Yes — Jetrans Movers provides complete door-to-door relocation, freight forwarding, and container shipping between the USA and Canada. Here is everything you need to know about customs clearance, transit times, container options, and pricing before planning your move.
If you need cross-border movers from the USA to Canada, plan to move to Toronto from the US or ship household goods to Montreal or Vancouver, this guide explains the paperwork, the costs and the timing.
Moving Household Goods to Canada — Everything You Need to Know
We start with export-grade packing, with dedicated crating for fragile and high-value pieces, then load a dedicated or shared truck and record every item on the inventory. The customs declaration, packing list and Bill of Lading are all produced from that inventory. Insurance for the full declared value is available, and our crews unload and place furniture in your new home.
Customs clearance and duty relief for settlers’ effects
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) lets people who are moving to Canada bring personal and household goods in without duty or tax, provided they owned, possessed and used the goods before arriving. Returning residents are generally expected to have owned and used items for six months or more.
- Eligible: furniture, appliances, books, computers, jewellery and personal vehicles
- Not eligible: items bought after arrival, goods for business use, a house or a large residential trailer
- Returning residents: a single item worth more than CAD 10,000, including a car, can attract duty and tax on the excess
- Selling or giving away relieved goods within a year can trigger the duty you avoided
You give the border officer two copies of a detailed goods list showing each item’s value, make, model and serial number, split between goods arriving with you and goods to follow. The officer completes Form BSF186, your receipt for bringing in the second shipment duty-free. Only items on the original list qualify.
Firearms and weapons, certain food, plants and soil, firewood, some medications and health products, used mattresses and some vehicles are restricted or prohibited. We check your packing list before pickup so nothing is stopped at the border.
Jetrans prepares the Bill of Lading, the export and import inventory lists and the customs declaration in-house, then cross-checks every figure and description against the others before the container is sealed. Mismatched paperwork is the most common cause of port delays, so we treat it as part of the move, not an afterthought.
- Bill of Lading issued against the sealed container or consolidated cargo
- Room-by-room export and import inventory with the age and use of each item
- Packing list and customs declaration prepared to the destination’s format
- Copies of your passport and visa or residence documents as the destination requires
Dedicated vs shared trucks (and sea or air when needed)
- Shared or part-load shipment for a studio or one bedroom: from about $1,200 USD to $2,600 USD (approximately CAD 1,680–3,630)
- Dedicated truck or trailer share for a two to three bedroom home: from about $2,800 USD to $5,200 USD (approximately CAD 3,910–7,270), depending on mileage
- Full container by sea for west-coast or overseas-origin goods: quoted individually
- Air freight for urgent essentials: priced on the greater of actual and volumetric weight
Figures are estimates, not quotes. Converted at about 1 USD = CAD 1.398 (mid-market rate, 1 November 2026); rates move daily, and your written quote is fixed in USD.
Appliances and electronics
Canada uses the same 120V and 60Hz power as the USA, so your appliances, TVs and tools will work without converters. Check that gas appliances and propane equipment meet Canadian standards, and note that some vehicles need modification before they can be registered.
Fees and delivery terms at the border
Cross-border road moves have no ocean Terminal Handling Charges, but there are customs entry and broker fees, which we estimate at about $100–$300 USD (approximately CAD 140–420). Any border inspection or agricultural check fees are itemised. Our quotes are all-inclusive of the charges listed, with door-to-door delivery terms and doorstep unloading stated in writing. Duties and taxes, where they apply, are shown separately.
Shipping schedule for the USA to Canada
- Cross-border road freight: about 3–7 days from pickup to delivery
- Border-crossing days are scheduled so a customs broker is on hand when your shipment arrives
Who moves from the USA to Canada
Our Canada moves are mostly cross-border corporate transfers and tech relocations, plus families settling in Toronto, Vancouver or Montreal. We also transport belongings for snowbirds who split the year between the two countries.
Is It Worth Hiring Professional Movers from the USA to Canada?
Furniture and household goods are commonly estimated to cost 40–60 percent more to replace in some Canadian markets than in the USA, so shipping what you own is often cheaper than starting over. Professional movers handle the Form BSF186 process, protect sentimental and high-value items and avoid the delays that unprepared paperwork causes at the border. Volume rates through Jetrans reduce the cost further.
Why movers choose Jetrans
- A single dedicated move coordinator from first call to final delivery
- Live tracking of your shipment on our tracking page, using the ID on your booking confirmation
- All-risk marine cargo insurance available on every move
- Vetted destination port and delivery partners
- Custom wooden crating, export wrapping and sealed containers or air cases for fragile and high-value items
Ask for a written quote and we will confirm every line item in USD before you commit.
Request a free quote with your pickup address, destination city and volume.