Moving from the UK to Ontario

Stu · March 14th, 2008, 12:29

Hi there,
I'm sorry to bother you all but I am hoping that if I post my question on here then I can get clarification on what I believe to be true, although I'm kind of hoping that I'm wrong to be honest.
I kind of asked this question on here a while back (probably jumping the gun a bit - parden the pun) and I got some great advice. However, I know that the law can sometimes change for the better over time and so I was hoping for up to date comments.

Within the next 12 months I am hoping to emigrate from the UK to Ontario, along with my Wife and 2 young children. I have been Airsofting (in the UK) for nearly 20 years and enjoy it very much.
As you can imagine I own a few Electric Rifles, Gas Blowback Pistols and a couple of spring bolt action Rifles. All of my guns shoot below 328 fps (the max for the UK). I also have a chinese Claymore Mine (Bought from rsov) and a number of magazines, lasers and combat vests etc.

When I move to Canada I would like to be able to bring as much of this stuff over as is possible.
I suspect that my moving company will have no idea as to where I stand with the above so I was hoping you might be able to help me.

My worst case scenario (unless you tell me otherwise) is that I can legally pack up and take everything except the actual guns. Not sure about the Claymore mine ?
How might I label the boxes up ?
If I simply put Airsoft stuff (No guns) would that be enough for Customs ?
If you feel I could take the guns as long as I placed some type of legal description of what they are with them then where could I get such information ? Long shot but worth asking I think.
Would I need some information to include in with the mags, scopes, lasers etc ?

As much as I would love to hear that I can take my guns I suspect you will confirm what I suspect to be true, in that I can't.
What do you think about the spring operated Claymore mine and the rest of the items I have mentioned (other than the actual guns) ?

Any comments would be well recieved. One day I would love to play Airsoft in Ontario. It would be nice if I didn't have to build up my kit from scratch.

Kind Regards,

Stu

Mud Gunner · March 14th, 2008, 12:59

Well I hate to be the bearer of bad news but you will likely be out of your on transporting all your guns for sure. Airsoft has not evolved to the point it has in the UK (nice job done over there by the way). Best advice I can think to give you is to sell it all off and buy again here. Customs will likely seize it all upon discovery

Good news is Ontario has a strong and healthy airsoft community, can replace some of your collection fairly quickly I can imagine!

Best of luck on the move.

AngelusNex · March 14th, 2008, 13:11

Gear and accessories are ok, but you'll need to sell all your guns and buy new upon arrival. (probably need to sell the claymore as well)

Yorkie · March 14th, 2008, 13:16

Be prepared to have less guns than you have right now though! Bloody expensive over here.

I'm a Brit as well, been over here since '99, if there's any questions you need answered, etc. etc. then let me know.

Where in Ontario are you moving to?

Cheers,

Yorkie.

Stu · March 14th, 2008, 13:21

If I put my Assault vests, camo clothes, scopes, magazines, lasers, holsters etc in a box for my shipping company to send to Canada, how do you think I should mark this box up ?
Nothing in the box would be illegal (in my opinion) although I've read on this forum some interesting comments about importing magazines.
The mags I have most of are M4 (300 round) and SIG (High caps and low caps).

Stu · March 14th, 2008, 13:22

Yorkie, I would be aiming for Peterborough.

kalnaren · March 14th, 2008, 13:24

If the SiG lowcaps have fake bullets they won't make it over.

skalnok · March 14th, 2008, 13:31

if your lucky you could find some1 who imports airsoft guns to canada and get them to import yours for you. ( i think)

Stu · March 14th, 2008, 19:25

I do have quite a few Sig mags with fake bullets in so I guess they will have to stay behind.
What about the rest of my stuff ?
M4 high cap mags, scopes, lasers, Assault vests, camo clothes, perhaps even a few bags of BBs.
Would this stuff be ok with customs ?
What should I put on the box ? Would 'Airsoft equipment' confuse the customs guys ? I guess I could say 'paintball equipment' if that might be more acceptable to them or just include the stuff in with the kids toys and class them all as toys.

Sha Do · March 14th, 2008, 19:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stu

I do have quite a few Sig mags with fake bullets in so I guess they will have to stay behind.
What about the rest of my stuff ?
M4 high cap mags, scopes, lasers, Assault vests, camo clothes, perhaps even a few bags of BBs.
Would this stuff be ok with customs ?
What should I put on the box ? Would 'Airsoft equipment' confuse the customs guys ? I guess I could say 'paintball equipment' if that might be more acceptable to them or just include the stuff in with the kids toys and class them all as toys.

Yeah, sell any estetic mags....or they WILL get seized by the the boys at customs (and you'll be flaged by them for future import/exports). As for the rest of your list, label it as 'paintball equip' and you should have no problems. The BBs.....all good with customs, but ship them in a seperat box from the 'paintball equip', otherwise you might confuse customs a little more than you'd like. Nothing beats having your stuff held up at customs for 30 plus days because the contents is "questionable".

BTW; good luck with your move, and hope to see you at the games.
SHA DO

TokyoSeven · March 14th, 2008, 19:35

Put your Camo and vests in a box and mark it clothing.
After all it is just things you wear.

Crunchmeister · March 14th, 2008, 19:37

What you're not allowed to import:

Complete guns
lower or upper receivers (depending on where the serial # is on the real steel)
pistol frames
grenades
grenade lanchers & shells
any magazine with fake bullets
sound supressors

I THINK that's if, but may be forgetting something. Anyway, that's a pretty good list of what you can't bring in.

List your gear as paintball equipment, and pack the BBs separately from that stuff, and you're good to go.

The Saint · March 14th, 2008, 19:46

How much stuff are you bringing over? Any chance that you're shipping stuff by freight container?

If you can disassemble your SIG mags and take the bullet inserts out, they won't be an issue.

Danke · March 14th, 2008, 20:05

Mark the gear "silky knickers & suspender belts" and the customs crew won't touch the boxes.

Stu · March 14th, 2008, 20:15

Thanks for all the comments guys. Very much appreciated.
To answer the Saints question, we would probably have all our possessions in a 20ft container including kids toys, clothing, photos, my tools, camping stuff etc.

Would listing it as 'paintball equipment' be more acceptable than 'airsoft equipment' in the eyes of the customs guys ?

On a seperate point, do you think it might be possible for me to get permission to be able to have a look at the For Sale section of the forums ?
Obviously I'm not in a position to buy but I would be interested to see what people are selling on there and get an idea on prices.
It's a bit hard to age verify me when I'm on the other side of the pond but perhaps someone could grant me limited access just to be able to look.

Once again, thanks for your helpful comments.
One day I hope to be able to thank you all in person.

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March 14th, 2008, 12:29	#1
Stu Trader rating Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: England	Moving from the UK to Ontario Hi there, I'm sorry to bother you all but I am hoping that if I post my question on here then I can get clarification on what I believe to be true, although I'm kind of hoping that I'm wrong to be honest. I kind of asked this question on here a while back (probably jumping the gun a bit - parden the pun) and I got some great advice. However, I know that the law can sometimes change for the better over time and so I was hoping for up to date comments. Within the next 12 months I am hoping to emigrate from the UK to Ontario, along with my Wife and 2 young children. I have been Airsofting (in the UK) for nearly 20 years and enjoy it very much. As you can imagine I own a few Electric Rifles, Gas Blowback Pistols and a couple of spring bolt action Rifles. All of my guns shoot below 328 fps (the max for the UK). I also have a chinese Claymore Mine (Bought from rsov) and a number of magazines, lasers and combat vests etc. When I move to Canada I would like to be able to bring as much of this stuff over as is possible. I suspect that my moving company will have no idea as to where I stand with the above so I was hoping you might be able to help me. My worst case scenario (unless you tell me otherwise) is that I can legally pack up and take everything except the actual guns. Not sure about the Claymore mine ? How might I label the boxes up ? If I simply put Airsoft stuff (No guns) would that be enough for Customs ? If you feel I could take the guns as long as I placed some type of legal description of what they are with them then where could I get such information ? Long shot but worth asking I think. Would I need some information to include in with the mags, scopes, lasers etc ? As much as I would love to hear that I can take my guns I suspect you will confirm what I suspect to be true, in that I can't. What do you think about the spring operated Claymore mine and the rest of the items I have mentioned (other than the actual guns) ? Any comments would be well recieved. One day I would love to play Airsoft in Ontario. It would be nice if I didn't have to build up my kit from scratch. Kind Regards, Stu

March 14th, 2008, 12:59	#2
Mud Gunner Trader rating Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Edmonton	Well I hate to be the bearer of bad news but you will likely be out of your on transporting all your guns for sure. Airsoft has not evolved to the point it has in the UK (nice job done over there by the way). Best advice I can think to give you is to sell it all off and buy again here. Customs will likely seize it all upon discovery Good news is Ontario has a strong and healthy airsoft community, can replace some of your collection fairly quickly I can imagine! Best of luck on the move. __________________ Proud owner of a pile of airsoft guns and kit with the credit card bills to prove it!

March 14th, 2008, 19:35	#11
TokyoSeven Red Wine & Adderall Trader rating Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Saskatoon, SK	Put your Camo and vests in a box and mark it clothing. After all it is just things you wear. __________________ "Its only a little bit on fire"

March 14th, 2008, 13:11	#3
AngelusNex formerly Sepulcrum Trader rating Join Date: May 2007 Location: Kingston,ON, aka Funkasia	Gear and accessories are ok, but you'll need to sell all your guns and buy new upon arrival. (probably need to sell the claymore as well)

March 14th, 2008, 13:16	#4
Yorkie Trader rating Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Brampton, Ontario	Be prepared to have less guns than you have right now though! Bloody expensive over here. I'm a Brit as well, been over here since '99, if there's any questions you need answered, etc. etc. then let me know. Where in Ontario are you moving to? Cheers, Yorkie.

March 14th, 2008, 13:21	#5
Stu Trader rating Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: England	If I put my Assault vests, camo clothes, scopes, magazines, lasers, holsters etc in a box for my shipping company to send to Canada, how do you think I should mark this box up ? Nothing in the box would be illegal (in my opinion) although I've read on this forum some interesting comments about importing magazines. The mags I have most of are M4 (300 round) and SIG (High caps and low caps).

March 14th, 2008, 13:22	#6
Stu Trader rating Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: England	Yorkie, I would be aiming for Peterborough.

March 14th, 2008, 19:25	#9
Stu Trader rating Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: England	I do have quite a few Sig mags with fake bullets in so I guess they will have to stay behind. What about the rest of my stuff ? M4 high cap mags, scopes, lasers, Assault vests, camo clothes, perhaps even a few bags of BBs. Would this stuff be ok with customs ? What should I put on the box ? Would 'Airsoft equipment' confuse the customs guys ? I guess I could say 'paintball equipment' if that might be more acceptable to them or just include the stuff in with the kids toys and class them all as toys.

March 14th, 2008, 19:37	#12
Crunchmeister Trader rating Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: In your bedroom going though your underwear drawer	What you're not allowed to import: Complete guns lower or upper receivers (depending on where the serial # is on the real steel) pistol frames grenades grenade lanchers & shells any magazine with fake bullets sound supressors I THINK that's if, but may be forgetting something. Anyway, that's a pretty good list of what you can't bring in. List your gear as paintball equipment, and pack the BBs separately from that stuff, and you're good to go. __________________

March 14th, 2008, 19:46	#13
The Saint Trader rating Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Quebec	How much stuff are you bringing over? Any chance that you're shipping stuff by freight container? If you can disassemble your SIG mags and take the bullet inserts out, they won't be an issue. __________________ "The Bird of Hermes is My Name, Eating My Wings to Make Me Tame."

March 14th, 2008, 20:05	#14
Danke Prancercise Guru Trader rating Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Danger Zone	Mark the gear "silky knickers & suspender belts" and the customs crew won't touch the boxes.

March 14th, 2008, 20:15	#15
Stu Trader rating Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: England	Thanks for all the comments guys. Very much appreciated. To answer the Saints question, we would probably have all our possessions in a 20ft container including kids toys, clothing, photos, my tools, camping stuff etc. Would listing it as 'paintball equipment' be more acceptable than 'airsoft equipment' in the eyes of the customs guys ? On a seperate point, do you think it might be possible for me to get permission to be able to have a look at the For Sale section of the forums ? Obviously I'm not in a position to buy but I would be interested to see what people are selling on there and get an idea on prices. It's a bit hard to age verify me when I'm on the other side of the pond but perhaps someone could grant me limited access just to be able to look. Once again, thanks for your helpful comments. One day I hope to be able to thank you all in person.

Moving from the UK to Ontario

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