Hello everyone

Can anyone shed any light on my dilemma.

Going to land in Halifax on 11th Jan 08, then return to UK for 6 months at least.
I wont have the shipping inventory, so do I just complete the B4 forms listing everything i may or may not ship?
Also do i have to work out the goods accompanying at this time even though I plan to return at a later time?
Hope someone can help on this as i'm a bit confused.

Just a thought - What did people do before the internet? (scary)

Colin

Yes.

Well, you don't have to complete the B4 form itself. The most important thing is to have a list of your goods and the values of different categories of goods.

For example, you would write, "6 boxes of books - X number of dollars." The dollar amount that you state is your take on the collective value of the books.

If worst comes to worst, the customs officer who processes you at your port of entry will complete a B4 form, using the information from your list. He/she will write something like, "Household goods - X number of dollars." The dollar amount that he/she states on the B4 form will be the grand total amount at the end of your list.

Let's say your list looks like this:

4 boxes of clothes - $,1000
6 boxes of books - $1,000
3 boxes of kitchen utensils - $1,000
living room furniture - $1,000
----------------------------------
TOTAL - $4,000
----------------------------------

In that case the customs officer would write "$4,000" on the relevant B4 form.

Obviously I've used stupid amounts for the purposes of this illustration, but the point is to show you how the process works.

The bottom line is that the list of the goods that you're importing, a list that will be attached to the B4 form and on which the information on the B4 form will be based, is the important thing. The B4 form, while it's a necessary part of the process, is not something you need to fuss about in advance.

No, I don't think so. What I mean is that, if you take stuff to Canada in your suitcase, but then take the same stuff back to the UK at the end of your visit to Canada, you aren't strictly speaking importing the contents of your suitcase to Canada at that point.

At least that is what my logic tells me. It's true that my logic and Canada Border Services Agency's logic may be two different commodities.

Still, even if I'm wrong, the contents of your suitcase are not that important, compared with a shipment of household goods. It's not as if you have to list your clothes, as in 6 pairs of socks, 7 shirts, 2 pairs of shoes, and so on. You just have to say, "Clothes - X number of dollars." So, if worst comes to worst, the customs officer will fill in a form on your behalf. He/she will write, "Clothes - X number of dollars," (with the value being whatever you've told him/her it is). He/she will ask you to sign the form, and that will be that.

There are a couple of other details you should know. Suggest you read the BE Wiki article on Goods To Follow.

Thanks Judy,

I've read quite a lot on this forum regarding the dreaded GTF, but it's the fact we're landing and then returning to UK to settle all our affairs, i.e house sale etc.
I'd better get cracking on my big list.
How is Calgary at the moment?
We (wife Laura) and I visited about 3 yrs ago staying in the city for a few days, then doing the Rocky trail.Both loved it.

Regards Colin