USA Travel Questions

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

Mike Leco — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 16:57:58 GMT

I believe your friend would be required to pay the state sales tax on the car when purchased. You would not be required to pay the sales tax when he sells it to you, because it would be for export. Thus, there would be no double tax, but you may be out the initial tax.

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

Kevin Cook — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 22:33:36 GMT

Excellent point! I sure dont want to break any laws for the sake of several grand.

What about I have my friend in the State buy the new car and then sell to me after say a month? Do you think this would work?

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

Mike Leco — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 08:14:24 GMT

If you purchase a car in New York and tell the dealer that you will export it out of the state, you should be able to claim exemption from the New York sales tax. You can probably obtain a temporary license tag to drive the vehicle, but it would only be valid for 30 days or less. Unfortunately, the dealer will require you to give him your home address. If you give him a Canadian address, he will refuse to sell you the car, because he has instructions from the manufacturer to not sell cars to Canadians.

If you give the dealer an address in Pennsylvania; the dealer might accept that, but you might be technically violating the New York laws by using a fraudulent address to obtain the temporary license. If you actually register the car in Pennsylvania, you will be required to pay the Pennsylvania 6% sales tax;

I do not know the Canadian laws regarding the importation of autos or the laws about driving a car without Canadian registration. I believe there is a Canadian government web site that provides such information:

If you buy a new car in the USA and import it into Canada, you might be violating the terms of purchase which could make all of the manufacurer's warranties invalid; You should carefully research that before you proceed.

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

Kevin Cook — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 11:59:12 GMT

WOW, really wish I had visited this forum much earlier...

Anyhow, I'm a Canadian citizen looking to buy a new Toyota car from New York and bring it back to Canada to save a buck or two. Most of the dealers I have been in contact with said Toyota does not allow them to sell new cars to Canada. Well, to be more precisely, new cars will have to be first registered in the States. So my questions are:

1. Can I use a friend's address in PA to register the car under my name? I believe this way I don't need to pay the NY taxes.

2. I think the dealer can provide a 30 day temporary NY license plate so that I can drive the car away. So instead of going to PA, can I drive the car directly to US-CANADA boarder and start the exporting and importing process?

3. If I cannot proceed with the regular export/import process, can I go ahead and register the car in PA and drive it in Canada? Are there any legal problems if I drive a US registered car in Canada?

Thank you very much!

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

Mike Leco — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 07:48:52 GMT

I believe it may be possible for you to use the address of your shipping company agent to register the car. You must ask them if you can use their address.

If you have an address in Charleston, you can register the car in South Carolina, you can buy insurance, and you can get license plates to drive the car in the USA, Unfortunately, when you register the car; you must also pay the state tax: This is usually 5 to 7 percent: If you buy a car for export; normally you do not pay the sales tax.

If you can buy a car in Charleston and have it delivered to the shipping agent; you do not need license plates or insurance. Then, you will pay no sales tax When the car arrives in Valencia, you must get insurance and license plates from Spain.

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

pontetara — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 03:13:28 GMT

Dear Mike your answers being very clear and brief. One more question may be usefull to all seaman arriving in US and intending to buy a car. I am a seaman on board vessel on steady line to US and European ports. It would be very convenient for me to buy a car in US and bring it in Valencia, then drive it to my home Croatia. Since I have no residence in US, except our Shipping Company agent address in Charleston, what shall I do with car with no plates and no insurance. I even canot land it in Europe. can you help. I will be in around in USA until end of November 2009. brgds Luis

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

Mike Leco — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 14:02:05 GMT

I am not an expert on the Florida state motor vehicle regulations, but typically you do not need a social security number to register a car in any state. You only need a social security number to seek employment in the USA.

As long as you have a Florida residence address, and valid liability insurance for the vehicle, you should be able to register a vehicle. Once you register the vehicle and obtain the license tags to affix to the vehicle, you can drive that vehicle not only in Florida, but in any other state.

Most states also have safety inspection requitements for all registered vehicles. When you own a vehicle that is registered in the state, you must take that vehicle to a state inspection center or to a garage (in some states). The mechanics check your vehicle to see that it meets the state dictated safety standards for operation; and if it does, they affix a safety sticker to the windshield of the vehicle. If it does not meet the safety standards, they direct you to repair the equipment and return for another safety check.

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

barkemar — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 21:25:13 GMT

A little more straightforward maybe - we own a property in Florida and spend about 12 weeks a year there, so a car purchase may be viable. Do we need a social security number to be able to register the car? Is there anything else we need to be aware of? We have UK licenses. Thanks for your help.

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

Mike Leco — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 14:12:39 GMT

I believe that your boat would qualify as a permanent address in Florida. As you stated, it is a live-aboard, and you already have mail delivered to that address. I think you could register a car and obtain Florida license plates using that address. To be certain, you should contact the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles for a definite answer.

You should verify that the parking spot on the marina is safe for long-term parking. Sometimes the local authorities tow away cars that are left parked for long periods.

You do not need a US drivers license. Your UK license shoud be fine in the USA.

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

gustav — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 10:19:55 GMT

Hi. I wonder if anyone out there can give me any advice. I am a UK citizen who owns a boat which is kept all year-round in a Florida marina. I travel to Florida from the UK every couple of months and stay for around three weeks at a time as a liveaboard on my boat. Up to now I have rented hire cars for the period I am in Florida, but I feel sure it would work out a whole lot cheaper to either share a car with a US citizen or buy a car and leave it at the marina. I have read the various messages already posted on this subject, but I was wondering whether my boat in the marina would count as a residential address. I do have mail and deliveries shipped to that address already, so as a postal address it is not a problem. It is the address I register with Immigration when I arrive in the US, but would I be able to register and insure a vehicle using this address? I would be quite happy to take a US driving test, if that was necessary, but I don't know if that would even be possible. Another possibility might be to find someone who was prepared to lend me the use of his car while I was there, but he would presumably have to add me to the insurance as a named driver and I don't know whether that would be possible. Has anyone out there had any similar experience of this problem? Any advice would be welcome.

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

Mike Leco — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 20:24:13 GMT

You can certainly buy a car in the US, and you can probably register the car and drive it in the US.

I can tell you that it is certainly possible for you to use your aunt's or uncle's address as your permanent residence in the USA. I cannot tell you if it is legal to use your aunt's or uncle's address. That is a question for a lawyer or a judge to answer.

I guess that it would be difficult for anyone to prove that this is not legal. If you say that It is your intention to live with your aunt while you are in the USA, and she agrees that you can live with her, how can anyone prove that it is not true? I think that would probably make her address your legal permanent residence in the state. Of course, I am not a lawyer or a judge, so I cannot definitely tell you what is legal.

If you are only 18 years old, it may be difficult to find insurance. When you do find an insurer, they will charge you a very high price.

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

Alex — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:47:24 GMT

Hi to all,

first of all thanks to Mike for all this helpful information...

I'm an US citizen (with Passport and Social Security Number) living in Germany. I have never lived permanently in the US, but my mom originates from Indiana (she lived there for about 25 years until she moved to Germany).
I'm an 18-year-old student finishing school in summer 2010, and my friends and I are planning on travelling by car around the US - maybe also Canada and Mexiko.

So my question is: Does anybody know if I can buy a car in the US?
If I can't buy a car would it be possible (and legal) to put down the address of one of my aunts or uncles? I mean their family, right? And we would spent a long time at their places.

Thanking you in anticipation (and I hope my English isn't too bad),

Alex

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

Steve G — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 09:30:25 GMT

Thanks for responding to my 2 posts.

re Visa's - you are correct about UK citizens visting the states. The UK has an arrangement with the US (Visa Waiver Programme), whereby UK citizens can visit the US for 90 days max without a formal visa in their passports. They must however have proof of a return ticket, before they are allowed through immigration. Since we intend to visit the US at 6 monthly intervals, over a period of years, we are currently exploring our best options for this "return ticket" requirement, so that we don't have immigration problems.

We are not sure either whether we have to return to the UK every 6 months, before a re-visit to the US, but are currently working on the premise that leaving the US to go to Canada every 6 months is sufficient - we'll get more info when we attend out visa interview in London later this year.

Again, thanks for the useful info.

Steve G

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

Mike Leco — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 20:41:46 GMT

It sounds like you have researched this matter fairly well.

Technically, your sister-in-law's address in Florida is not your permanent residence, but you could probably make a good argument that this is your permanent home or base of operations while you are visiting the USA. As long as your sister-in-law is willing to corroborate your story, It might be sufficient to register your truck in Florida.

There should be no problem taking the vehicle across the border into Canada. As long as you have the proper registration papers and insurance, it should not be difficult. Numerous US registered vehicles cross the border into Canada and numerous Canadian registered vehicles cross into the USA every day. You should verify that your insurance coverage will be valid in Canada. Most insurance is valid for short trips into Canada, but you are taking an extended sojurn.

Check the visa requirements. I believe, you can come to the USA for 90 days without a visa. I believe you can extend it to 6 months with little difficulty. I don't know if there is any requirement for you to return to your homeland before you can return to the USA?

Re: Buying a Car to Drive in the USA

Michelle Leco — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 16:57:29 GMT

Hi Steve,

It sounds like you are in for an experience of a lifetime!

Unfortunately I cannot give you an absolute answer to your question. But I would guess that the border guards are more interested in the contents of the vehicle (passengers with legal documents, no illigal materials) than the vehicle itself.

But since you will be traveling with British Passports and driving a Florida vehicle, you may be asked about it's ownership. Some rental cars are obvious. Some are not. The border guard may assume that your car is a rental, if it is a newer model.

To be certain I suggest checking the official US and Canadian sites for the border.

Here's the US site for non-citizens. http://www.customs.ustreas.gov/xp/cgov/travel/id_visa/

And here's their FAQ page. http://www.customs.ustreas.gov/xp/cgov/toolbox/questions/

Hre's the Canadian site for non-citizens. http://cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/travel-voyage/visitors-eng.html

And their FAQ http://cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/travel-voyage/faqs-eng.html

If you don't find an answer on their sites, they do each have a contact us page. Good luck!

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