Your household contents, your car and your dog to Canada: one list that determines everything

Canada has a generous scheme for new immigrants: as a settler — you settle for at least twelve months — your entire household contents come in tax-free, with no maximum amount. But there's one administrative condition attached that is decisive, and that many people underestimate.

The list is everything

Before departure you make two lists of all your belongings, with make, model, serial numbers where possible and estimated value. One list is what travels with you, the other is goods to follow: everything that comes later by container. On arrival you hand those lists to the customs officer, who turns them into Form BSF186 and gives you a copy.

Why that is so exacting is stated bluntly alongside: goods that arrive later are only tax-free if they were on your original list. What you forget, you simply pay import duties and tax on later — and there is no way to put it right afterwards. So take that list seriously, even if your container doesn't sail for another two months. And report to customs in person, even if everything is still to come.

Two more things that surprise. The scheme applies to items you already owned, possessed and used before arrival — there is no minimum period stated, but something you buy just before departure and have shipped straight away is explicitly excluded. And if you sell items you brought within twelve months of import, you pay the duties after all.

For alcohol and tobacco separate, small quantities apply — and those have to physically travel with you. Declaring them as goods to follow isn't possible.

Your car: the answer is no

Here Canada differs from virtually every other country, and it's the finding where most Dutch emigration sites go wrong. Transport Canada writes it itself: most vehicles sold outside the United States and Mexico cannot enter Canada. And even more explicitly: if you bought your car under normal circumstances while living abroad, you cannot import it, because it wasn't built to Canadian safety standards.

There is no exception for immigrants. The situations in which import is allowed all depend on properties of the vehicle — the most important being that the car is fifteen years or older (note: that differs from the American threshold of twenty-five years). Your status as a new permanent resident plays no part. The customs scheme for settlers only arranges that you pay no tax; it says nothing about whether the vehicle is admissible.

One apparent opening, with a catch: if you come on a temporary work or study permit, your car may come along temporarily without meeting the standards. But only you may drive it, selling isn't allowed, and if your temporary status becomes permanent, you have to export the car or have it destroyed. So whoever grows from a work permit into permanent residence is still confronted with the bill.

The practical conclusion is simple: sell the car in the Netherlands and buy something back locally. Put that in your budget as a fixed item, because in most Canadian provinces a car isn't a luxury.

Your dog or cat: easier than expected

Good news here. The Netherlands isn't on the Canadian food inspection agency's list of rabies-free countries, but it isn't on the list of high-risk countries either. So you fall into the ordinary category, and then one document suffices: a rabies vaccination certificate in English or French, issued by a licensed veterinarian, on which your animal is unambiguously identifiable and which shows that the vaccination is valid.

There is no quarantine on arrival. And Canada doesn't formally require a microchip — although your animal gets one anyway, because the Dutch side and the EU pet passport do require it. For puppies and kittens more lenient rules apply under three months, and between three and eight months there is an intermediate category for dogs.

On the Dutch side one official item is added: the NVWA legalises the passport or certificate for € 65.87 (2026 rate), and for that you make an appointment at least fourteen working days in advance. The flight itself costs around CAD 100–120 in the cabin or CAD 270–324 in the hold with Air Canada; with KLM it ranges from € 70 to € 500 depending on the route. Watch out for two practical pitfalls: Air Canada doesn't carry animals on codeshare flights, and KLM doesn't take animals in the hold on some aircraft types. So don't book on autopilot.

One address for the medical examination

Another detail that determines your planning: the medical examination that goes with your application may only be done by a doctor designated by Canada. In the whole of the Netherlands that is one address — in Amsterdam, and only on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Count on roughly € 350 to € 375 per adult for the examination with the usual tests, and know that your health insurer reimburses none of it. Plan that appointment early; it's a bottleneck you can't get around.