New NAFTA passed

[femmefan1946]

Trudeau mentioned in passing today during his press conference on CORVID19 that the new NAFTA agreement had been passed by Parliament and was now with the GG for her signature.

tyler@ebay   This should mean that GSP shipments will have lower duty (the new duty-free allowance is $150 but confusingly sales taxes will be charged on values over $40.

https://globalnews.ca/news/4503461/canada-duty-free-limit-usmca/

I hope Pitney Bowes is on top of this.

Be ready for questions from buyers who are charged sales tax although they "only" paid $41Cdn (~$30US.

And the Trudeau children are at home playing Legos.

[pjcdn2005]

"Once the Senate approves the legislation, it will only require royal assent from Governor General Julie Payette to become law.

At that point, the clock starts on a three-month period to give the three countries time to hammer out the regulations that will govern the mechanics of the agreement."

https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/usmca-legislation-approved-in-commons-amid-concerns-about-...

According to the article the Senate will approve it later today.

[xenotime]

That makes no sense. There never was duty, only taxes. Couriers charge a BS brokerage fee PLUS taxes, but no carrier charges 'duty'.

So basically, nothing has changed. And it looks like the Canadians screwed the Americans, who wanted more sales from north of the border.

[marnotom!]

Well, keep in mind that well over half of US states are now aggressively trying to collect sales tax on online purchases (particularly those made from websites considered to be Market Facilitators, such as this one) and there’s no exemptions whatsoever for purchases with a low-dollar value.

[femmefan1946]

There never was duty, only taxes.

You missed the entire decades long arguement about softwood lumber? And steel?

There was effectively no duty on imports MADE in the USA (and Mexico) but imports from the USA but manufactured elsewhere were, and are, dutiable.

Canada has Free Trade Agreements with more than 100 countries which complicates things.

But if your widget, purchased from a US seller was made in China, it is subject to duty.

Couriers charge a BS brokerage fee

The $25 or more "brokerage fee" covers the cost of the paperwork for CBSA. And of course, a profit for the company.

That the GSP only charges ~$5 for this is one of the very very few benefits of that Seller Protection program that otherwise buyer-unfriendly option.

[tryubik-useonlyasdirected]

@femmefan1946 Nice Catch, we all have to be extra vigilant during through this surreal period for sneaky maneuvers such as this. Thank you for your continued NAFTA updates.

As a border-town dweller I courier our packages across the border and post at the USPS to decrease shipping costs for our US customers. You once stated something in regards to new cross-border courier limits with the new NAFTA? Have you heard anything more in regards to this topic?

[femmefan1946]

Not me.

Although I can see the USA from my back porch (well actually from Willows Beach about 10 blocks away), actually getting there would require an hour on the ferry.

I don't recall anything about courier restrictions in NAFTA. It would seem counter-productive and the Trump "government" doesn't seem to want to support USPS as a public service which might be a (bad) reason to discourage private couriers.