but not the least, don't worry about customs because when you land as a permanent immigrant for the 1st time, you won't have to pay duty. Declare everything honestly.

Next steps -

1. Prepare for customs
2. Things to do in your 1st week

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