Removals to Vancouver

The Sea Route From the UK to Vancouver

Once your belongings are packed and loaded in the UK, the consignment travels by sea to the Port of Vancouver, run by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority. It is Canada’s largest port and its main gateway on the Pacific, and your belongings are delivered from there to your new home.

The sea passage typically takes around 23 to 30 days. Door to door, allowing for packing, export documentation, sailing schedules, customs clearance and final delivery, most moves to Vancouver take somewhere in the region of 8 to 14 weeks. Vessel schedules and conditions at the port can move either figure, so treat them as a guide for the route rather than a fixed commitment. Your coordinator will advise on timing for your move and keep you updated as the consignment progresses.

If you would like a few things waiting for you when you arrive, a smaller air freight consignment can travel separately from the main container. It still needs to appear on your customs paperwork, so we plan it alongside the rest of the move.

Clearing Customs at the Port of Vancouver

Clearing Customs at the Port of Vancouver

When you move to Vancouver, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) allows your used household goods into Canada free of duty and tax as settler’s effects. You declare everything on Form B4 when you first arrive, listing anything travelling separately as goods to follow. Those goods are then cleared when they arrive.

What Counts as Settler’s Effects

Under CBSA Memorandum D2-2-1 on settlers’ effects, a settler is someone entering Canada to establish a residence for the first time, for at least 12 months. The definition excludes students and people coming for employment lasting 36 months or less, so it is worth confirming which applies to you before you plan the move.

To qualify, your goods must have been owned, possessed and used by you before you arrive in Canada. Anything sold or otherwise disposed of within 12 months of import becomes liable for duty. Only items you declare and list as goods to follow qualify for duty-free entry later, so the list must be complete when you land. We complete a detailed inventory on your behalf at the UK end, ready for your declaration.

Restricted and Controlled Items

Three categories need particular care on this route.

• Alcohol has a modest settler’s allowance, and anything above it attracts duty, tax and provincial levies. We cover wine collections in more detail below.
• Firearms must all be declared on arrival under CBSA firearms requirements. Although typically these don’t travel in a move from the UK.
• Cannabis is legal in Canada, but CBSA guidance on cannabis at the border is clear that bringing it into the country in any form, including CBD oils, is illegal without a permit or exemption from the Government of Canada. Again, these typically don’t form part of a UK to Canada move.

Wooden Items, Crates and Soil

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) applies two rules that matter for antique furniture, crated art and garden pieces. Under CFIA directive D-98-08 on wood packaging, crates, pallets and dunnage must be made from debarked wood, treated by an approved method and carry the IPPC mark. The crates we build in our in-house workshop for international consignments meet ISPM 15, the international standard behind these rules, using certified compliant timber.

The second rule, CFIA directive D-95-26 on soil, prohibits the import of items contaminated with soil, and inspection takes place at the first point of entry. Outdoor furniture, planters, garden tools and outdoor sculpture should be cleaned thoroughly before they are packed.

For the wider picture, including residency routes and planning your first months, read our guide to moving to Canada from the UK and our overview of Canada visa options for UK citizens.

Fine Art, Antiques and Wine in Vancouver's Climate

Vancouver is known for its rain, particularly through autumn and winter. A well-packed piece is most exposed at the handover, so we plan the unload around the weather and the building and set the delivery time with the forecast in mind. Pieces stay in their protective wrapping or crates until they are inside.

Once they are inside, we uncrate your paintings, sculptures and statues and photograph each piece as it comes out, so you have a clear record that your collection arrived exactly as it left. Those crates are built to specification in our in-house workshop, and we choose packing materials piece by piece. We choose packing materials piece by piece, such as oil-based wrapping paper to help prevent sweating and quilted paper for polished surfaces. You can read more about our fine art removals service and our guide to moving fine art and antiques to Canada.

Since 8 January 2024, Environment and Climate Change Canada requires permits for all worked elephant ivory, including personal and household effects and items made before 1975. We handle CITES documentation for items made from protected species, and identifying any ivory pieces early in planning gives the permit process the time it needs.

Wine is handled separately from the rest of your household goods. CBSA’s settlers’ effects rules allow only 1.5 litres of wine or 1.14 litres of alcohol free of duty, and larger quantities attract duty, tax and provincial or territorial levies. Those duties and taxes are calculated from an alcohol inventory recording the make, vintage, value and alcohol percentage of each wine. If you prefer, one of our crew can compile it for you.