How Much are Canadian Duties?
The amount of duty you will have to pay depends on the type of goods you are importing and the country in which they were made. Keep in mind that this is only part of the picture, as you may also have to pay PST or other types of taxes.
Read on to see what your personal exemption will be, as well as a calculator to help you estimate the duties you will owe.
See our page on “What Will It Cost?” for more information on duties and your personal exemptions.
Duties on Foreigners Entering Canada
Visitors from outside of Canada (including U.S. citizens) crossing the border into Canada to visit are allowed to bring the following item quantities into Canada duty free:
- 1.5 liters of wine, or 1.14 liters (40 ounces) of liquor, or 24 cans or bottles of beer.
- 1 carton (200 cigarettes), 200 tobacco sticks, up to 50 cigars / cigarillos, and 200g of loose tobacco
- Up to $60 in gifts per recipient. (excluding alcohol and tobacco)
You are not allowed to combine your personal exemptions with someone else or transfer them to another person.
Goods brought in for commercial use, or for another person, do not qualify under the personal exemption and are subject to full duties.
Duties and Taxes on Canadians returning to Canada
The amount of your personal exemption / allowance is dependent on how long you were out of the country. If you exceed the personal exemption amount, you will be subject to duties and taxes.
For more information on how the personal exemption works, visit our page on the costs of crossing the border.
- Less than 24 hours
- No allowances or exemptions can be claimed. You will pay full duties for an over-and-back shopping trip.
- Between 24 hours and 48 hours
- Up to $200 worth of goods. If you bring more than $200 worth of goods, everything you bring will be subject to duties and taxes, not just the amount over $200.
- There is no exemption for alcohol or tobacco.
- Over 48 hours
- Up to $800 worth of goods.
- Liquor: 1.14 L (40 oz.) of liquor; or 1.5 L of wine; or 24 of 355 ml (8.5 L) containers of beer.
- Tobacco products: 200 cigarettes; 50 cigars or cigarillos; 200 tobacco sticks; and 200 g (7 oz.) of manufactured tobacco.
- All liquor or tobacco items must be with you when you arrive at point of entry.
- If you were gone for fewer than 7 days, you must have all your goods with you for the $800 exemption. If you were gone for 7 days or more, you may ship some (non-alcohol or tobacco products) ahead to your home.
Children are entitled to a personal exemption as long as the goods they are declaring are for the child’s use.
You are not allowed to combine your personal exemptions with someone else or transfer them to another person.
Notes on How the Duty is Calculated
If you are bringing products within a category of goods have different rates of duty, the highest rate has been used to produce the estimate. Personal exemptions, tariff classifications, tax rates, and many other things that affect the amount of duty change frequently, so you may find that how much you pay changes over time.
You may also be interested to know that you only have to pay provincial tax if you’re arriving in the province in which you live. If you live in British Columbia but are going through customs in Alberta, you will only pay the GST. You are, however, supposed to go to your own liquor board upon arriving in your province and pay the provincial taxes at that time.
Silver Lining to a Long Wait
If there can be any silver lining to being stuck in line for hours at the border, it might be that Canadian officers are sometimes told to wave through travelers who owe duties on goods purchased in the U.S. This is done to keep the line moving. Obviously there is no guarantee this will happen, and you are still required to declare all of your purchases.
Canadian Duty Calculator
Below is a duty calculator provided by the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) which you can use to estimate the amount of duty you will pay on various products you purchase out of the country and bring back across the border to Canada. Although this tool is provided by the CBSA, Canadian Customs is not bound by the estimate and does not guarantee its accuracy. The actual amount of duty you pay could be higher or lower than the amount shown. Having said that, this is a very useful way to get an idea of how much you will owe when you reach the border crossing.
You can compute the estimated Canadian duty on clothing, household appliances, automotive items, baby items, home furnishings, electronic equipment, food, health products, jewelry, movies, music, books sports equipment, toys and similar items.
If you want a more specific estimate, contact the CBSA directly.