Importing a Canadian vehicle to leave in Az

[malibuguybc]

I've been wintering in Az for the last 7 years and am now thinking about leaving my vehicle down there and flying to Vegas then getting transportation to Ft. Mohave. Can anyone enlighten me on the good and bad on this. Thanks for any help in advance.

[robatthelake]

There are a few folks that I have met who do exactly what You are proposing. That said when I asked ICBC if that was an option For Me I was told No!
I doubt that things have changed much in the last five Years!
You need to ask ICBC directly,not Your Autoplan Broker!

[jrp]

I don't know anything about your Can insur regulations. But here in the US, neither the insur company nor the state of Az would approve of what you propose. Our vehicles are required to be registered & insured in the state where they are primarily stored/garaged. Although my permanent home is SD, the spare pickup I keep at my winter ranch is required to be reg & insured in NM. The Jeep I keep at my summer Co mountain home is required to be registered & insured in Co.
Could you get away with it in an area where out of state/country licenses are normal, probably. But if you have a serious accident and the insur company finds out what you've been doing, they could deny your claim.
Also with the US IRS taking a closer look at all Can snowbirds, when filling out your 8840 IRS form you may be faced with the choice of perjury or admitting that you keep a vehicle in the US year round. A surprise request from the IRS for income taxes could be worse than whatever the registration fees are, depending on your income.

malibuguybc wrote:
How about if I use ICBC insurance for 6 months then storage insurance through the summer months when I'm back home? And keep it registered in BC.

[malibuguybc]

How about if I use ICBC insurance for 6 months then storage insurance through the summer months when I'm back home? And keep it registered in BC.

[samsontdog]

I have several friends from Canada who say you are better off flying to AZ and buying a car after getting there. No problem getting ins and lic etc

[jrp]

The good is, you wont have to drive back & forth. The bad is you wont get to drive back & forth. Depends on your perspective.

As far as registration & insurance, I've no idea if Az is more or less than BC,Can
As far as importing the vehicle, its not a big deal as long as the vehicle was manufactured to US environmental & safety standards.
I purchased my HDT tow vehicle (Volvo VNL610) from a couple in BC and it was just a matter of some paper work and a small fee to import it. If it had never before been registered in the US, they wanted a letter from the Mfg that it complied with all US environmental & safety regs.

malibuguybc wrote:
I've been wintering in Az for the last 7 years and am now thinking about leaving my vehicle down there and flying to Vegas then getting transportation to Ft. Mohave. Can anyone enlighten me on the good and bad on this. Thanks for any help in advance.

[CardinalRule]

My immediate thoughts on the process. None of the following is based on fact or actual experience but a place to start your quest for leaving a vehicle in the US legally.

I would be surprised if your Canadian insurer will allow you to leave your vehicle in the US full time - check with them.

I would think before you can register and insure your Canadian vehicle in the US you would have to import/export it - check with AZ DOT.

US Customs would be the ones to oversee importing your vehicle. Check with them about the process for importing your vehicle into the US. You could also us a broker for the import process.

Just my 2 cents worth.

[ThomasFour]

Are you talking about the costs involved in registering your vehicle in Arizona?

[Old-Biscuit]

Call this number and inquire.......

Bullhead DMV Phone Number
(800) 251-5866