Slightly Off Topic - Shipping Personal Effects - China to Canada

[gillespiedc]

Any help at all would be appreciated. I found some forms which apparently you need to avoid paying duty, but any insight from someone with direct experience would be helpful.

Our intention is to use a freight forwarder here in China, and they are going to make a box on a pallet about 1Mx1Mx2.1M high and we will put it on the slow boat to Canada. I have never used a forwarder before, and never had to declare anything coming in so once again, please any experiences??

Thanks,

Doug

 

[canadianwoman]

You need to fill out a goods to follow list when you are coming back to Canada after having lived abroad. This way you don't have to pay duty on your personal effects. Also I'd write on the boxes themselves things like: used books, used clothing, etc.
Here's a thread about it (and I'm sure there are others):
http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/goods-to-follow-what-does-that-mean-t43709.0.html

 

[gillespiedc]

Thanks again CW! And rats! I just finished packing my piano and forgot to write down the serial number.... oh well off to the store for more packing tape...

 

[toby]

Hi:

Did your (Chinese?)wife get a residence visa? Mind sharing your time line?

Was an interview necessary? Any words of advice on the interview (did you accompany her, did Canada ask you any questions?)

 

[gillespiedc]

Hi Toby,

We are not at the PR submission stage yet (although we have been preparing our docs for awhile) but when we apply inland we will be updating our progress, successes, and pitfalls (hopefully very few of those) here.

My wife and step-daughter have 6 month TRVs, and from the date we submitted to the time they were couriered to our door was 6 days.

We will leave for Canada the first week of July.

Doug