Does Ebay International Shipping use Canada Post to deliver items shipped from US?
Summary: Participants discuss issues with eBay International Shipping (eIS) in Canada, noting challenges with delivery methods, especially for rural addresses where Canada Post was traditionally used. marnotom! highlights that eIS terms disallow using PO boxes, suggesting alternative carriers might deliver items in Canada. nboo1 shares a problem with location errors after being asked for a physical address, experiencing refunds for undeliverable goods. Confusion arises from varied experiences with carriers and import charges, as mentioned by msau4301. Participants express a desire for more transparency and consistency from eBay, pointing out unclear costs and shipping chains under eIS, exemplified by customs duties and brokerage fees, leading to a complicated buying process. The need for clarity and improved buyer experience is emphasized.
I live in the GTA if that makes a difference, which it might....
borealis4011
·1 year agojohn_koenig99
·1 year agoWell, that's not true. I have five orders from the US, which are coming via their shipping centre, and they are all in limbo since Nov 15.
joabri_83
·2 years agoAnonymous User
·3 years agoHas Canada post ever charged the $9.95 service fee and taxes on an item's value of $25CAD, $30, $35, $40? What is the maximum amount in which we can get away with not paying the service fee to Canada post and taxes?
Is the de minimis $20 if Canada post receives the item from USPS and $40 if Canada post receives the item from a courier?
reallynicestamps
·3 years agoThis is a question worthy of its own thread.
Until July 2020, duty and sales tax was due on any import of $20Cdn or more.
But.
CBSA and Canada Post decided that it was a waste of taxpayer money to assess and charge duty on low value imports. A Canada Post vice-president told the Globe and Mail that 93% of low value parcels were ignored by CBSA.
But couriers, who are not public servants, had to charge duty and taxes and were allowed to charge whatever they wanted as "customs brokerage" fees. UPS and FedEx started at $25.
There is an archived thread over 5000 posts long complaining about this, pre-GSP.
In 2020, with the new NAFTA (CUSMA), imports from the USA are duty -free up to $150Cdn. value and tax-free up to $40Cdn.
I suspect that CBSA/Canada Post is still ignoring the low-value overseas imports, and that most imports from the US are under $150, so the chances of anyone actually being charged on the doorstep by their letter carrier are pretty low.
With couriers, they seem to have lowered their brokerage fees-- this may have had something to do with getting contracts with Amazon but that's guesswork on my part, based on nothing but my imagination.
theoldestfart
·3 years agoOn the item I foolishly purchased from the USA via the eIS it was accessed to be 108 CDN plus GST, PST and the $9.95 handling fee.
reallynicestamps
·3 years agoAssessed at $108Cdn ($81USD)?
Did you get any CBSA receipt with it?
If you want to pursue it, you may be able to get a refund because some clerk along the way assessed it as "dutiable", which it hasn't been for nearly three years.
The refund would be from CBSA. You are unlikely to get a refund from Canada Post for the $9.95 service charge.
theoldestfart
·3 years agoAs I said earlier in this thread I will buy in Canada first if I need to use eBay. I will spend less on shipping and will not get hit by brokerage fees. I will know the in-the-door price a heck of a lot easier than buying from the USA.
Others & I have mentioned that eIS is a seller-centric program and after this experience, nothing has changed with eBay from the last time I used eIS or a variant many years ago.
reallynicestamps
·3 years agoAdvantage GSP then.
Since none of eIS ,USPS/Canada Post nor couriers publish that information .
The idea seems to be that the recipient should know the import fees (duty and sales tax) for their own country, not the seller or shipper.
With sales taxes being the greatest variable within a country. And duty varying with the details of any Free Trade agreements in place.
Did you know Canada has a Free Trade Agreement with Mali?
theoldestfart
·3 years agoAfter this experience with eIS I personally would prefer to know upfront what the total cost would be PRIOR to purchasing an item on eBay. I want to see one $ in CAD $ specifically the in the door cost if I decided to purchase it. I do NOT want to have to repeat for each item I am looking at to have to add up $ CAD equiv for the item + CAD$ equivalent in shipping + CAD $ equivalent in taxes and brokerage fees.
If I had the total $ figure upfront for this item I would NEVER have purchased it. I over paid for the item.
reallynicestamps
·3 years agoI think somehow I am missing why eIS is an improvement to the buyer experience
It's not an improvement because it is not designed for buyers.
Not only does eBay have discounts at different levels, but sellers may use other payment methods to reduce their costs (I use postage stamps purchased below face for example.)
Basically, the programme is not designed for buyers but for sellers.
The programme is specifically not designed for business buyers.
There is never any point in watching tracking.
Put the estimated date for arrival on your calendar.
Tell your customers their item should arrive in a month and the repair completed X days later. It's better to be told it will be ready on May 30th and have the work completed by May 29th , than to say the work will be ready on May 29th and have it completed on May 30th.
Lower their expectations.
theoldestfart
·3 years agoGot my eIS item today. The item was shipped May 2nd where it sat for 2 days at a UPS depot before moving.
The item from Colorado cost $81 USD plus $28.17 USD shipping. Weight 0.3 lbs. The package size was 7" x 5" x 2". Brokerage fees were $9.95 and GTP & PST were $13.01. I paid that online via the Canada Post website 3 days before the item showed up.
Seen the postal carrier at the mailbox in the apartment. Asked if they had a package for me. Yes, they said there was $22.96 payable on it. I said I paid those fees already and I have a receipt upstairs showing that. They had no idea what to do with the receipt even if I went up and got it. I had to repeat that I paid the fees 2 or 3 times before they checked their handheld unit and discovered that yes the fees were indeed paid on the shipment.
eBay tracking still shows Cleared Customs as the last event on May 14th
reallynicestamps
·3 years agoDid it arrive before the last estimated delivery date?
How did watching tracking speed the shipping?
lotzofuniquegoodies
·3 years ago@reallynicestamps
If @theoldestfart paid duties, taxes and processing already why should they have to pay again? The same thing has been happening with VAT shipments in foreign countries. Up to the buyer to prove it has been paid already. These programs do nothing to improve the buying experience. Something eBay suggests is very important.
-Lotz
reallynicestamps
·3 years agoPoor label design?
But in this case the fault seems to be with Canada Post which did not make it clear to the carrier that import fees and service fee had been charged.
And again-- the program's purpose was not to improve the buyer experience.
Given that import fees are not charged upfront, it is actually worse than GSP which got the shock over before the seller could be impacted.
theoldestfart
·3 years agoActually, Canada Post has not trained their carriers to scan packages with their handhelds. There was CBSA customs declaration on the package that fees were to be collected and the carrier wanted to collect those fees. It did not dawn on the carrier that fees could be paid after the CBSA form was attached to the package and before the package was sent out for delivery.
I had to impress on him several times before it dawned on him to actually scan the package with his handheld to see if there were updates to the package's status. Only then did he see that yes in fact the amount owing was zero.
theoldestfart
·3 years agoYes it arrived before the est delivery date.
reallynicestamps
·3 years ago@theoldestfart The only advantage I see in eIS is for the seller.
This was true of GPS too.
The reason these programs were initiated was to encourage US sellers, a xenophobic and provincial bunch, to sell internationally because EBay's US sales were flat.
There was nothing in either programme that was meant to help the buyer, except as unintended consequences.
theoldestfart
·3 years agoJust discovered that the item was released from Canada Customs. I owe $22.96 Duty and Taxes on a used item that was US $109.17 or C $154.18 which I have to pay on delivery.
"Sorry, you cannot pay your duty and taxes online for this package. You’ll have to pay at the door or post office."
Probably will not be delivered at my residence but instead will be sent to the nearest postal outlet in a Shopper's Drugmart here. A way overpriced purchase even more so now.
marnotom!
·3 years agoIf you had purchased the item from a Canadian eBay seller for C$154.18, what would you have had to pay in taxes? My math says that f the sale is subject to BC PST and GST, that amount would have been roughly five bucks less in what you owe for customs, but I'm not sure of the makeup of the import charges for your sale.
theoldestfart
·3 years agoGST & PST here would be $18.50. Shipping would have been less in Canada. The thing is with Canadian purchases I know upfront the final cost. If this was a Canadian purchase I would not have offered $ wise what I did to the US seller.
I always have problems with US purchases I have to constantly convert the US $ plus the shipping and you never know if it will be hit with duty & taxes although with eIS and GSP it is safe that is a given. That is more troublesome if the item is an auction rather than a Buy It Now item since those figures are in flux.
marnotom!
·3 years agoWhich is why I suggested earlier in this thread that you might find purchasing from the US easier if Canadian buyers on digital marketplaces were charged taxes at the time of payment on sales from non-Canadian sellers, the way it's done in countries and regions such as the US, Australia, the UK, the EU and Norway.
One of the blurbs I saw on eIS a while back was something to the effect that at some point, the program is going to give buyers the option of paying taxes and duty at Checkout rather than on delivery, but I'm wondering if the pre-pay option may come with a bit of a cost to it for countries such as ours where eBay doesn't already collect taxes at Checkout.
lotzofuniquegoodies
·3 years ago@marnotom!
I believe when eIS was first announced they implied there would be an option to be pay at delivery or in advance at checkout. Did that get reworked into 1 or the other( somehow as per the seller settings??) but no way for a buyer to choose how they would prefer? It does sound like this new program is causing major concerns for both sellers and buyers if you review the dot com board on the subject. I think for many its not knowing what to expect will happen that is causing the majority of grief. Remember when it was the best surprise was no surprise?
-Lotz
theoldestfart
·3 years agoWhat would be extremely useful on a product listing would be to show in Canadian funds the total of everything aka in-the-door price. This would include the current item price (whether it's the current bid price or the Buy It Now price if it's that type of listing) plus the cost of shipping plus the cost of duties and taxes (if that is included). When GSP was more prevalent I would have always sit there with a calculator adding up those 3 numbers to see whether the item was a deal or not.
This would be more useful when one does a search. Even sorting by price+shipping lowest doesn't give you an idea of the total cost. The shipping $ is in smaller text and sometimes where sellers have been known to gouge buyers.
fergua3
OP3 years agothe fact that the purchase was shipped EIS has nothing to do with your Customs charges. If the seller had shipped direct to you via USPS you would have been charged the same on a $150CAD purchase from the US. Under $100 will often get through Customs uncharged, but over normally gets charged. Sometimes during the busy Christmas season you can have purchases not be charged taxes by Customs on amounts up to $200-ish but not this time of year.
just be glad Canada Post took the item through Customs and not DHL or some other courier....then you'd have something to complain about. Taxes plus a $35+ brokerage fee plus a percentage of the items value.
marnotom!
·3 years agoGiven that eIS is still being rolled out (as far as I know) and eISD hasn't been mothballed yet, I would have though that it's too early in the game to start offering buyers the choice of how they want taxes/duties handled. However, while I haven't seen listings offering a choice to me, I found one listing that indicated that there would be no taxes/duties on delivery (despite having values above the C$40 de minimis), a small handful that indicated that taxes and duties will be added at checkout, and the bulk being that taxes and duties might be payable upon delivery.
Just a wild guess, but I think the fact that Canada is not one of the eIS-supported countries eBay is already set up to collect VAT and GST from at Checkout (for non-domestic sales) may be messing things up a bit.
fergua3
OP3 years agook, so there have been no updates on the Parcelsapp tracking site for a few days. I didn't think anything of it but just for something to do i checked the DHL tracking link theoldestfart posted above. And that was very informative. DHL has now handed my package off to USPS and there was a new USPS tracking number posted on DHL's site. I checked it on USPS tracking site and the package is now in Toronto, has cleared Customs and will probably be delivered today or tomorrow!
I should note there have been zero updates on Ebay's tracking of my purchase since May 10 when they provided me with the DHL tracking number. No progress updates of any kind and no new USPS tracking number (which is the same tracking number being used by Canada Post btw).
So, while the EIS service seems to be decent, Ebay has got to do a better job of updating information to the buyer.
theoldestfart
·3 years agoDHL now shows parcel destination is Winnipeg and the service level is DHL Parcel Intl Standard. Also shows a tracking # under "Delivery by USPS Int'l" whose tracking number starts with LVS
theoldestfart
·3 years agoJust an update. My eIS package reached the Illinois depot today and I got a DHL tracking # for the shipment I assume into Canada. SIGH can you say brokerage and taxes are due on delivery?
marnotom!
·3 years agoThe package might be going by DHL's "Global Mail" service which hands items off to Canada Post once they reach Canada. I once received an item sent that way and had to pick it up at a postal outlet. I paid a DHL brokerage charge of C$10 along with taxes owing.
theoldestfart
·3 years agoI remember another experience years ago with eBay where that happened and where DHL tracking seemed to indicate that the package was not moving for over a week. The more carriers involved the more chance of the package going missing. Sorry to say it isn't the first time I have wished that would have happened with an item that was eBay's responsibility to get here.
fergua3
OP3 years agoDHL Globa Mail hands off to Canada Post before the package goes through Customs...ie Canada Post takes it through Customs, not DHL Mail. So the fee you paid was not to DHL but the standard fee charged when any package goes through Customs and is charged duty or taxes when being delivered by Canada Post.
I consider this good news. DHL Mail service is usually quick and reliable and the package will probably get delivered by Canada Post, although DHL also delivers directly in Canada, so them handing it over to Canada Post is not a certainty.
If you look the tracking number up on DHL's site it will probably indicate whether the service is DHL's mail or courier.
theoldestfart
·3 years agoIt says "DHL ECOMMERCE CURRENTLY AWAITING SHIPMENT AND TRACKING WILL BE UPDATED WHEN RECEIVED" the DHL tracking number that begins w EE does not track on DHL eCommerce site yet. This is the same process that was used years ago on another shipment that eventually got handed over to Canada Post . Canada Post took less time to deliver the item from Vancouver to Manitoba than DHL did tranporting item from CA to BC.
Back then I complained to eBay about how they obfuscate to the buyer which courier is handling purchases up to Canada and the final mile/km. They have not done anything to clearly explain how deliveries to Canada are handled on their numerous shipping plans.
GSP in the past and I believe still uses courier companies who in turn use contracted people in personal vehicles to do their deliveries. Some of these people deliver items to the wrong locations or do not deliver the items at all. The sellers are insulated from this type of incident and the buyer hopefully gets their money back (although a misdelivery may result in no refunds). Either way, the buyer is fed up and will not use the service again.
eBay information on their shipping plans are seller centric and continues to keep the buyers primarily in the dark regarding the process involved in these shipping plans. eBay twitter support is useless to determine who the final mile carrier is for eIS.
marnotom!
·3 years agoI agree with @pjcdn2005's posts about the media release being about something other than eBay International Shipping and how eIS's terms and conditions for buyers are pretty similar to those for the GSP, including the part about Power of Attorney. I don't think eBay International Standard has a set of T&C for buyers, however. (I've never found one and I haven't purchased anything handled by that program.)
The rollout of the new eIS seems to share a lot in common with that of Managed Payments. Both seem to be initially gradual transitions but that pace ramped up in a hurry once it was determined that things were going smoothly with the small percentage of users who transferred to the new system. The bigger the pool of adopters (willing or unwilling) means a greater likelihood of undiscovered glitches being unearthed.
lotzofuniquegoodies
·3 years agoI don't think it will happen. Just saying it would be nice if it did. Save the surprises. The concern would be something shipped with a courier with much higher customs processing fees(compared to CP) or the worry of difficulties with home deliveries. UPS now offers rescheduled delivery but at a cost per parcel. It's good you can back at the shipping cost stage. I think many will.
-Lotz
lotzofuniquegoodies
·3 years agoFrom a recent dot com discussion on EIS.
My first shipment after being switched over to EIS never made it to a customer in the Netherlands. The customer let me know he did not receive the CD and the tracking showed they attempted delivery(he has a mailbox), held it for 7 days without leaving him a notice to pick it up at the nearest pickup point, not was I notified there was a delivery problem. Ebay used a company called Asendia using their ePAQ plus service and they have poor service. The customer gets his other Cd's just fine. Please avoid using this company in the Netherlands. They told me is could take up to 12 weeks to get it back. I never hada problem with USPS international shipping.
Something else I have a heard a few times. Infinite time for the item to be returned.
-Lotz
fergua3
OP3 years agoreturns from Europe are usually shipped by sea and only when there is room, so they can sit a looong time before being shipped and then take weeks to get to this side of the ocean. I had one from Germany take 6 months.
So it looks like Ebay is up to its old tricks of using cut rate, lowsy service couriers instead of the efficient and convenient postal system. So much for their concerns about a great buyer experience.
fergua3
OP3 years agoi just looked up Asendia and it says they usually use the local postal system for delivery! This applies to US, Canada, UK at least. If true, wahoo.
quote:
brettjet38
·3 years agohttps://pages.ebay.com/internationalshippingprogram/buyer/terms/
You are also responsible for customs fees, taxes and duties on items shipped internationally in accordance with local laws and regulations. Whether these fees are due at the time of the purchase or on delivery of the item is determined by the shipping method you choose and local laws and regulations.
I sense that Canada Post may not be delivering on the final legs into Canada.
Power of Attorney. You grant to eBay’s third party service providers, including DHL and Asendia as well as other international carrier services which eBay may contract with, a “Power of Attorney” indicating that you, as the Importer of Record are authorizing them respectively and/or their service providers to act as your agent(s).
It's quite a read for the detailled of mind...
lotzofuniquegoodies
·3 years ago@fergua3
@brettjet38
@msau4301
@devon@ebay
It might be nice (considerate) when/if there is secondary party involved that that too would be included before buyers hit the good old buy button....That way no last last last minute surprises!! If you thought we saw posts with GSP, I can only imagine once a few more buyers test these waters!!!
-Lotz
pjcdn2005
·3 years agoThe terms and conditions are very similar to what they were for EISD and the GSP so I don't think those are a big deal.
I do realize that if Canada Post was the carrier that buyers here would probably worry less about having to pay duty on pickup although that still wouldn't be a guarantee of no import fees. I think that for many of us CP would be the preferred carrier but it is unlikely that we will be given a definite answer as the carrier may vary based on the item, the buyers location etc.
My main complaint about the EIS is the poor implementation which could result in people being turned off by it before it is working with all of the 'benefits' such as combined shipping and the option of prepaying import charges. Plus, the cost of shipping seems to have some glitches and it has been a mess for some sellers in some categories.
msau4301
·3 years agoWow, that's some read, sadly above my pay grade though. I suddenly want to re-watch that documentary Terms and Conditions May Apply! While I know we should always keep ourselves aware of what is going on when I see lengthy contracts or "Updates to User Agreement" and such my eyes glaze over.
I come to this fine board here to try and get the Coles Notes version of anything new/big going on!
fergua3
OP3 years agoEbay is such a big proponent of offering a 'great buying experience' it's a wonder they don't make great effort to inform buyers how their items will be shipped to them. Afterall that is the key component of purchasing online. Instead Ebay shrouds it in mystery, almost as if they have something to hide...
msau4301
·3 years agoI live in GTA also and I don't think there's any firm 100% of the time answer on this one but I have received most of my items from the US (eBay International) lately by Canada Post. Back with Global Shipping many came through Intel Express but even then sometimes an item was delivered by Canada Post.
Just like I've bought books from Indigo and sometimes they arrive with Canada Post and sometimes via a courier. I think it might depend on both what method the seller used (i.e Priority Mail from the US or Lettermail) and also what location it is sent from. Depending on the money they have for the final miles of delivery.
I would have thought it should be the same as when we send something by Canada Post and USPS takes over once it crosses the border, I would think it should be the same so would depend what method the seller uses/chose first. But then again what seems logical is not always the case.
marnotom!
·3 years agoIn the case of an item shipped with Canada Post and USPS, there's no "middleman" to handle the item between the two postal services. An item shipped with the GSP or eIS has a definite "stop" or intermediary destination, so I don't think the seller's choice of carrier has any bearing on who handles the item after the forwarding hub.
I was initially under the impression that eBay International Shipping was a bit like eBay International Standard in that a partnership between the courier system and a mail system was used, but it's looking as though that's not the case. Do you have any idea who's handling items between the Illinois hub and the Canadian drop-off point, @msau4301?
msau4301
·3 years agoSorry marnotom, no clue! I didn't realize these are two separate things, I'm not sure if mine was International Standard or International Shipping now that it's been pointed out. I thought it was one and the same (a replacement for Global Shipping Program), I tried to look back on my orders as I had a few before Christmas and couldn't see how listing itself was worded, it let's me view my orders but doesn't the original listing itself any more to show which method was listed. I know import was charged and I think it was International Shipping but can't say for sure if there are two so closely named!?
marnotom!
·3 years agoIf you paid those import charges at checkout, it wouldn't have been eBay International Standard as that never hits you with import charges at the time of purchase. eBay International Shipping shouldn't be charging at checkout, either, according to the hype on it, but I've seen listings where it's stated that it will charge those at checkout.
Are you able to look up any of these listings by the listing number? If not, do you have a tracking number you can use on a "universal" tracking site? I like Parcelspp a lot because it goes into quite a bit of detail about the scan information and the carriers used.
So much for my being a reformed tracking geek.
msau4301
·3 years agoYour tracking site link is handy, I'll have to remember that one!
I looked at my last three purchases, one was from February, one December and one November. The tracking shows they were all Global Shipping with Pitney Bowes. Strange because I could have sworn they were eBay International in the listing (but I can't say for certain!) I didn't think I'd seen Global Shipping listings for some time now but I could be wrong. Maybe there's still a few kicking around and I happened upon them. Like I mentioned earlier it doesn't allow me to see the original listing itself anymore just the order details so I'm going on my (not always reliable) memory. Is it possible the newer eBay International Standard is still Global Shipping using a different name in listings for some reason? Maybe until the entire change over is complete. Do packages still go to Enlarger Kentucky 1st?
I don't buy here as frequently as I once did but I will definitely pay more attention next time.
marnotom!
·3 years ago"Enlarger," Kentucky? Your auto-correct/spellcheck needs a talkin' to. 😂
eBay International Standard is the international forwarding service that was introduced after the Global Shipping Program. eBay International Shipping was the third one, and it came relatively quick on the heels after International Standard.
eBay International Standard is quite different than the Global Shipping Program. Import charges are (or may be) charged on delivery and items are transported by a mail/courier hybrid system. There are a few different hubs to which items are sent by sellers, and I believe one of them is the Erlanger center. Items must be sent to the hub through USPS only. It doesn't have nearly the perks or "protections" for sellers as the GSP or eBay International Shipping. A comparison chart can be found on this page:
https://ir.ebaystatic.com/pictures/aw/pics/sc/pdf/ebay-international-shipping-features-comparison-table.pdf
fergua3
OP3 years agoso i'm beyond confused now. Does Ebay International SHIPPING use courier or postal system for final delivery in Canada?