Bringing Your Car Into A New Province Or Territory
Posted on: 11 August 2015
Moving to a new province or territory comes with a few challenges. You will need to learn the rules of the road in the new area. You will also need to know how to transfer your license, deal with insurance requirements, and register your vehicle.
Learn the New Rules
When you move to a new province or territory, it's important you learn how the new area treats car ownership and driving in general. This is an important step since each area can have widely different laws and regulations from one another.
For example, if you have a child, the law in BC is you must use a booster seat until the child is nine. However, Alberta has no booster seat requirement at all. These little discrepancies can make a large difference.
Start with the Government
To figure out what you need to do with your car before or immediately after a move, check with the new area's department of transportation. From there you can figure out what you have to do as far as registration, inspection, insurance requirements and any other step to ensure you're driving legally.
This isn't something you should wait to do. There's typically some kind of time limit involved with registering your car and switching over your license.
Penalties for waiting too long can range from having to take a driving test to losing your driving privilege. It's also possible you'll find yourself on the wrong side of the law if you continue driving without registering your car or changing your license.
What You Should Have
No matter what area you're moving to, it's best to make sure that you have all the documentation you need to make the transition for your vehicle a smooth one. You're going to need to transfer your license and see to your insurance before you can register your vehicle.
License transfer – To transfer your license, you will usually need your current license, proof of your new address, and a secondary identification. This can vary, so make sure to see what the department of transportation has to say about the full process.
Insurance changes – Insurance companies may not like covering you in an entirely different area. Make sure you to speak to your insurance company to see what they recommend. Even if you plan to keep your insurance carrier, make sure you inform them of the move.
The new province may have some slightly different insurance requirements. Keep your insurance information with you at all times.
The Process of Registering Your Vehicle
There's no one way of going about car registration since the process can vary widely between areas. However, many of the same general rules apply. So if you registered your car before, then you should have some idea as to what's required of you.
A good general rule for the process is to make sure you have the bill of sale, license plate, inspection certificate, and anything else that came with the car's previous registration. If in doubt, check with the transportation department and ask a registry in Calgary or whatever new area you have moved to.
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