UK to CAD - Outgoings PM
#31
Just Joined
Joined: Apr 2016
Posts: 5
Re: UK to CAD - Outgoings PM
Hi,
Had a look at the thread and it looks like as you said can vary wildly from city to city. I have family in Hamilton, ON and they have said once a month they drive over to Detroit and get a huge shop and freeze for the month. Does anyone else do this? We are looking at potentially moving to Windsor, ON so this would definitely be an option for us.
Had a look at the thread and it looks like as you said can vary wildly from city to city. I have family in Hamilton, ON and they have said once a month they drive over to Detroit and get a huge shop and freeze for the month. Does anyone else do this? We are looking at potentially moving to Windsor, ON so this would definitely be an option for us.
#32
Re: UK to CAD - Outgoings PM
Hamilton to Detroit is a good 6 hour round trip ! Maybe they mean Buffalo which is only around 45 mins away. It's generally not worth the border hassle though, you can get stuck at the border for an hour sometimes on busy days. Also items you bring back across the border into Canada are subject to additional taxes, so the benefit generally isn't there.
#33
Just Joined
Joined: Apr 2016
Posts: 5
Re: UK to CAD - Outgoings PM
I don't think it pays for groceries but, if we're going to Buffalo, we'll bring back clothes, wine and dog food. When we were renovating the house we bought everything in Buffalo or Detroit, even allowing for renting a van and staying two nights on each trip (to get the duty free allowance) that was well worthwhile. Anything for horses is absurdly cheaper in the US so, if you need de-wormer or a blanket or something, off you go.
For the OP's benefit though it's not an open border like Europe, they'll want to tax you on goods you bring between the two countries unless you take specific steps to avoid like dbd33 mentioned.
#35
Re: UK to CAD - Outgoings PM
To expand on what I said before, don't ignore the fact that you're moving to a completely different country.
Perhaps it's just our friends and where we've lived, but I don't think most Canadians drive as much as most Brits on a regular basis -- leaving aside any commute. (We lived in Canada for 30+ years, have been back in England for 8, and are going back.)
We've lived in Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, and Victoria, and always lived in our neighbourhoods. We did used to drive from Ottawa to Montreal to visit friends (about 2 hours), but in other locations, it was a long way to get to anywhere we wanted to go! Even getting from Victoria to Vancouver was a haul, with the ferry involved.
Here, we and friends don't think much of driving to visit, even if it's hours, because, well, why not? We caught it from friends, who didn't seem to think much of driving hours to visit. (We've gone off it, mind you, because the motorways are so congested.) We've driven the trans-Can a number of times and in most places it's two lanes and empty, but empty all around as well.
I've never been to Windsor, but I suspect it's pretty self-contained.
Perhaps it's just our friends and where we've lived, but I don't think most Canadians drive as much as most Brits on a regular basis -- leaving aside any commute. (We lived in Canada for 30+ years, have been back in England for 8, and are going back.)
We've lived in Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, and Victoria, and always lived in our neighbourhoods. We did used to drive from Ottawa to Montreal to visit friends (about 2 hours), but in other locations, it was a long way to get to anywhere we wanted to go! Even getting from Victoria to Vancouver was a haul, with the ferry involved.
Here, we and friends don't think much of driving to visit, even if it's hours, because, well, why not? We caught it from friends, who didn't seem to think much of driving hours to visit. (We've gone off it, mind you, because the motorways are so congested.) We've driven the trans-Can a number of times and in most places it's two lanes and empty, but empty all around as well.
I've never been to Windsor, but I suspect it's pretty self-contained.
#36
Forum Regular
Joined: Jan 2009
Location: Picton, ON
Posts: 194
Re: UK to CAD - Outgoings PM
If you DO end up near the US border, get a NEXUS card after you have been here 3 years - avoids the queues at border crossings and airports.