MetEx House, 496a Great West Road, Hounslow, Middlesex, TW5 0TE  ·  Shipping since 1998
0800 096 38 39
🗻 & ✈ Shipping to Canada • UK’s Canada specialists • Since 1998

Shipping to Canada from the UK
Luggage, personal effects & household goods — by air or sea

Everything you need to ship to Canada in one place. We collect from your door anywhere in the UK, prepare the CBSA Form BSF186 customs paperwork, and deliver to Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Calgary and beyond. Air freight in 4–8 working days, or economical sea freight in roughly 3–7 weeks, subject to space and flight availability with the carriers. These sea transit times are approximate — the actual time depends on when your LCL container finishes loading and consolidating, the vessel’s sailing date and route, any transhipment hub before the final destination, and customs clearance, so please allow a week or two either side. Shipping to Canada since 1998.

Get a quote 📞 0800 096 38 39

After shipping personal effects to Canada since 1998, we’ve learned that a smooth CBSA clearance comes down to one thing above all: declaring everything — including the goods that arrive after you — on the right form, at the border, on the day you land. Get that right and settler and former-resident relief brings your belongings in duty- and tax-free; miss an item off the list and it can be taxed when it arrives. This guide brings together everything that actually matters for a UK–Canada move.

Every way we ship to Canada

Not sure which service you need? Start here — each links to full details, transit times and what’s included.

How shipping to Canada works, step by step

1
Quote & book

Tell us what you’re sending and where. We’ll give you a clear quote up front.

2
Door collection

We collect from your address anywhere in the UK. No need to get anything to a depot or the airport.

3
Pack & list

Goods are export-packed and we help you prepare the itemised list for your BSF186, split into goods accompanying you and goods to follow.

4
Ship by air or sea

Air freight from Heathrow, or consolidated sea freight to your nearest Canadian port.

5
Declare & clear

You declare your full list to CBSA on arrival; the stamped BSF186 lets us clear your shipment duty-free when it lands.

6
Delivery or collection

Your goods are delivered to the Canadian address, or ready to collect from the arrival depot.

Form BSF186 and the settler / former-resident rules

Canada lets you bring your used personal and household effects in free of duty and tax — but the paperwork has to be done at the border, on arrival.

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Form BSF186 (Personal Effects Accounting Document), with the BSF186A list sheet, is where you declare your goods. A CBSA officer stamps it on arrival and gives you a file number that clears your shipment. We help you prepare it.
Settlers (moving to Canada to live for the first time, for 12 months or more) import goods duty- and tax-free if owned, possessed and used abroad before arrival — no minimum ownership period. Former residents returning to Canada get the same relief on goods owned and used for at least six months.
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Declare everything on arrival — including goods to follow. You must list your whole shipment when you first land, even the container that hasn’t arrived yet. Anything not on the original stamped list can be taxed when it lands. There’s no time limit to bring in listed goods to follow.
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What’s still assessed: new items still in packaging, anything worth over CAN$10,000 each (tax applies to the amount over), and goods you sell or give away within 12 months of import (the exempted duty/tax becomes payable). Alcohol and tobacco fall under normal traveller limits.

Read the full Canadian customs guide ›

What CBSA restricts — and what slows shipments down

Alongside the duty rules, CBSA and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) restrict certain goods and inspect shipments. Declaring honestly and packing sensibly keeps clearance quick.

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Food, plants & wood: most foods, plants, seeds, soil and some untreated wood or plant-based items are restricted by the CFIA. Clean outdoor and garden items and leave food and plants out.
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Firearms & weapons have strict rules — declare and check requirements well before shipping. Vehicles must also meet Transport Canada / RIV admissibility, which is separate from the customs relief.
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List what everything is and note serial numbers for high-value electronics, jewellery and instruments — it speeds clearance and protects your duty-free claim.
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When in doubt, declare it. Everything is subject to CBSA inspection, and declaring is free — failing to declare restricted goods can mean penalties, delays or seizure.

What we see most often — and how to avoid it

Most UK–Canada shipments clear without drama. The ones that don’t nearly always come down to the same short list of things:

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Forgetting to list goods to follow. The single most common — and most expensive — mistake. If your shipping container isn’t on the BSF186 you stamp at the border, it can be taxed when it lands. List everything on day one.
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Settler vs former resident. The relief and the rules differ. New arrivals (settlers) don’t need a minimum ownership period; returning former residents do. We make sure your paperwork matches your status.
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Brand-new purchases for the move. Items still boxed and unused may not qualify as personal effects and can attract duty. Ship what you’ve owned and used.
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East coast vs west coast. Toronto and Montreal clear via eastern ports; Vancouver and the west take longer by sea. We’ll route and time it around where you’re actually landing.

What a move to Canada actually looks like

An illustrative example of a common scenario — your quote is always to your exact shipment.

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A family relocating to Toronto as new permanent residents with the contents of a two-bed flat — furniture, boxes and books — would typically go by shared-container sea freight to the Port of Montreal, then overland to Toronto. We’d collect from their door, export-pack, and help prepare the BSF186 list split into accompanying goods and goods to follow. Transit is usually in the 3–7 week range door-to-door, and with the list declared at the border the goods clear CBSA duty-free. Anything urgent — documents, a laptop, a few essentials — goes ahead by air so it’s there when they land.

Door-to-door to every major Canadian city

We ship to every province and territory. Here are our most popular destinations — each with local delivery detail, arrival ports and transit times:

Which is right for your move?

Air freight suits a few boxes, urgent items or anything you need within a week or two — 4–8 working days, priced on weight and size. Sea freight suits volume — a room, a family’s contents or a whole home — at a fraction of the per-kilo cost, over roughly 3–7 weeks door-to-door. Many customers split the two: air for the essentials, sea for the rest.

Moving-to-Canada shipping guide ›

Shipping to Canada — your questions answered

Should I ship my belongings or pay the airline for extra bags? +
For anything beyond one or two extra bags, shipping is usually cheaper than airline excess-baggage fees — and you’re not lugging the weight through the airport. We collect from your door, ship door-to-door and help with the CBSA paperwork.
How long does it take? +
Air freight is typically 4–8 working days to the arrival airport, plus clearance. Sea freight is typically 3–7 weeks door-to-door depending on whether you’re landing in eastern Canada or on the west coast, plus customs clearance.
Will I pay duty? +
Used personal and household effects you owned and used abroad can usually clear duty- and tax-free under BSF186 — as a settler or a returning former resident. New items, items over CAN$10,000 each, and goods sold within 12 months are assessed.
What paperwork do I need? +
An itemised list of everything (split into goods with you and goods to follow), a copy of your passport/immigration document, and Form BSF186. We help you prepare these and match them to your settler or former-resident status.
Do I have to arrive before my shipment? +
Yes — for settler and former-resident relief you declare your full list to CBSA on arrival, before or as your goods land. Items not on the original stamped list may be charged duty and tax.
Can I send electrical items? +
Yes — electricals and appliances are fine to ship. Canada uses the same 120V/plug standard as the US, so UK items may need a transformer or replacing.
Is my shipment insured? +
We offer marine transit cover — we’ll explain the options and cost when we quote. We always recommend cover for a long-haul move.
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Lak Kharod, Director
Excess Luggage Co. • overseeing UK–Canada shipping since 1998 • MetEx House, Hounslow, next to Heathrow

Excess Luggage Co. has shipped personal effects, luggage and household goods from the UK to Canada for over 28 years — through our own Heathrow-side warehouse and collection fleet. We know this route, its eastern and western ports, and exactly what CBSA looks for. For a quote or advice on what to pack, call us on 0800 096 38 39.

Ready to ship to Canada?

Tell us what you’re sending and where it’s going. We’ll come back with a quote and a realistic transit-time estimate — before you commit to anything.