The most effective way that we have found of shipping has been to ship by Air with Delta. This will almost always be the way a boat is shipped unless other arrangements are sorted out. The boats are built in Canada which means that there are a few extra considerations to the shipping. Under current regulations kayaks are a duty free item. There are still procedures that need to be followed though to get them into the country.

 Customs must be cleared one of two ways. The item that is being sent is either cleared by a broker before it crosses the border, or it is cleared by customs when it arrives where it is going in the US. The latter is the case with most of our shipments. Under this situation the shipment is what is called "in bond" which means that even though it is in possession of the carrier (like Delta) it is technically still in the possession of the Customs agency of the US.

So when your kayak is unloaded off the plane and is sitting at the airport in your city it is still considered to be in the possession of customs until it is "cleared".

When customs "clears" your shipment, it means that they are satisfied that there are no duties due, that there are no drugs, animals, artifacts, guns, etc in the shipment. You may then get your boat.

Before your kayak arrives you will be given the "waybill number" This is the number that you will need to check with the air (or ground) carrier to see if your kayak has arrived yet. Also attached to the paperwork that is sent with your kayak is an invoice showing the value of it. The one other item that will be in the paperwork is a "(NAFTA) Certificate of Origin" this a simple one page document that must be sent with the shipment and you don't need to worry about it.

When your boat arrives either you will have either called the air carrier by now with the waybill # to see if it has arrived, or they will have contacted you to tell you that they have your shipment there "in bond"

Now what?

You call the customs office a list of the customs telephone numbers is here at the customs web site. Ask for a "Clearance Officer". Have your waybill # handy and tell them that you have a kayak at the terminal that you would like to get out of bond. They will ask you questions like, is it your personal boat (yes), what is it worth (the value of the invoice, under $2000), is it new (yes), where is it from (Toronto Canada). You can also tell them that the shipper told you what the H.S. # is. That # is 8905905000. The H.S. is a number that describes this commodity and describes it as a small floating craft that is free of import duty.

You may also need to have your social security # handy

Then one of a few things will happen depending on the person you are lucky or unlucky enough to get on the other end of the phone.

1. They will either clear it right there over the phone and you can go straight to the airport and pick up the boat without any hassle. {likely }

2. They will tell you that you need to bring the paperwork to them. (also likely} If this happens don't sweat. It means that they don't know what to do and they would rather have you there to cut a big fat check to help with the national debt if that is what the book tells them they can do. You will just have to go there and fill out a form 3461. This is what the form looks like. If it seems that the phone is getting handed off to several people that are telling your conflicting things about your shipment tell them that you do know (and emphasize) that it is an "informal entry" and there is no duty on this type of item.

3. They may tell you that they need to inspect the shipment. {this has never happened yet but it could} If this happens forget about getting your boat until the following day unless you called early in the morning and can come later in the day to deal with it.

Here are some additional pointers about customs people and customs in General.

Any shipment that is under $2000 is what is called an "informal entry". Any shipment over $2000 is what is called a "formal entry" An "informal entry" can be cleared by you following the procedure above. A "formal entry" can only be cleared by a licensed broker who is the equivalent of a bail bondsman that is putting up a bond as insurance that all duties will be taken care of. These are terms that you will need to know. If you are being told that you need a broker you need to reemphasize that your shipment is an "informal entry."

Deal with your phone calls in the morning if you want to get your boat that day. While Delta is very helpful and has generous hours, the customs office has limited hours and you don't know whom you are going to get. Customs offices typically close at 4pm and stop clearing shipments after 3pm.

One piece of advice that I got from one broker is that they (customs) start off hard nosed in the morning and eases up in the afternoon. My advice is that you will want to start working on everything early in the day anyway to make sure it goes smooth if you are traveling from out of town.

Some of the people at customs are stellar and will be very helpful and informative. Others unfortunately are the opposite. It is the luck of the draw who you get. If you are hitting a brick wall try calling a little later and you may get someone else. If you are driving a great distance to clear your boat and get it the same day it is worth your while to call ahead to customs. They have been understanding in the past for me when I have had to drive 2 hours to get there.

All shipments of single boats have been cleared by the customer smoothly and you shouldn't have any problem.