Sailing to Canada

[NorthernStar]

Hello everyone,

I'm fairly new to the forum as a registered user, but did occasional reading as an unsubscribed user for awhile now. I've tried searching forum topics, and do apologize ahead of time if this was brought up before.

I'm a Canadian citizen and purchased a sailboat last year in Rhode Island, with the hope that by this summer things will brighten up with COVID - not. The boat is in winter storage till May, then it has to leave the marina for several reasons. The boat is no longer registered in US and is removed from USCG list. The best option is at very least get it over to Nova Scotia, I'm not considering Erie canal due to timing, cost, restrictions, and potential further delays.

Anyone tried sailing back to Canada from US as a Canadian citizen? I will register the boat with Transport Canada to ensure it is Canadian flagged, and will have to pay HST at the border. But the question is, will they even let me in or not? Could I quarantine on the boat? Etc?

Thank you!

[Stu Jackson]

Many folks have asked the same question.


The answer is invariably: no one here can answer that, you MUST get in touch with the regional/provincial/national customs and border officials.


The eastern provinces have been closed for a long time now. One of our regulars here, Mike O'Reilly, has his boat in NF and hasn't been able to get to it, and he is already IN Canada!!!


Good luck.

[Nauticus]

Was just about to mention Mike and his boat blues.

Originally Posted by Stu Jackson

Many folks have asked the same question.


The answer is invariably: no one here can answer that, you MUST get in touch with the regional/provincial/national customs and border officials.


The eastern provinces have been closed for a long time now. One of our regulars here, Mike O'Reilly, has his boat in NF and hasn't been able to get to it, and he is already IN Canada!!!


Good luck.

[NorthernStar]

Thank you for the feedback! NF is way more stricter than Nova Scotia right now. Travel into Nova Scotia is allowed as long as you stay for 14 days in quarantine. They are even inviting remote workers into the province. I wonder if anyone from Halifax or Yarmouth have any news from CBSA these days.

https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus/travel/

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, NorthernStar.

[Mike OReilly]

Hi North, just noticed your thread. Yes, indeed, NL is more restrictive than any other place in Canada (except perhaps the far north and fly-in communities). No non-residents can get to Newfoundland, not even other Canadians like me .

I think you're right, it appears to me you can legally sail back to Nova Scotia. The only question that is unclear is how they will handle the now-mandatory clean Covid-19 test before entering the country. I assume you will face this requirement.

I'd definitely try and talk to someone in authority about how to proceed, but it does appear you can do it. In fact, I'm envious. I wish I had the option...

[chaggart]

Hi Northern Star,
Another option is to truck the boat to Canada.
I don’t know your sailing plans but if you are going to be in Ontario for the season, trucking the boat up might work for you.
We did that when we bought our Tayana 37 in Hampton VA in 2015. It proved to be a good idea and we got a full sailing season in on Lake Ontario.

In January 2020 our plans were to leave for the Bahamas via the Erie Canal. September 2020 we fully expected to sail our Tayana 37 out the St Lawrence to Nova Scotia. Now it is not looking so good for that. Instead we plan to sail to the north channel from Toronto and spend the summer sailing in Ontario, hoping that 2022 will be kinder to our plans to head south.

Regards
Charles Haggart

[boatpoker]

The only surefire way is to hire a licensed captain for the last leg. A licensed captain can acquire a Commercial Transaction Number from Canada Customs and be treated just like a truck driver. We did several cross border deliveries under this exemption last summer.

Remember that whatever they tell you on the phone is irrelevant to the officer standing in front of you ... unless you have that transaction number, he has absolute authority.

[Montanan]

And then there is the issue of entering the USA from Canada to get to your boat. Presently the land border is closed to non-essential travel. It is anyone's guess as to when the two countries will reopen to permit unfettered travel yet again.

Oddly, Canadians can still fly into the USA for non-essential purposes, but are not allowed to cross by land for non-essential purposes.

I see everyone was pondering about Mike's predicament.

I suspect 2022 will be a return to near normal after North Americans [Mexico, USA, Canada] have received vaccinations, but 2021 will just be a transition year with extended Covid protocols remaining in place.

I would recommend that you make plans for continued storage on the hard for your vessel for 2021.

[Knot Safety]

Just fly down. Get it. Sail to Canada. As a Canadian, they cannot deny you entry. You will have to pay tax on it at entry and you will have to quarantine aboard for two weeks.

Call Brad at East River Shipyard just North of Lunenburg. He can store there for you on the hard or in a building and has a lot of experience with Canadians sailing back to Canada this year.

If you reach out to customs ahead of time, they may meet you at the shipyard or want you to stop in lunenburg.

The other spot many cruisers have gone back to is shelbourne. Customs will meet you there. Problem with going there is that you have to contend with the bay of fundy tides which can slow you right down.

Email/call customs in advance and they will clear the way for you

[Mike OReilly]

Agree with Knot, I don't see an insurmountable problem. Although for 100% certainty, BP's plan can't be beat.

BTW, thanks for all the notes of concern folks. I guess I've whined about my predicament enough for many to notice . I'm still hoping for a 2021 sailing season, but that hope is a distant one. I just don't see Newfoundland opening up early when we're this close to the finish line.

I think the best likely scenario is NL opens by late Fall or early Winter. If so, I may be able to travel there just to assess the damage. In the meantime, a few of us who are in the same boat (ha!) are looking to hire someone local to do some preventative work on our held-hostage boats.

Here's hoping 2022 is a return to something approaching normal.

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Agree with Knot, I don't see an insurmountable problem. Although for 100% certainty, BP's plan can't be beat.

BTW, thanks for all the notes of concern folks. I guess I've whined about my predicament enough for many to notice . I'm still hoping for a 2021 sailing season, but that hope is a distant one. I just don't see Newfoundland opening up early when we're this close to the finish line.

I think the best likely scenario is NL opens by late Fall or early Winter. If so, I may be able to travel there just to assess the damage. In the meantime, a few of us who are in the same boat (ha!) are looking to hire someone local to do some preventative work on our held-hostage boats.

Here's hoping 2022 is a return to something approaching normal.

Have you considered hiring a local to take you boat to NS ?

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by boatpoker

Have you considered hiring a local to take you boat to NS ?

I have, but I think it would cost a lot. Just getting her launched would be a big task, especially for someone who doesn't know the boat. I think once she's in the water it wouldn't be too big a deal, but it just seems a large task to try and hire out. Maybe I'm wrong...?

Sadly, I've also been thinking about trying to sell her, but here too I can't figure out how to do this from afar without basically giving her away. And since it's my home, it's full of home stuff (like paintings) that I want back.

Anyway, back to North's questions. I don't mean to hijack (but really do appreciate the thoughts ).

[NorthernStar]

Originally Posted by Knot Safety

Just fly down. Get it. Sail to Canada. As a Canadian, they cannot deny you entry. You will have to pay tax on it at entry and you will have to quarantine aboard for two weeks.

Call Brad at East River Shipyard just North of Lunenburg. He can store there for you on the hard or in a building and has a lot of experience with Canadians sailing back to Canada this year.

If you reach out to customs ahead of time, they may meet you at the shipyard or want you to stop in lunenburg.

The other spot many cruisers have gone back to is shelbourne. Customs will meet you there. Problem with going there is that you have to contend with the bay of fundy tides which can slow you right down.

Email/call customs in advance and they will clear the way for you

Thank you Knot, that seems quite reasonable. Can't be picky about the tides, weather or location these days as long as you can enter back in Canada with your own vessel, it is a huge achievement already.

I work remotely and this is my live aboard vessel, so I don't mind staying in Nova Scotia until this whole COVID situation gets better.

[Knot Safety]

If you are a Canadian citizen, it will be no problem returning to Canada. Probably need pcr test before departure. Again, talk to customs and get it all cleared up with them. They were fantastic for us - coming and going from Nova Scotia