Guide · Canada

What to declare when you enter Canada by land

General information, not official or legal advice. Customs, immigration and border rules change and every situation is different. Check the linked official sources and the agency’s current page before you travel. This site is not affiliated with CBP, the CBSA, DHS or any government.

Steps

1. The CBSA says that, when entering by land, travellers can check border wait times and its official Directory of Offices and Services for a port of entry's hours of operation.^[1]
2. The CBSA says to carry proper identification for yourself and any children or minors travelling with you.^[1]
3. The CBSA says that at the first checkpoint (primary inspection) you follow the signs, an officer checks your identification and travel documents, and you answer their questions truthfully.^[1]
4. The CBSA says to be ready for a full and accurate declaration covering purchases, food, plant and animal products, currency or monetary instruments of CAN$10,000 or more, and any firearms or weapons.^[1][4]
5. If an officer refers you to secondary inspection, the CBSA describes this as a normal part of the process and says Canadian law requires travellers to answer truthfully, report goods accurately and present goods for examination.^[3]

Personal goods versus goods that are taxed

Visitors may bring goods for their own use, such as clothing, camping and sports equipment, cameras, personal computers and devices, and their mode of transportation.^[2] The CBSA says you do not pay duty or taxes on personal goods as long as you declare all your goods when you arrive and take them with you when you leave Canada.^[2] Personal goods cannot be used by a resident of Canada, used on behalf of a business based in Canada, given as a gift to a Canadian resident, or disposed of or left behind in Canada.^[2] If you are bringing goods in for any of those reasons, you must declare that intention and may be required to pay duty or tax.^[2]

An officer may ask you to leave a security deposit for declared goods and will then issue a temporary admission permit. When you leave, you bring the goods and your copy of the permit to the port of entry, and the deposit is refunded by mail.^[2]

Gifts

Gifts must be declared. If each gift is under CAN$60, there is no duty or tax, provided the gifts are not tobacco products, vaping products, alcoholic beverages or advertising matter. For a gift worth more than CAN$60, duty and taxes apply to the amount over CAN$60; the CBSA's example is a CAN$200 gift, on which duty and taxes apply to CAN$140.^[2] The CBSA also says not to wrap gifts in case officers need to inspect the contents.^[2][1]

Food, plants and animals

The CBSA says to declare all food, plant and animal products when you arrive, including pets.^[2] Its checklist also points to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency's Automated Import Reference System (AIRS) for checking requirements before you bring any food, plant or animal product, and mentions untreated wooden souvenirs as an example of something to declare.^[1] The CBSA's food, plant and animal page lists items that can introduce foreign threats, including raw or cooked meats, fruit and vegetables, milk, homemade articles made from plants or wood, houseplants, live animals, fishing bait, firewood, plant cuttings, seeds, bulbs and soiled hiking boots.^[7]

Money and monetary instruments

There are no restrictions on the amount of money you can bring into or take out of Canada, but you must declare currency or monetary instruments valued at CAN$10,000 or more, in any combination of Canadian or foreign currency.^[4] Monetary instruments include stocks and bonds, cheques, money orders, bank drafts and traveller's cheques.^[4] When arriving, you can report at an airport kiosk, on a CBSA declaration card if you were given one, through Advance Declaration, or verbally to an officer.^[4] The CBSA can seize all of it if the entire value is not reported; penalties range from 5% to 50% and the funds are not returned if they are suspected to be proceeds of crime or terrorist financing.^[4] The CBSA's NEXUS rules add that you cannot use NEXUS while carrying CAN$10,000 or more.^[4]

Cannabis, firearms and other restricted goods

The CBSA says transporting cannabis across the border in any form, including oils containing THC or CBD, without a permit or exemption authorized by Health Canada is a serious criminal offence regardless of the amount or of any medical document.^[5] If you do have cannabis when entering Canada, you must declare it; the CBSA says an undeclared-cannabis monetary penalty can be up to CAN$2,000.^[8] Firearms and weapons must be declared, and failure to do so can lead to seizure and criminal charges; the checklist notes most weapons are prohibited, including tasers, pepper spray and certain knives.^[1] For restricted and prohibited goods the CBSA points to its own list of categories.^[9]

Counter-tariffs on some US goods

As of 2026-09-08, the CBSA page says the Government of Canada has imposed counter-tariffs of 15%, 25% or 50% on certain goods originating from the US, and the CBSA says all travellers, including returning residents and international visitors, are expected to pay applicable tariffs on purchased US goods when they enter.^[6] For visitors, the CBSA says the tariffs apply to goods that will remain in Canada, not to personal vehicles and baggage temporarily imported by a non-resident for personal use; for consumables such as groceries, the officer assesses the quantity against the purpose and length of stay and determines whether tariffs apply.^[6] See the separate guide on how they apply.

About this guide

Officers decide at the border; this is general information, not official guidance. travel.tnaado.ca is not affiliated with CBP, CBSA, DHS or the Government of Canada.