Process for importing and selling a bike to the U.S. by a nonresident?
 

Hoping to find someone who has experience in this.

I have got a KLR650, 2009, chilean-registered, which i would like to import and sell in the U.S. after my ride up north.

So, the official passus i found from US customs for nonresidents is:

The conformity can be proven with a "letter of eligibility" which i have requested from Kawasaki America already. Depending on its contents i might have to make some adjustments on the bike to reach conformity.

What i am missing is: how can i import AND sell the bike (which is excluded according to above customs text)?

Is it possible to have a resident buy the bike and import it? That might be an option for me, too, since i have got friends in the U.S. as well.

Thanks for your advice!

No. Your shit up the creek. Back when the US was adding pollution controls to vehicles they made it more or less impossible for an individual to get a US title on an imported bike. Dave

Plenty of bikes "sold" in mythical No Man's Lands, but that only works if it is possible to transfer ownership of the vehicle via post or the internet, and from other posts here, that doesn't seem possible with Chilean Registrations.

The other snag you will/may strike is there is a limit on how long you can have the vehicle in the USA (as stated in the rule you quoted) and I believe that one year includes total time spent in Canada + USA + Mexico, rather than just in the US and there have been reports of people getting caught out and having to ship the vehicle out from the nearest sea or air port.

Of course you could always abandon it but then run a high risk of serious problems if you ever want to return.

Leaving it in the "Hassle Free Zone" in the north of Mexico might be a better option but you would lose your TIP deposit at best, and at worst may need to cross Mexico off your future list until you get a new passport. NB Theoretical possibilities and need to do your own research

Ingmar:

It looks to me like you are confounding together two different concepts, one being temporary import, and the other being permanent import.

The information you cited in the quotation in your first post at the top of this discussion addresses temporary import of a non-confirming vehicle. The USA will let you temporarily import this vehicle for your own use for a period of up to one year, at which point you have to export it again. For that temporary import, the vehicle does not have to conform to USA safety and emission regulations.

If you want to permanently import the vehicle, it has to conform to USA safety and emissions regulations. This conformation is proved by way of a letter from the manufacturer (which you have mentioned) and perhaps also by a physical inspection of the vehicle within the USA. If the vehicle conforms, and the purchaser pays whatever import duties and taxes may be applicable, then the purchaser (an American resident) can permanently import the vehicle.

If you (a non-resident) want to first ride the bike around as a tourist, having imported it temporarily, then when you are finished your touring, sell it to an American, you will need to follow both processes: First the temporary process for your tourism, then, the purchaser of your motorcycle (an American resident) will have to go through the permanent import process. It will probably be necessary for you to re-export the bike momentarily at the end of your temporary import period (when you have finished your tourism) in order to fulfill the promise made when you did the temporary import. But, it might also be possible to finesse that requirement by putting the bike into a customs bonded warehouse until the conformation and permanent import paperwork is done, at which time the purchaser can get it released from the warehouse.

You should get some expert advice from a customs broker or similar person.

Yes, you are right. It is two different processes and what you say about letters of conformity is correct.
It is the non-temporary import i am struggling with. I have enquired for the letter of conformity at kmc us and hope to get an answer soon.
Regarding how to actually do i am still in the dark. E.g. possible to temporary import by me at first then "converting" into a non-temporary by an americam citizen possible? Or do we need to get together back to a border? Or do i need to leave this to a a customs agent? If so, who would be a recommendable one?