An Ottawa man trying to bring his new American vehicle over the border without paying duty was caught red-handed last month, leading Canada’s border officials to flag his story as a cautionary tale.
The unidentified 45-year-old ended up shelling out nearly eight times what he would have paid to the Canadian government had he simply declared the vehicle as required by law.
READ MORE: Canadian border agency says ‘leave your guns at home, America’
According to the Canada Border Service Agency (CBSA), it all started when the man attempted to return to Canada after shopping in Ogdensburg, New York, for the day and declared $300 worth of goods.
The man told border officials that his car had U.S. plates because a friend had loaned it to him for a few months. But his story quickly began to unravel.
“During the secondary inspection, officers searched the man’s phone and the car,” the CBSA said in a release.
“They found emails and documents confirming the car was purchased on the Internet and the ‘borrowed the car from a friend’ scheme was concocted to avoid paying duties and taxes.”
If he had declared the vehicle, the man would have paid just under $1,000 in duties, taxes and registration fees.
READ MORE: Revoked Nexus cards reinstated following Trump travel ban
Instead, his car was temporarily seized, his fast-track NEXUS card was revoked, and he paid a hefty $6,646 penalty. After he handed over the fine, plus the duty and registration, the total cost to get the car back and over the border came to nearly $7,650.
That’s a whopping 63 per cent of the total value of the vehicle, pegged at $12,084.
“The single best thing you can do to save time returning to Canada is to simply be open and honest with the CBSA officer,” the border services agency noted.
“If you are not sure about what to declare, don’t hesitate to ask a CBSA officer at a port of entry.”
Comments