The B17 is indeed a US-only motor. It was made in Japan but only sold in the '92-'93 GSR (G2 tegs with VTEC were called RSi and XSi in Japan and had a B16).

B16 and B17 heads are identical. They do indeed have the same part number cast into them.

People say the B17 takes to boost well because it starts out with a CR of 9.7:1 which provides for a bit less detonation. At this point any motor you get your hands on will be 9-10 years old. I would be hesitant to just slap on any sort of forced induction setup without doing a rebuild on the motor first.