I used to ship freight from Texas and other states and do my own "entry" The Majority of items were used and vintage clothing,boots,Americanna Texanna Etc.I have also been a buyer and seller on Ebay since sellers had to essentially write HTML code in order to load items for sale. Also pre and post G.S.P.
I would also say that although N.A.F.T.A, and most favored nation, and gst and pst were all in place, the items I imported and exported were not typical, and that what YOU are buying or selling on Ebay or using, being subjected to the Global Shipping Program for might be completely different to ME, and therefore have different, duties,taxes or inspection rates.
This is what I know: ......First of all CBS, (Canada Border Services.)... has the authority and discretion to open and inspect and parcel or parcel letter coming into Canada from any foreign country including our buddies to the south. Not necessarily for duties and taxes but just to be certain what the contents or manifest are labeled as, matches what is actually being shipped (in the box cylinder or envelope). CBS does not charge any fees or extra charges for this service.
As a Canadian citizen "visiting" the U.S it is possible to bring back into Canada a certain amount of duty free items that vary 24 hours ( a day) and longer periods with differing amounts per length of stay and type of item.. I am not sure if this applies to all personal items "shipped or mailed" but I am sure there is a certain amount per day,week,month or annually that a Canadian citizen is allowed by the CBS and CRA.
The CBS and CRA are interested in essentially two types of shipments LVS (low value shipments) and HVS (high value shipments) and could contain anything from a vintage stamp to planes trains and automobiles. I believe the cut off between LVS and HVS was $100-$200 and has probably changed since I cleared freight.
What Ebay/Pitney Bowes ( the hubs in Kentucky ( for Ontario) ) etc are doing is essentially preparing an "Entry" for our items very similar to what U.P.S and Fed-ex and any freight forwarder or shipping company would do with similar items. It is a more formal but not always necessary method of.documenting importation of the types of goods mentioned.
So one thing in which I think part of the main argument of Canadians importing from the U.S and other nations is that posted (U.S.P.S and Canada post etc) L.V.S shipments which are usually and continue to remain seldomly taxed are having "Fees" added to them in spite of their status.
So Similar to U.P.S (United Parcel Service ) most often (u.p.s does a formal "entry" for almost everything) and anyone that has U.P.S often enough know there is still a cost associated with preparing an entry for goods that are not taxable. It costs something to tell you there are no charges, absolutely ridiculous but never the less true. I would assume the majority of entries maybe as high as 89-90% of all GPS items coming from the U.S to Canada fit this profile of an LVS un or non taxable item.
Ebay is a publicly traded corporation and must generate profits for it's shareholders. If you were a share holder you would want Ebay to make money, also the management teams and executives possibly gets bonuses based on how their ideas have affected the bottom line. Also something that you would want as an employee or shareholder. There could also be savings for Ebay and Paypal from a disputed item, or insurance premiums could and may also be reduced from a much more certain informed chain of delivery.
So, what are the numbers ? Where would we find them ? maybe someone can help or we can work in a team getting as much public information as possible. Has this made Ebay and Paypal more profitable and or saved the companies money ? How much revenue and costs are associated with the program and where does "Pitney Bowes " fit in. Is it a separate arm of "Pitney Bowes" what is Ebay and Paypal"s cut and how is it contracted ? What has been the affect on "disputed items" and what kind of savings was available.
Also what has been the affect of the system and has it stemmed a flow of goods that Ebay and Paypal would have made some money from but now make nothing because the GPS has priced it beyond what is reasonable and therefore the transaction will never be made. Essentially what was the flow of goods from Ebay sellers to Canada from the U.S to Canada pre and post GSP.
I think with at least those series of numbers in front of us we could make a much more informed and suitable decision, on if it is fair, feasible or necessary to have it imposed on us as buyers or sellers in Canada, and how GSP has affected the flow of goods from Ebay sellers around the world.
Any current links would be greatly appreciated..........I think as a group of concerned buyers and sellers from Canada despite our size and distance from each other could make a better argument to have GSP removed or modified with a few good facts. Cheers and happy buying and selling to all.
