Free import
• Visitors: personal goods for your own use, such as clothing, camping and sports equipment, cameras, computers and devices, and your vehicle, boat or aircraft. Declare them on arrival and take them with you when you leave. They cannot be used by a Canadian resident or a Canadian business, given to a resident, or left in Canada. An officer may ask for a refundable security deposit and issue a temporary admission permit.
• Visitors: gifts worth up to CAD 60 each. Duty and taxes apply to the amount above CAD 60. Tobacco, vaping products, alcohol and advertising matter do not count as gifts. Declare all gifts and leave them unwrapped.
• Visitors must declare all alcohol, tobacco and vaping products. The limits are 1.5 L of wine, or 1.14 L of spirits, or 1.14 L of wine and spirits combined, or 8.5 L of beer or ale; and 200 cigarettes, 50 cigars, 200 g of manufactured tobacco, 200 tobacco sticks and up to 12 vaping containers holding no more than 120 ml (liquid) or 120 g (solid) in total. Duty and taxes may be charged, and larger amounts may need a provincial or territorial permit.
• Minimum age for alcohol: 18 if you enter Canada in Alberta, Manitoba or Quebec, and 19 in all other provinces and territories. Minimum age for tobacco and vaping products: 18 everywhere.
• Canadian residents returning after more than 24 hours: goods worth up to CAD 200, not including alcohol or tobacco. If the goods are worth more than CAD 200, duty and taxes apply to the full amount. Trips of less than 24 hours give no exemption.
• Canadian residents returning after 48 hours or more: goods worth up to CAD 800, including the alcohol and tobacco amounts listed above (tobacco and vaping products must be stamped "duty paid Canada droit acquitté" to be duty-free). After 7 days or more, goods other than alcohol and tobacco may follow by mail or courier, but you must declare them on arrival.
• Tobacco and vaping products that are not stamped "duty paid Canada droit acquitté" are limited to 5 units per person (1 unit = 200 cigarettes, 50 cigars, 200 g of tobacco, 200 tobacco sticks, or 120 ml/120 g of vaping products).
Currency
• There is no limit on the amount of money you may bring in.
• Cash and monetary instruments (cheques, traveller's cheques, bank drafts, stocks, bonds) totalling CAD 10,000 or more, in any currency, must be declared to the CBSA on arrival. Undeclared amounts can be seized.
Prohibited
• Cannabis in any form, including medical cannabis and CBD, unless you have a permit or exemption from Health Canada
• Prohibited firearms, and prohibited weapons and devices such as pepper spray, mace, brass knuckles, switchblades, stun guns, silencers and replica firearms (including airsoft guns that count as replicas)
• Handguns, unless you belong to a group exempted by law and hold an import permit
• Obscene material, hate propaganda and child pornography
• Dangerous consumer products, such as baby walkers and jequirity beans (often found in bead work)
• Commercial dogs (for resale, adoption, fostering, breeding or shows) from countries at high risk for dog rabies
• Invasive aquatic species such as zebra and quagga mussels and live Asian carp
Restricted
• Food, plants and animals: declare all food, plant and animal products and pets. Undeclared items can be seized, with a penalty of up to CAD 1,300. Meat (fresh, dried or cured), eggs and egg products from countries other than the US are not allowed; only pasteurized cheese is allowed; personal food is generally limited to 20 kg or 20 L per person. Rules for fruit, vegetables, seeds and plants depend on the country of origin: check the CFIA Automated Import Reference System (AIRS). Declare it if you visited a farm or had contact with wild animals before arriving.
• Firewood needs a permit. Vehicles, footwear and equipment soiled with earth are usually refused entry.
• Dogs and cats aged 3 months or older need a rabies vaccination certificate in English or French signed by a veterinarian. Animals from rabies-free countries recognized by the CFIA may instead have a certificate showing they lived there for the last 6 months. Certified assistance dogs travelling with their handler are exempt. Exotic pets may need CITES permits.
• Firearms: declare all firearms on arrival. Visitors aged 18 or older may bring non-restricted rifles and shotguns for hunting in season, competitions, wilderness protection or transit, with a Canadian firearms licence or a Non-Resident Firearm Declaration (form RCMP 5589, CAD 25, valid 60 days). Restricted firearms also need an Authorization to Transport from the provincial Chief Firearms Officer. Self-protection is not a valid reason. Ammunition, magazines and gun parts need a licence or the declaration. Canadian Firearms Program: 1-800-731-4000.
• Explosives, fireworks and some ammunition need written authorization and permits from Natural Resources Canada.
• Medicines: visitors may bring a personal supply of prescription drugs, up to a 90-day supply or a single course of treatment, whichever is less, in the pharmacy or original retail package or with the original label. Controlled substances have separate rules.
• Protected animals and plants (CITES), such as ivory, coral, shells, caviar, reptile skins and orchids, need CITES permits. Items with elephant ivory or rhinoceros horn always need a permit.
• Antiquities and cultural objects need an export permit from their country of origin.
• Used or second-hand mattresses need a certificate that they were cleaned and fumigated in the country of export.
• Goods you do not declare, or declare falsely, can be seized; penalties range from 25% to 70% of their value. Undeclared alcohol and tobacco are seized permanently.