Importing my car to Washington, DC

[jjhko]

Hello,

I have read some of the threads on importing my vehicle and wanted to get some clarifications on the details:

My Circumstance:

I am a Canadian citizen moving to Washington, DC in Aug 2009 from Ontario to start grad studies for the next two years. I will be driving down myself to DC with my 2004 Acura TSX. Since I will be in DC for more than a year, I have gotten the confirmation letter from American Honda stating the EPA and FMVSS compliance.

I will also be bringing with me a copy of my bill of sale for my car (I financed it and it is now fully paid for), Ontario vehicle registration, and current Ontario car insurance papers.

My Questions:

1) In my American Honda letter, it states that my vehicle complies to EPA emission standards but does not have U.S. EPA emissions labels. Will this be a problem?

2) In my American Honda letter, it states that my vehicle complies to US Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards except for labeling requirements, which include instrument panel differences. Again will this be a problem? I'm hoping that I won't need to make any physical modifications to my car.

3) I will declare that the car is for personal use so I'm not expecting to pay any duties or fees at the border

4) Do I need to bring any other forms or documentations other than the ones I've mentioned? In the cbp.gov site, it mentions that I need to fill out a 3520-1 (EPA) and HS-7 (DOT) forms. Necessary? I saw a link to a CBP for 7501 and I wasn't sure if I needed to fill one out since I'm importing it myself.


5) Should I get my DC license plate right away or better to keep my Ontario plates for the first year?


I realize these are a lot of questions, so thanks in advance for your help. I just want to make sure I have all my ducks in a row before I get to the border

Cheers,
John.

[Steven]

Read this thread: Bringing a Canadian Car over to the USA