I plan on moving my belongings from US to Canada (don’t know where yet- likely GTA) in the next couple of months depending on job market and other factors. I should be able to downsize to 4-5 large boxes and 3 suitcases. When I moved across coasts in the US, I was able to ship these boxes via UPS/Fedex ground for a reasonable price. The price for shipping across the border is still pretty reasonable but are customs an issue? Would I need to physically release them and then carry them to my final destination?
Also, has anyone shipped stuff directly to a storage locker in case I don’t find accommodation fast enough?
Please feel free to provide any tips or suggestions with my move. Thanks in advance!
Hello I am Indian citizen, we have valid COPR for me, my husband(Indian) and son(US citizen). Planning to travel to Canada by Air. We were not asked to retake any medicals and PCC, but we took an Upfront medical exam.to be on safe side when landing. Also, i made reservations for our stay. I would like to know did anyone being an Indian or any non- US citizens, traveled from US with valid COPR to activate/get their PR cards. Please let me know your experience. Thank you
Hi, We are in similar situation but not able to find a solution. Fedex says they cant send using FEDEX ground as these are used household items. They will not get custom clearance.
UPS does not give any option.
Hello, anyone waiting for PR card to be mailed to your/friend’s address? We are in Canada right now, waiting for PR card to be delivered. But we have travel plan to US and India. Can any friend of mine pickup the PR card and mail it to us? Did anyone did this in recent times. Please let me know thanks
Why not…
Many do that… It totally depends upon you…
If you are eagerly waiting to get cards in your hand then your friend can mail to you…
Otherwise if you have patience then your friend can keep it with them…
Next time, You can still enter Canada with a stamped copr through land border… But if you are flying then you need pr card for entry
Hi, @Raj92 After a lot of research and discussions, I ended up with UPS ground shipping. It was pretty cheap as compared to all others. I created my labels myself online on ups website which got it option pretty economical. You can take your boxes to ups stores so that they will do all paperwork for you which will cost around $90 per box. That is also cheap but doing online will be way more cheaper as you can use online available coupons as well. Hope it helps.
Thanks @Nehag1985 . Appreciate the quick response. Couple of follow up questions - Did you have to fill up any customs form or attach invoices for say appliances that were put in the box? Also, when you flew in did you have to fill any additional forms/GTF at arrival? Overall did you have to pay any customs before getting it delivered on the other side? I’m planning to ship couple of appliances(wet grinder & instant pot), utensils, books and clothes. Sorry I’ve thrown a bunch of questions at you
yes, you need to fill the invoice and 3 copies of invoice to be put on each box. Each invoice has details of all the stuff in that box. Make sure you mention “Personal Effects and used household items” while shipping on invoice and whenever needed, mention that.
If you are coming on PR, then you need to mention GTF on arrival, otherwise no. No one asked us about that.
No customs are applicable while getting personal used stuff. you can certainly ship such appliances, no problem in these items.
If you are going with UPS, my suggestions would be:
Use strong boxes. They throw boxes like anything, so make sure your packing is well done. Use bubble wraps and dont over stuff them.
I used Large 241818 boxes as I felt they cost pretty economical and easy to pack and weight not more that 54 lbs. You will have to mention these details in invoice as well and accordingly cost is charged.
I am planning to rent U-Haul truck and drive to Canada (Source and destination are less than 150 miles). Can I carry all the household items such as TV, Kitchen & bedroom furniture along with me without any issues(all items used)?
And can we also take Indian spices along with us via land border. Please advise. TIA
I’m creating a label on the UPS website and now it is asking me to fill invoice but I’m not sure how much detail I have to enter, details like origin of the country for each item, how many items, etc.
Hello. I am in a similar situation. What were the average weight of your boxes? The quote I got for 6boxes (average weight of 65 pounds each) was over USD3,000. How much did you shipping cost eventually? I am moving 6 boxes from Washington DC to Toronto
Hello @Nehag1985@Raj92 . I am in a similar situation. What were the average weight of your boxes? The quote I got for 6boxes (average weight of 65 pounds each) was over USD3,000. How much did you shipping cost eventually? I am moving 6 boxes from Washington DC to Toronto
I have done this couple of years back but this amount is outrageous. Try to keep the box around 55 lbs as 65 might be over weight and then create the labels online. I dont think it should cost more than 125 per box. I paid around 100 per box back then.
@Nehag1985 Thanks! I ended up shipping with UPS. It costs a little more for me as most of my boxes were overweight. I had left the US already so could not re-pack the boxes. May be a good thing to keep in mind to not go over the regular weight limit. The ones that were within the weight limit were around $130 per box like you mentioned.
Let me know if I can help further
I’ll reach out if I need any other info. Thanks again.