Ship a car, truck or machinery from the USA to Jamaica

No. The Jamaican motor vehicle import policy prohibits the importation of vehicles considered to be in a damaged or salvaged state, regardless of how extensive the damage is, what caused it, or whether it happened in transit. If your usual stock is Copart or IAA salvage, this is the lane where it does not work.

Six years for cars, station wagons, SUVs, buses seating up to eight, and pickups with an unladen weight up to 1,500kg. The limits are published by the Trade Board and differ by vehicle category rather than applying one rule to everything. Confirm your specific vehicle before you buy.

Longer than for cars. Trucks between 3,001kg and 6,000kg are allowed twenty years, those between 6,001kg and 8,000kg twenty five years, and those above 8,000kg thirty years. Heavy duty equipment of all types is allowed thirty years, which is why plant moves on this lane when cars cannot.

Ten years for pickups and small trucks between 1,501kg and 3,000kg unladen, panel vans, window vans and buses seating nine to fourteen. Motorcycles and all terrain vehicles are limited to five years. Buses rise from twelve to twenty five years as seating capacity increases.

Yes, and it has to be obtained before the vehicle arrives in Jamaica rather than afterwards. The permit comes from the Trade Board and applications run through the Jamaican single window for trade. Clearance at the other end must be handled by a licensed Jamaican customs broker.

Yes. Used vehicles coming from the United States require a pre-shipment inspection, including sanitisation, and the certificate forms part of the Trade Board permit application. Build it into the booking timeline rather than discovering it after the vehicle is already at our warehouse.

Individuals are restricted to a small number within a three year period, companies that are not certified dealers to a slightly larger number, and certified motor vehicle dealers may import for resale without that restriction. Returning residents have a separate entitlement. Your Jamaican broker will confirm which category applies to you.

Returning residents have their own vehicle entitlement with a longer age allowance than the standard limit, but the Jamaica Customs Agency is explicit that no duty exemption attaches to it. Full duty and taxes are payable. Confirm the position with Jamaica Customs before you plan around it.

In a container to Kingston, booked with the licensed carrier rather than a broker, and only after the permit and inspection steps are settled. A container protects the vehicle and lets three or four share one box so the freight splits. Cassandra Logistics is FMC-licensed under OTI No. 025125NF. Get a price in 24 to 48 hours.

We do, as a licensed US NVOCC. We collect from any state, load and brace the vehicles at our own warehouse in New Jersey, Savannah, Houston or Baltimore, file the US export declaration and ship to Kingston.

It depends on where the vehicle sits in the States and how many vehicles share the container. Because we are the NVOCC rather than a reseller, the number is the carrier rate rather than a broker markup. Send us the vehicle and the pickup location for a firm figure.

Transit from the US East Coast and Gulf to Kingston is short compared with most of our lanes, since Kingston is a major Caribbean hub with frequent calls. We give you a concrete schedule with the quote rather than a generic range.

Yes, where the vehicles qualify under the age rules. Ocean freight is charged on the container rather than per vehicle, so filling a 40ft box drops the cost per car sharply. Tell us the exact vehicles and we will confirm the loading plan.

Yes, and it is often the stronger business on this lane. Heavy duty equipment is allowed up to thirty years, far longer than cars. Depending on dimensions we ship containerised, on flat-rack or by heavy haulage, with dismantling and securing where the size requires it.

Yes. Full container freight from any US origin, including building materials, industrial goods, machinery parts and trade goods. General cargo is not caught by the vehicle age rules at all. Tell us the commodity, weight and volume and we will price it.

Jamaica drives on the left, so an American left hand drive car sits opposite to local traffic. It is a practical consideration for the buyer rather than a reason the vehicle cannot be imported. Discuss it with your Jamaican broker alongside the age and permit questions.

Kingston handles Jamaica’s containerised imports and is the normal answer for cargo from the United States. Montego Bay operates as a multi-use port on the north west of the island. Tell us the delivery parish and we will confirm the routing.

Import duty, special consumption tax and general consumption tax apply, at rates that differ by engine size, fuel type and vehicle category, plus an environmental levy and a standards compliance fee on imports generally. The Jamaica Customs Agency publishes the rate sheets and your licensed broker calculates the figure.

Yes. Nationwide pickup and towing from any state, whether the vehicle sits at a dealer, a private seller or an auction yard. Distance affects the cost of collection, not whether we can do it. Remember that the vehicle still has to satisfy the Jamaican damage and age rules.

Our warehouses in New Jersey, Savannah, Houston and Baltimore all serve Caribbean sailings. Savannah and the Gulf often give the shortest transit on this lane. Tell us where the vehicle sits and we will work out which loading point lands it soonest.

No, and in Jamaica you could not do it yourself either. Clearance of a motor vehicle has to be done by a licensed Jamaican customs broker. We are the ocean carrier, we deliver to Kingston, and we provide the documentation your broker needs.

We handle the US side, including the filing in the Automated Export System. You provide the title or equivalent ownership document and the bill of sale. A vehicle cannot leave the United States without its title, and there is no workaround. See the AES filing guide.

Collection from the US seller, transport to our warehouse, loading and bracing, the US export filing, and the ocean freight to Kingston. The Trade Board permit, the pre-shipment inspection, Jamaican duties and taxes, port handling, your broker fee and inland delivery are handled at the Jamaican end.

Usually because they exclude collection, loading or the export filing, or because they are broker prices that get revised once the booking becomes real. Ask what is excluded and ask who issues the bill of lading. See what actually drives the cost.

Yes. We can hold vehicles while you gather others, then load them together in one container. Auction yards charge daily storage and our warehouse does not, so waiting for the right load usually saves money rather than costing it.

Loaded on its own wheels, chocked, strapped at the wheels or suspension rather than over the bodywork, and blocked so it cannot shift at sea. Where the straps attach is what separates a careful load from a damaged car.

Yes. We photograph the vehicle when it reaches our warehouse and again once it is loaded and braced, before the doors close. On a lane that prohibits damaged vehicles, a clear photographic record before sealing is worth having.

Only if they are declared on the export filing. Jamaica inspects imported vehicles closely and undeclared goods packed inside are a reliable way to create a clearance problem, which lands on the importer rather than on the carrier. Send us the list when you book.

Our service ends at the port of discharge. Inland delivery is arranged by your customs broker, who is already handling clearance. Tell us the final parish anyway, since it helps confirm the routing.

Within 24 to 48 hours in normal cases. Send the vehicle details including the VIN, the year, the category and where it sits in the United States. For machinery send the model number so we confirm dimensions rather than estimating them.

We are the NVOCC. Cassandra Logistics is a federally licensed Ocean Transportation Intermediary under FMC licence OTI No. 025125NF, legally Royal Port Container Lines, Inc. The licence number is public and verifiable with the Federal Maritime Commission before you send anyone money.