NHTSA Registered Importer · Blaine, WA · Canada → USA · Private buyers welcome
One flat fee covers the border paperwork, the NHTSA conformance package, the recall and lien checks, and a title kit for your state. Check the VIN for free before you pay the seller, get a written quote in one business day, and track every step online.
What "handled end to end" means
Free, before you buy
The VIN is on the seller's ownership document and the driver's door jamb. From it we read the year, the make and model, and the country of build, which decides your duty. It also sets up the estimator and the eligibility screen below for this exact car.
Decoded through the NHTSA vehicle database. We never store a VIN you check here; it's only saved if you send a quote request.
Instant estimate
Every other importer makes you call for this. Enter the basics and see the duty, the government fees and our flat rate side by side. Your written quote confirms the duty line against the current tariff schedule.
Estimated cost on top of the purchase price
Estimate only. Duty on Canadian-built vehicles has changed several times in 2026; we confirm the exact line on your quote and you pay the government fees at cost.
Before you buy
Most Canadian-market cars qualify. The ones that don't cost people thousands because they found out after paying the seller. Answer five questions, or let the photo checks below answer two of them for you.
This is a screen, not a ruling. Send the VIN with your quote request and we run the manufacturer recall check, a BC/provincial lien search and the FMVSS label review before you commit to the seller.
Free label check
The certification label on the driver's door jamb says whether the car was built to U.S. standards (FMVSS), Canadian standards (CMVSS) or both. That one sentence decides whether you need a Registered Importer at all. Most people can't tell the two apart; the check below can.
What we read: whether it names FMVSS, CMVSS or both, the date of manufacture (which sets the 25-year rule by month), and the GVWR. If the label is missing or damaged, say so in your quote request; it changes the process.
Free TPMS check
Every 2008-and-newer vehicle needs a tire-pressure monitoring system to be certified. Many Canadian-spec cars don't have one, and the seller usually doesn't know. The cluster tells you in the first three seconds after the key turns.
What you're looking for: a tire cross-section with an exclamation mark, usually amber. It lights with the others during the bulb check. If it never appears, the car most likely has no TPMS. A photo of the cluster during the bulb check works too.
How it works
You'll get an email at every step with what we did, what's next and what we're waiting on, and you can check progress online any time.
You send the listing and VIN. We confirm it's importable, lien-free and recall-clear, then send a written quote with the duty line and a target release date.
You sign our service agreement and a limited POA so we can file with CBP and NHTSA on your behalf. You pay a deposit; the balance is due on release.
We get the manufacturer's recall clearance letter, run the provincial lien search, and arrange pickup or meet you at the crossing. The seller's title and bill of sale go in the file.
We file CBP Form 7501, DOT HS-7 (box 3, RI entry) and EPA Form 3520-1, post the DOT conformance bond, and the car is released to our NHTSA-approved holding lot on Portal Way.
Speedometer and TPMS work if the car needs it, the 12-photo conformity package, and our statement of conformity submitted to NHTSA. The car stays in our lot until NHTSA releases the bond.
You get the NHTSA release letter, the stamped 7501, HS-7 and 3520-1, an English odometer statement, and a checklist for your state's DMV. Drive away or we deliver.
Pricing
Pick how much you want to do yourself. Nothing here changes after you sign unless the car needs work we flagged on the quote.
Paperwork only
You drive it across and to our lot in Blaine. We handle every filing.
Standard · most private buyers
Everything in Paperwork, plus we meet the car at the crossing and manage the conformance work.
Door-to-door
You never leave home. We collect from the seller and deliver to your driveway.
| Item | Who sets it | Typical amount |
|---|---|---|
| Customs duty on the vehicle | CBP, by country of build and age | 0% – 25% of value |
| Merchandise processing fee | CBP, 0.3464% of value | $33 – $671 |
| DOT conformance bond | Surety, 1.5× dutiable value | $150 – $400 |
| Speedometer conversion (km/h-only clusters) | Us, parts + labour | $250 |
| TPMS installation (2008+ vehicles without it) | Us, parts + labour | $350 – $650 |
| Recall repair, if the manufacturer won't clear it | Dealer | Quoted first |
| Storage beyond 30 days after release | Us | $15 / day |
What to gather
After release
Each state asks for slightly different paperwork once the car is released. These guides list exactly what to bring to the DMV.
Questions people ask before they call
If the car's label says it meets all U.S. FMVSS, a resident can sometimes enter it under HS-7 box 2A on their own. Most Canadian cars don't carry that exact wording, and anything entered under box 3 must come through an RI who posts the bond, certifies conformity and holds the car until NHTSA releases it. Use the label check above; if you don't need us, we'll say so.
It depends on where the car was built, not where it's registered. U.S.-built vehicles generally return duty-free. Vehicles built elsewhere are subject to the base 2.5% rate plus any additional tariffs in force on the entry date, which for Canadian-built vehicles have changed more than once in 2026. We quote the duty line against the schedule on the day you ask and re-confirm it the day the car crosses.
Federal rules require the RI to keep the vehicle until NHTSA accepts the statement of conformity and releases the bond. For a typical Canadian car with no modifications that's two to four weeks. You can't register it in the meantime, so plan the purchase around that.
U.S. rules require a readout in miles per hour. If the cluster already shows both mph and km/h you're fine. If it's km/h only we fit a converted cluster or an approved overlay; the odometer reading is recorded in kilometres and declared on your U.S. odometer statement.
Models never sold in the U.S. (no FMVSS-certified counterpart), vehicles with recalls the manufacturer won't clear, vehicles with a lien, and anything where the manufacturer won't issue a recall clearance letter. Some Canadian-built vehicle categories are also currently restricted at the border; we check the VIN against the live list before you pay.
You don't pay Canadian GST/PST as a non-resident buyer exporting the car (the seller's paperwork handles that). You'll pay your own state's sales or use tax when you title it; the state guide tells you what your DMV will ask for.
We don't sell cars, so our advice is on your side. Send us the listing before you negotiate and we'll flag anything that would add cost or block the import.
Get a written quote
Or reach us directly
Mon–Fri 8am–6pm Pacific. 8390 Portal Way, Blaine, WA 98230, five minutes from the Peace Arch and Pacific Highway crossings. Pickup across BC, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec.