Crossing the US–Canada border in an RV

Documents: what every traveller in the rig needs

• A valid passport is the clean answer for everyone, in both directions, including children. Expired passports are the single most common turnaround.
• By land or sea, US citizens may also use a passport card, an Enhanced Driver's Licence from a participating state, or a trusted-traveller card (NEXUS, FAST, SENTRI). Flying requires an actual passport.
• Canadian citizens entering the US by land can present a passport, an Enhanced Driver's Licence or ID from a participating province, or NEXUS. Canadians do not need a visa or an ESTA for ordinary tourism.
• Travelling with a child who is not yours, or without the other parent, brings a consent letter and any custody or guardianship paperwork. Both agencies actively screen for child abduction and will ask.
• Vehicle ownership and insurance: registration for the truck and the trailer, and proof of insurance valid in the country you are entering. Confirm coverage with your insurer before you go; a Canadian non-resident insurance card is worth having when going south.
• A rented or borrowed rig needs a letter from the owner or a rental agreement that explicitly permits cross-border travel.
• Pets need a rabies vaccination certificate. Requirements for dogs entering the US have tightened in recent years, so check the current CDC dog-import rules and the CFIA rules for Canada before you leave.

Things you should simply not have in the rig

The general principle at both borders: if it is a weapon, a controlled substance, or a living thing, assume it is a problem until an official page says otherwise, and declare it rather than hope.

• Cannabis, in any form, in either direction — including product bought legally in a state or province where it is legal, CBD, edibles, and vapes. Crossing the border with it is a federal offence on both sides and can cost you entry for years.
• Handguns. Canada effectively does not admit them for tourists. Long guns can sometimes be declared and imported temporarily with the correct form and fee, but this is a paperwork exercise you complete before you arrive, not at the booth.
• Any firearm you 'forgot' about. Search the whole rig — under seats, in bay drawers, in a range bag. A single loose round found in an RV storage bay has ended trips and produced seizures and fines.
• Pepper spray and mace intended for use on people are prohibited weapons in Canada. Bear spray labelled and sold for animal defence is generally acceptable when it is genuinely for wildlife, but expect questions; leave anything labelled for personal defence at home.
• Tasers, stun guns, brass knuckles, butterfly knives, switchblades, and large-capacity magazines are prohibited in Canada regardless of state legality.
• Radar detectors, which are banned in several provinces. Fireworks. Undeclared drones in some contexts.
• Prescription medication that is not in its original labelled container, and anything narcotic without documentation. Bring a copy of the prescription and only a reasonable personal supply.

Food, firewood, and other agricultural rules

• Firewood: do not move it across the border, and in most cases do not move it far within either country. Buy it locally at your destination.
• Fresh fruit and vegetables are the most commonly seized items. Plan your groceries to run the fridge low the day you cross.
• Meat and poultry restrictions change with disease outbreaks and are stricter than most travellers expect, particularly going into Canada from the US and vice versa. Raw and home-canned goods are the riskiest.
• Plants, soil, seeds, and anything with dirt on it — including muddy boots and firewood scraps in a bay — attract secondary inspection.
• Alcohol and tobacco have duty-free personal allowances that are small. Anything above the allowance must be declared and duty paid; it is not automatically illegal, only automatically taxed.
• Declare everything on the food list even if you think it is exempt. Undeclared items turn a $0 problem into a fine.

Criminal records and admissibility

This is the surprise that catches most travellers. Canada treats impaired driving as a serious offence, and a US citizen with a DUI on their record can be found inadmissible at the border — a conviction from decades ago still counts. Remedies exist, including a Temporary Resident Permit or criminal rehabilitation, but they take time and must be arranged in advance through IRCC.

The US likewise can refuse entry to Canadians over drug offences, certain crimes of moral turpitude, and previous immigration violations, and admits a waiver process for some of them.

If anyone in your party has any conviction at all, check admissibility months before the trip rather than finding out at the booth with a trailer behind you.

How long you can stay, and what that means for boondocking

• Canadians visiting the US are typically admitted for up to six months, and days in the US also count toward US tax residency under the substantial presence test. Snowbirds should track their days.
• Americans visiting Canada are generally admitted for up to six months as well, at the officer's discretion, and the officer sets the actual date.
• Neither admission is a work permit. Remote work for an employer back home is a grey area that depends on the facts; do not volunteer a plan to work locally, and never take paid work in the country you are visiting without status.
• Provincial and Crown-land camping rules are not the same as BLM and Forest Service rules. Crown land camping in Canada is often free for residents and permitted-and-paid for non-residents in some provinces, with limits that vary province by province.
• Bring proof of onward travel, funds, and ties to home if asked. A confirmed return plan shortens the conversation.

At the booth: how to make it a two-minute stop

• Have every passport in one stack in the driver's hand, engine off, windows down, sunglasses and hats off, radio off, lights on inside at night.
• Answer the question asked, briefly and truthfully. Where are you going, how long, what are you bringing, is anyone else in the rig.
• Declare first, explain second. Voluntary declaration of a bottle of wine or a bag of apples costs nothing; being found with it costs a lot.
• Expect the officer to ask you to open the RV. Keep bays accessible and be able to say what is in each one.
• Do not joke. Not about firearms, drugs, or immigration. Officers have no discretion to treat it as a joke.
• If you are sent to secondary, it is routine for RVs. Park, go inside if asked, stay polite, and do not argue the law at the counter.

Practical things people forget

• Cell plans: your US plan may not roam in Canada, or may roam expensively. Sort a roaming add-on or a local SIM before you cross, because you will lose navigation right when you need it.
• Health insurance: provincial health coverage does not follow Canadians into the US, and US insurance rarely covers Canada. Travel medical insurance is the single cheapest risk reduction on the trip.
• Payment: tell your bank you are travelling, carry a card with no foreign-transaction fee, and keep a little local cash for provincial park kiosks and rural fuel.
• Fuel, distance, and propane are sold in litres in Canada; speed limits and road signs are metric. Reset your dashboard units before you get tired.
• Propane tanks are generally fine to carry, but valves must be closed while crossing and some tunnels and ferries prohibit them entirely.
• Roadside assistance: verify your plan covers the other country before you need a tow 200 km from anywhere.