Been hearing rumors of Canada Post increasing prices, is it true?

[ccrrefills]

Normally at the post office at least weeks before a price increase they let me know and have the brochure with the new prices.

Now for over a month they've been telling me the small packets to USA that are now $3.79 are going to be "over $5" and I think they said this was happening on January 12. They still have no information at all and I can't find anything about this on the Canada Post website.

I'm really hoping this is a false rumor as they already increased the prices dramatically a year ago and going from $3.79 to "over $5" is an even bigger increase than last year.

Does anyone know anything about this, the majority of my packages are small packets to USA and international so I will have to update all my prices if this turns out to be true and it will make it very hard to compete with sellers in USA.

Thank you

[pjcdn2005]

what are the odds they will pass that along?

Slim to none?

[ccrrefills]

I thought you could only send paper by letter post. The items I sell aren't paper and I was told non paper items can't be sent as letters.

Have I been paying nearly 4 times the price for nothing? What are the exact rules for what can be sent as a letter to usa?

Thanks

[pjcdn2005]

Have I been paying nearly 4 times the price for nothing? What are the exact rules for what can be sent as a letter to usa?

Goods can not be sent to the U.S. so you have been doing it correctly as the rules do say that you should be using light packet. I have heard though that some sellers do use letter post for some items.  Light packet works fine for me but I can see why it would be difficult to use it for lower cost items.

[pocomocomputing]

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@recped wrote:

I don't really see the dimensional weight adjustment to be all that sneaky. I'm sure that many mailers who do not send out bulky low weight items are not interested in subsidizing those that do.

I hear a lot of screaming for fairness, that is exactly what the dimensional weight pricing does, it more accurately aligns rates with costs.

The last similar type of increase was the reduction in the minimum weight charge from 1kg to 750gm 4 or 5 years ago.

Is the minimum charge for expedited still 750gm?

What I'm waiting to see is how they deal with the Fuel Surcharge. If gas drops another 3 or 4 cents per litre that should be enough to eliminate the surcharge completely on Expedited (it would still be 5% on Xpresspost). I do wonder what Canada Post will do if the national average goes below 87/litre, at that point the surcharge starts to go into the negative, what are the odds they will pass that along?

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The lowest weight break for Expedited Parcel Canada (and for other parcel services like Regular Parcel, Xpresspost) is still 0.75 kg, then 1 kg, 1.5 kg and so on in 0.5 kg increments. For Expedited parcel USA the lowest weight break is 0.5 kg then 1 kg, 1.5 kg and so on in 0.5 kg increments. It has not changed for the past 4 or so years when I learned about volumetric weight.

I checked in this document (same as I posted above)

https://www.canadapost.ca/tools/pg/prices/SBParcels-e.pdf

[maximus7001]

We send non paper items to USA all the time with letter mail. These need to weigh less than 100g and be 2cm or thinner and cost $2.95 in stamps plus tax.
Light packet for items between 100 and 150g cost $3.98 no tax from paypal. This is where we are going to take a hit if it goes up.

[ypdc_dennis]

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@maximus7001 wrote:
Light packet for items between 100 and 150g cost $3.98 no tax from paypal.

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The current rate is $3.79 PLUS tax. Your $3.98 INCLUDES 5% tax.  

[38e_avenue]

I think also "paper" items can't be shipped to US in a letter, because they still are the "goods" (merchandise). Or am I wrong? 

[rose-dee]

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@38e_avenue wrote:

I think also "paper" items can't be shipped to US in a letter, because they still are the "goods" (merchandise). Or am I wrong? 

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You're not wrong at all.  Strictly speaking, anything that is sold as "goods", whether made of paper or a T-shirt folded flat in an envelope, should not be going out of Canada by letter mail, even if the size and weight are appropriate for oversize letter mail.  This has to do with customs requirements and probably also international postal agreements. 

Many sellers do send such items by letter mail.  I generally don't, mainly because I like the paper trail I get from using Paypal labels for Light Packet.  I also don't think I want to risk having an item opened by a foreign customs agent and rejected or returned.  I haven't heard any specific reports of this on the seller boards, but it is a possibility.  Who needs one more potential defect-generator to worry about?

[recped]

 I also don't think I want to risk having an item opened by a foreign customs agent and rejected or returned.

Foreign customs don't care, foreign postal services don't care. There is no "no goods in LetterPost" rule ANYWHERE except in Canada. Even here it only applies to outgoing mail, mailers from outside Canada can send all the goods they want TO Canada via LetterPost.

[2014sportsterguy]

I have been mailing things in a envelope for decades no big deal, just do it right, never had a return yet,there I told the world me baaaaad 🙂

[brindlebaby]

Canada Post goes up every January. It was 86 cents to mail a letter, it is probably 85 or 90 now. I don't keep track of it as they know we have to use them.

[femmefan1946]

It's 85 cents still.

If you buy a single stamp there is a service fee of 15 cents.

If you buy a booklet there is no service fee and the booklet of ten stamps costs you $8,50.

Then GST is added to the cost of either purchase.

If you have P stamps they are worth 85 cents on all DOMESTIC mail, no matter what you paid for them. They are 'permanently' worth the current first class letter rate.

All stamps of Canada are still useable as postage if they are denominated in decimal currency. So are the decimal stamps of Newfoundland.

[alamin*]

January 11th, 10.13 pm, I printed shipping label to UK, hoping the price still not going up yet, but too late.... it is already up, $7.50 for 100 gram light package 😞

[bestchoicebrand]

It is up, at 10.30 light packet to US $5.00!!!