Quote Originally Posted by kpaske View Post
OK, so i'm still a little unclear. Am I actually required to stop at Canadian customs to obtain this RIV sticker, or can I just clear US Customs, deliver the vehicle to the buyer, and let him and his broker worry about the federal RIV sticker, provincial inspection, etc?
US Customs just needs to see the pink slip and match it to the car to make sure it isn't a stolen car leaving the country.

Technically you need to have the vehicle paperwork cleared before brining it into Canada. That's the export paperwork - the RIV stuff is separate. But you may be able to get it through the border - you will have to decide to how you answer the border guard's question "purpose of your visit" and "any gifts or items you'll be leaving in Canada". If you're truthful, they may be nice and let you through or maybe not... If you lie, they could seize the car later being imported under false pretenses, very very tough to prove and unlikely to happen -

But hey, I'm wired to do risk assessments and I see things a bit differently than some people.

I'm pretty sure you can do it all the way you think you can, and make it work; and if things start going south - play dumb and ignernt...

I'm not actually an expert in this, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express once... (actually my dad works for Canada Customs so I had good insights)

So basically, I'd just have the Canadian buyer (or you) call the border crossing you are planning to cross at and ask these questions about the paperwork and see how lenient they are to procedures.

Good Luck!