The travellers’ exemption allows Canadians to bring back goods up to a specified dollar limit without having to pay duties or taxes, including customs duty, Goods and Services Tax/Harmonized Sales Tax, federal excise levies and provincial sales and product taxes. Every year, Canadians take some 30 million overnight trips outside of Canada, often returning with goods purchased abroad. Modernization of the rules applied to these purchases was long overdue.
About the Initiative
Economic Action Plan 2012 introduced the most significant increase in the duty- and tax-free travellers’ exemptions in decades, increasing the value of goods that may be imported duty- and tax-free by Canadian residents returning from abroad after a 24-hour and 48-hour absence to $200 and $800, respectively, harmonizing them with U.S. levels. This measure will facilitate cross-border travel by streamlining the processing of returning Canadian travellers who have made purchases while outside Canada.
Who Will Benefit
This measure will further ease congestion at our borders, facilitate trade, reduce costs for travellers who have made purchases while abroad, and allow our border agents to better focus on keeping Canada secure.
Initiative Update
This measure took effect June 1, 2012.
Find Out More
For more information, please visit the I Declare section of the Canada Border Services Agency website.