# Canadians ordering live fish from the US



## newdroidexp (Dec 29, 2012)

Hello everyone.

I'm looking to order some African cichlids ( peacocks) from a reputable US seller. This is after checking/comparing prices. my question is. can I order fish from the US and ship them to a US airport.then drive over from Canada and pick them up from the airport. Do I need special documents to pick up the shipment from the airport or can I just take them over the bridge back home without documents.I understand all will need to pay HST at the border and other fees.

Thanks


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## J&amp;DGuy (Feb 12, 2007)

All i know about transporting fish across has to do with live bait. You CANNOT transport live fishing bait across the border...PERIOD. As far as cichlids, I do not have any experience. I live only 10 miles from the border and still don't know. I think the best you could do is call your closest border crossing station and ask them, they WILL know the laws. Good luck and let us all know what you find out.


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## newdroidexp (Dec 29, 2012)

I believe I read something about as long as the species is not on the CITES website under ''banned species to enter Canada''' and that when crossing the border you declare that the fish are for personal aquarium hobby use only. I will still call and ask just to confirm.


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## BillD (May 17, 2005)

New regulations have come into effect, as of this month. There is a list of fish that can't be imported or can't be imported without a permit. This has more to do with food fish but there are about 16 fish on the list, including guppies. These are fish species that are known to carry infectious diseases that could endanger food fish production. We had a guy from the agency speak at our last meeting and he expects the list will be reduced to around 75 because one of the diseases is so common, it isn't particularly dangerous. Here is a link to the info http://www.inspection.gc.ca/animals/aqu ... 0536294234 . While some of the fish on the list are surprising, the vast majority of fish we keep aren't on the list.


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## 13razorbackfan (Sep 28, 2011)

I have Canadians asking me all the time about ordering from online breeders here in the states and I never know what to tell them except call the online retailer and ask if they ship to Canada. I can't imagine it being very cheap.


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## newdroidexp (Dec 29, 2012)

Thanks very much for that link. Very useful. As for the peacocks their not on the list and like I said. If its for personal use in a aquarium its fine.


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