I don't know the specific procedures at the airport in Casablanca, but I assume they're similar to arriving by ferry. I'd certainly ask Air Canada, since they'll want to make sure you're able to get your bike released. On the other hand, watch out for personnel who so much want to give you answers that they'll make something up rather than admit they don't know.

General requirements entering Morocco: the bike ownership should be in your name, and you should carry all original ownership docs. You'll need to purchase insurance valid in Morocco, which is sometimes included on an EU green card, sometimes not. Since you'll need a green card anyway, best look into this. If it's not included, purchase locally (at significant expense--I recollect about a hundred euros per month). That's about it. The Moroccan government is overly fond of its procedures and paperwork, so expect a bit of time-consuming fussing around once on the ground.

Watch out for radar traps on expressways, and carry a supply of fiches if heading south along the coast. That aside, don't fret--it's not so different from riding around at home, although cheaper, friendlier, and significantly more fun (sez I).

Oh, and when asking such questions it's sometimes helpful to give your nationality, since some rules differ depending on your passport.

Hope that's helpful.

Mark

Be aware that Air Canada's service to Casablanca is seasonal and does not operate all year round. I was in Morocco two weeks ago, and thought of sending my moto back home by AC - only to find that the next flight wasn't scheduled for several months.

Mark covered the main points in his post above. My experience with Moroccan customs (and Moroccan officials in general) has always been that they are quite polite and happy to see visitors, but you need to have the 't's crossed and the 'i's dotted on all your paperwork. In other words, make sure you have the original copy of the ownership document, a passport with at least 6 months validity remaining, your driver's licence, etc. with you when you go to clear the bike from customs.

I know you can buy insurance for Morocco at the sea ports of entry easily - it costs about €91 for one month. Hopefully you can buy it at or near the airport also, but I don't know this for sure... you might have to go into the city to get it. Don't ride without insurance (even once, from the airport to the city), there are lots and lots of police spot checks on the road.

If you are presently in Canada, send me a private message with your phone number & I'll give you a call and explain - I just got back from a month of riding there and I'm pretty up to date on the procedures.

Michael

Not at all.
Flying a motorcycle into Casa or any Moroccan airport is extremely unusual, as is shipping by sea (a much worse idea).
Airports are set up for air passengers and cargo, not vehicle imports (which can only include motorcycles) so do not expect to be out of there within a day, maybe longer, unless you have good local contacts.

If you have lots of time, speak a bit of French and don't mind such challenges, it might all be part of the adventure, but I suspect you could simplify things greatly by flying it into southern Spain while using a an air freight agency specialising in bikes. Do Morocco and then come back for the rest of your trip.
I am sure Spain is not such an unusual destination for North American bikes.
Easier still - language wise - would be UK or Ireland. Shippio and Moto Freight are 2 names which spring to mind. Ask them about Spain.

For Morocco, all the vehicle paperwork - temp import, insurance - is there at the regular ferry ports. Tan Med port is recommended.
More here.

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Morocco Overland 4 (2025) • Trans Morocco Trail

You make a lot of good points regarding language. I don't speak French or Arabic. Air Canada has been flying to Morocco for 5 years, so, I hope the program has been established to make clearing customs smoother. Unfortunately, Spain was taken off A/C's list because Spain will not accept motorcycles that are uncrated. The beauty of A/C Cargo is, after the bike has been cleared with a Dangerous Goods certificate, you ride the bike to the A/C terminal and they take it from there. The bike is placed on a aluminum "cookie sheet" and tied down for transport.

I will check out the other shippers that you suggested.

Thank you!
Al

The Green Card referred to is a document issued by motor insurance companies to show that your bike is insured for a particular company.
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...-balkans-87473

See post 8

Happy trails,

Peter

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Atlas Overland - Specialist adventure tour company providing off-road holidays for 4x4 enthusiasts in Europe and North Africa.
Tours to Morocco, Iceland, Arctic Circle, Portugal, Alps, Pyrenees, Eastern Europe, Corsica, and UK weekend tours.

Kruzzin,

You can check also with motorcycle express. They ship to many destinations for slightly more than Air Canada but you can ship at any time. They have no restriction from May to September like Air Canada. They do ship to Spain. You can have a quote online within a minute or two.

I did ship to Paris with them. I just dropped the bike. No need to crate the bike. I could not leave any gear on the bike. That is a plus for Air Canada. They used Air Transat for that flight.

Custom in Paris was easy. They just asked you how long you will be in Europe. They make photocopies of your documents. You pay about 80-90euros and you are gone within 30min.

About customs in Morocco, definitely have all your documents in order. At the land border, they did not want to accept my original bike registration. Here in Quebec, our paper is really tiny like a credit card. It took a while for the custom to accept it. I never had problems with that before.

As for the green card, the cheapest way is using the services of Welcome to motosapiens.org | motosapiens.org

Allow enough time to receive your papers.


Patrick

But among the regular air freight how many travellers' motorcycles have they actually shipped?

Air freighting a motorcycle has become a great idea, but Morocco is not a European city; it is a country in Africa with strict importation rules to avoid foreign vehicles getting sold locally on the side. Look at the hassle some other guy on this forum has recently had trying to import a new engine into Morocco. Or another guy whose car was destroyed and abandoned in a desert fire. He had to negotiate some dumb customs tax to legitimise the wreck.

I would see if you can get in touch with the manager of Air Canada's Cargo Motorcycle program from the radio show and ask how the last person who did what you are planning got on in Casa. They will be a great resource. That is why moto freight specialists, as opposed to the cargo arm of airlines, can be more useful. Motorcycle Express work out of Canada, afaik.

Cargo clearance is all very well, but you also need to temporarily import (TVIP) and insure a vehicle for road use. I doubt Casa airport will have a clue about that. In Panama City or Quito/Bogota that has become fairly normal (or the procedures are widely shared). In Morocco I have never heard of it on this forum (though I'm sure it has been asked before).

Like everything, it's all doable with time and money and stress.
I wouldn't be surprised it it involves going up to Tangiers port to get the TVIP.

I know from personal experience that the frontier insurance for foreign vehicles has become very hard to get at regular Assurance offices like Axa in Moroccan towns and cities.
You can of course try and get your own Green Card for Morocco off your domestic insurance. Europeans get it easily enough for bikes. Brits no longer do.

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Morocco Overland 4 (2025) • Trans Morocco Trail

Hi Chris:

I'm not quite as pessimistic as you about the ability to process temporary importation of a vehicle at CMN (Casablanca airport), for the following reasons:

1) As you know, Morocco has recently implemented a fully computerized system for recording temporary (touristic) vehicle imports. This means that the customs staff at the airport will have full access to this - they won't be caught in a situation where "they don't have the appropriate forms".

2) Although it is possible that not very many motorcycles enter Morocco via the airport, one heck of a lot of motor vehicles do (think of wealthy Saudis who have villas in Morocco). Hence I suspect that the customs people at the airport will have some familiarity with temporary importation of foreign vehicles, and a motorcycle is a vehicle.

3) Although Air Canada does not facilitate warehousing or customs processing of motorcycle shipments (their responsibility to the customer ends when the cargo reaches the warehouse at the airport), I do suspect that Air Canada will have confirmed that it is practical to import a vehicle this way.

Your point about the OP (Al) contacting AC in Toronto to inquire about the success of previous shipments to CMN is well taken.

Michael

Great discussing Morocco and shipping with you Michael...THANK YOU!!!

This forum is such a wealth of information especially for 1st timers like me. Unfortunately, there is no "playbook" on what steps to take etc. So, one must seek the help of others and share information as it is found. So, let me pass this lead on to all of you....I was referred to a local business in Casa that offers M/C insurance for Morocco and Green Card for Europe. They can send within 10 business days, BUT, allow 30 days just in case of delays etc. I just sent them an email to clarify that they provide insurance for Morocco as rates were not listed. For Europe, the price is 120 euros for 90 days. They also run a B&B are highly rated on Trip Advisor. Name below.

Stara Elena Biker B&B Granitovo
https://staraelena.weebly.com/
staraelenabnb@gmail.com


I spoke with Motorcycle Express as well. They are out of South Carolina with a Quebec connection. Pricing is in U.S. $$. They DO NOT fly into Morocco. Lisbon or Barcelona were the closest ports and 1 way is $1350 U.S with Air Transat. They look after everything including DGC, customs paperwork etc. They can also arrange for a green card. They then refer you to a travel agency in Quebec (Canadian $$) for your flight. In my case, it was $714 one way to Lisbon. I asked Motorcycle Express if they had a rep at the airport if something goes wrong claiming the bike. They confirmed that someone is available if there are problems. He also confirmed that I CAN send my clothes with the bike. A lot more money that A/C but, it is supposed to be a hassle free experience.

I am leaning the A/C route for cost/time. Hoping I can get an email confirmation from Stara Elena on bike insurance OR, as Michael suggested someone else in Casa.

I will keep everyone updated as to my progress. Or lack thereof. lol

Thanks for all your help and suggestions!!!
Al

Good to know that you can now ship your gear with your bike.

From my point of view the added value of Motorcycle Express is that you can ship anytime of the year. I tried shipping with Air Canada outside the May-September window. I was quoted 4400$. If that time window fits your needs, then yes, that is the cheapest option.

If someone wants to enjoy cooler temperature in the desert, they can leave in March/ beginning of April for a slightly higher shipping cost with Motorcycle Express.

Patrick

I'm not going to argue that it won't be simpler to follow the well-trodden path, which is shipping into Europe and ferrying to Morocco. But I'm not convinced it'll be all THAT much more difficult using Air Canada directly into CMN. Maybe I've grown too blasé about untangling bureaucratic clusterforks in faraway lands where I don't speak the language.

Selfishly, I hope the OP tries it out and reports back to tell us how it went. From your perspective Kruzzin5, I suggest you go ahead and commit to one course of action or the other only once you're ready, accept any difficulties as hugely educational, and not look back.

Your misunderstandings about the nature of green card insurance suggests that you continue accumulating basic information before making that commitment. That's perfectly fine, as long as you stay reasonably humble. In any case, please feel entirely free to prove me (or Chris) wrong, if that's what it comes to.

Hope that's helpful. Safe journeys!

Mark

Yes, I hope so too. Then the whole process becomes less opaque for those that follow.

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Morocco Overland 4 (2025) • Trans Morocco Trail

OK, here's the update on Al (Kruzzin5) & his plans to ship his motorcycle:

I spoke with Al on the telephone tonight (he only lives a few miles away from me, north of Toronto) and we discussed the logistics of his plans.

To successfully import the motorcycle to Morocco via shipping it by Air Canada to CMN (Casablanca airport), Al needs three things:

1) Appropriately stamped passport with Moroccan police number in it - he'll get that when he goes through regular passenger processing at CMN;

2) Proof of ownership of the motorycycle - he has that, it's the same document I have used several times when I have entered Morocco at Tanger Med, and;

3) Proof of insurance valid in Morocco.

It's arguable that he might not need proof of insurance to simply clear the moto out of customs (strictly speaking, the customs officials are not responsible for road traffic law enforcement), but he'll need insurance to ride the motorcycle out of the airport area, and it is likely that there is no booth selling insurance for foreign vehicles at the airport.

That means that he needs to get the insurance document ahead of time, and have it in his hand before he leaves Canada, so he can show it to the Customs officials (if they ask for it) when he goes to clear the motorcycle out of customs.

In theory, it should be easy to get the insurance ahead of time. He's not travelling until the end of May, so, he has lots of time. What I think he needs to do is communicate with an insurance company that insures foreign tourists visiting Morocco with their vehicles, and arrange and pay for his insurance ahead of time, with an effective date the same date as his planned arrival in Morocco, then have the insurance company mail the policy document to him in Canada.

To do this, he needs to know what company to contact. If I had not thrown out my Moroccan insurance document when I got home last week, I could have given him the information from my document. But, I threw it out.

Does anyone out there have a current (or recently issued, within the last 6 months) Moroccan insurance document handy? If so, would you please post the contact details for the insurance company (not the agent at the port who sold the policy) here on this thread, so Al can get the insurance process underway?

We discussed the possibility of shipping the motorcycle into Lisbon instead, and riding down to Morocco, but economically, that makes no sense. Even in a worst-case situation, if Al can't get insurance ahead of time and has to hire a grand taxi to take him to and from Tanger Med port to buy insurance, that will be cheaper than the costs associated with flying into Lisbon and riding down to Algeciras and taking the ferry to Morocco.

Spain is out of consideration, because the Spanish have advised Air Canada that they won't accept motorcycle shipments by air freight unless the motorcycle is crated. It's a dumb requirement, but each country has the right to impose their own rules on air freight.

Al plans on riding up to Ireland after touring Morocco, and then shipping the bike back to Canada. I have suggested that he get in touch with Dooby to arrange European insurance coverage for when he leaves Morocco - this because I don't know if there are vendors at the Algeciras port who sell insurance policies for out-of-Europe vehicles. There probably are, but what their hours are, what they charge, and how competent they are I do not know.

So, does anyone have the contact details for a Moroccan insurance company handy?

Michael

WOW, very well explained!!!
Thanks Michael!!!

Hi Michael,

thanks for recommendation, much appreciated.

We're able to issue coverage for Canadian motorcycle/car/expedition truck and send it to desired address anywhere in world.
For sure hard copy will be needed to get the bike from the customs as fastest as possible as not to allow customs to charge the warehouse fees outside of free time window.

Either PM me or send us an email:

borderinsurance@lobagola.com

One of our clients air freighted from Casablanca last year, he used Aviva.

We're working on providing coverage for northern African countries for some time now, hopefully we will have a solution asap.

Cheers
Dooby