Buying a Car as an Immigrant in Canada
Buying a Car as an Immigrant in Canada
Posted on March 8, 2021
Canada is one of the most popular places to emigrate to in the world. It’s stable, has a vibrant economy, sensible government, immigrant-friendly policies and an inclusive culture. It is a car-centre culture though, so if you move here, you’ll need a car.
Our Waterford car loan team has been assisting some newcomers to Canada with this very thing, which prompted this blog post.
Buying a car as an Immigrant in Canada
Our cities have excellent public transit but once you venture further afield, you’re going to need a car. That’s an inescapable fact when you live somewhere as vast as Canada.
You will need:
- A Canada driver’s licence
- Car insurance
- Vehicle registration
You need a driver’s licence and the vehicle registration to get insurance and will need insurance to be able to drive the car away from the dealership. Fortunately, insurance and registration can be accessed at the same time.
Canada driver’s licence
You’ll need a Canada’s driver’s licence to drive here once you’re no longer a tourist. You can apply using your existing driving licence if you have one and get credit for that experience.
You will need your Canadian Citizenship card, a letter from the driving licence administration in your country stating how long you have been driving and proof of ID.
If you don’t want to get your G-licence, you can skip the letter and get a G2 licence instead.
Car insurance
It is a legal requirement to insure all cars in Canada. You will need your driver’s licence and the vehicle registration in order to get insurance. Fortunately, our system is a lot like international systems where you can buy the car and access insurance at the same time or get temporary insurance to cover you until you get your full policy.
We recommend getting the full insurance cover as soon as you buy the car. You will know the make, model, mileage and registration number. All essential information for your insurer.
Vehicle registration
Vehicle registration is also a legal requirement. You need to register as the owner of the vehicle as soon as you have bought it. You will need your driver’s licence number (RIN), proof of insurance, the pink slip for the car and the licence plate number.
If you’re buying from Car Nation Canada, we can help with the registration as part of the sale.
Car loans as a newcomer to Canada
If you have just arrived in Canada, you won’t be able to access a car loan as you won’t have a credit history. Even though you may have a spotless credit history in your home country, it doesn’t travel.
You’re going to have to start from scratch and build your credit history all over again. We cover how to do that in other blog posts.
That means, to begin with at least, you’re going to need to pay cash for your car. It’s something every immigrant has to do in any country you emigrate to. While the credit bureaus are international, credit histories are not. They are unique to the country they were created in.
When you have a credit history and a credit score, then we can help you with a car loan. In the meantime, check out our dealerships for fantastic new and used cars at very competitive prices!
Contact Unique Chrysler for help, advice and competitive Waterford car finance.
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