Key Of Grey

Photo courtesy of Drake Goodman

February 17th, 2010 - This is just a quick tip for Canadians out there who are tempted by the super low prices of music gear and instruments in the US. I’ve bought a lot of stuff off of Ebay, and since Vancouver is very close to the US border, I am connected to a service that allows me to ship whatever I buy to a US address, so I can pick it up at my leisure. This allows me to (a) save money on brokerage, (b) take advantage of within the US free shipping, and (c) fill up the gas in my car at 2/3s the price; all on top of the money I’m saving even when duties, taxes, and the exchange rate are taken into consideration.

One thing US Customs has implemented within the last couple years, is a fee for Canadians coming into the US to “conduct business”. This means that if you are picking up some music gear in the US to add to your studio business, you’ll have to pay this fee. A couple of times, I’ve been asked a lot of questions about what I was picking up. Once was for a Sony PCM-D50 and the other was for a Vestax PMC-05 Pro II I recently purchased.

Since music is no longer my business, but a hobby, the business fee does not apply. However, both times the line of questioning went into what I do with the gear, and if I “gig” with them. The first time was with the digital recorder, and the border agent asked if I could make money with it. I mistakenly said that I guess I could even though I had no plans to use it to make money, only to record sounds that I found interesting.

He went onto a diatribe about lying, and how there was a several hundred dollar fine for misleading him even though I had done nothing of the sort, and didn’t even know about the fee since it had be instituted that week. As I went into the office to pay the fee, the agent across from him asked if I had tried to lie. Neither of those agents work at the crossing anymore (yes, I recognize the agents who work there), as I suspect other people were equally bemused and complained.

When I went to pick up the Vestax mixer, the border agent was cordial, but tried to lead me with his questions into saying that the mixer was for business. This time, I was prepared and stuck to my guns. As I’ve written before I’m not even a DJ, I bought the gear to learn.

If it sounds like I’m against the border agents, I’m not. My mother was both a customs and immigration officer for almost 20 years. I know how they work, and what power they hold. Just like in any job where there’s a lot of power, some people like to be pricks. I do not condone lying to the border agents, that is illegal and the fines are substantial. If you are buying something for your business, you must tell them. However, if it’s not for your business and you’re a hobbyist, do not get lead into saying otherwise.