I am a Canadian, do I need a passport to go down?

Question

to the USA, we only live a few miles away from the border, with our dollar soring to 1.05 to the USAs dollar, it only makes sence to buy a lot of things in the States. This is how different prices are> a car bought in Canada would cost>24,000 in the States it would cost 17,000. Another one a crochet book in Canada is 29,00 American price 17.00
This is actally two Questions.
Do I need a passport?
What do you think about the differences?
I was actually in Micheals Craft store and they were still charging 29.99 for the Crochet book.
Our food still costs more. I'm a we lot angry about this.
God bless.

Answer 1

By car, you do not need a passport yet, you will after new years, but not yet, by plane, yes you do need it now.

The car thing is blown way out of proportion by the media. You need to consider many more things than sticker price. If you make payments to buy a new car, you better scrutinise your cost of borrowing closely, I have and it didn't pay off to buy in the US. If you can get 0% here, you can't at all there, and need to pay a bank's rate of 7-9%, plus, they don't want your trade in there, nor would you get a tax savings if you did trade there, you have to pay all the taxes at the border plus fees and inspections, only to possibly not have warranty for a while. Payment to buy a US car at bank rate vs buying a Canadian car at 0% actually worked out higher when i figured it out on a new Chev Impala.
But then again, I'm also a car dealer in Canada that can't adjust the cost of the cars here and frustrated just the same as the consumer is, so I may just have a little bias here ;)

Answer 2

For now, you do not need a passport to cross the border by car.
As the person above notes, once you factor in all the costs with coming down, buying and returning, you're not saving much if anything. Realize that Canadian Revenue will tax just about everything you bring back with you if you only come down for a day. The allowance get larger the longer you stay.
The real difference is taxes. Not necessarily the currency value although that does play a part. the $17 US book does not include tax, the $29.99 CD I am almost certain is inclusive of VAT.
This is the first time in a very long time that US exports were affordable to so many people and here at home, US made products are closer in price to imports. For all the negatives of the weak dollar, there are quite a few positives as well.

Answer 3

Yes, you would need a passport as you will be crossing the border. The same applies for us in the U.S. It is even more important or required since our security measures have tightened or increased after 9/11. The airport requirements to arrive on a flight here and leaving here are stricter. To be sure to catch a flight on time, be at the airport an hour early just due to check in procedures now. Also, don't feel bad about the differences in costs. The cost of living is going up all over the place practically. Gasoline is outrageous. Our electric use is going to be more costly soon here also. I hear that prescription meds are cheaper and easier to get in Canada and I hear health care is more affordable over there.

Answer 4

Dear friend,
That is depend upon the country. There is no question regarding price. Every thing depend upon that country's economy status. so it is better to get USA visa to purchase goods and go back your country. Many countries are doing such a business.You can do.The difference is not a fault of your country.