
03-13-2014 05:58 PM
I am from Canada and want to purchase something from the US. They have US shipping price and a Canadian shipping price. Will I have to pay any more on shipping other than what is quoted?
03-13-2014 06:23 PM - edited 03-13-2014 06:25 PM
Hello 'bish439',
It seems odd that you are looking at a listing which clearly displays two shipping fees.
However, as you are Canadian you will naturally pay the Canadian (higher) fee. Shipping
things internationally is really expensive. If you want to know what it costs to mail things
up here from the US, have a look:
http://ircalc.usps.com/?country=10054
You weren't thinking on buying something from a seller choosing to use that Global
Shipping Program, were you? Those are the listings which have the words in grey:
"Customs services and international tracking provided", under the title when you are
scrolling through listings, as if this was something good.
Beside that is a shipping fee which for some reason is always lower than the real one
you discover when you click to view the listing. You then see a shipping fee, plus the
current level of import charges (none if the value of the item is under $20 Cdn) which will
go up and up and up and up as the bidding increases.
These are the listings that shout out, "No additional import charges at delivery!" as if they
were really helping you out and saving you a great deal.
If you buy from one of those listings you will invariably pay far more for shipping
than if you found a seller who ships plain old First Class International to Canada, -- which
provides tracking with Delivery Confirmation, all for one reasonable price.
So you weren't thinking of doing that, were you?
Anyway, when viewing the listing, click on the Shipping and Payments tab, and that should
tell you what it costs to ship to Canada.
If you find the whole thing unclear, go back to the Description tab and at the bottom where it
says Questions and answers about this item, use the Ask a question link to explain to the seller
that you are not sure what he charges to mail the item to Canada.
Best wishes for your purchase
03-14-2014 02:01 PM
You will pay the Canadian rate for shipping.
If the item is over $20 you may also be liable for duty and sales tax. The shipper will also charge you a service fee.
As a buyer, look for sellers who say they ship to Canada with First Class International Postage.
If the item is under $100, avoid sellers who use the Global Shipping Program.
With GSP and with any courier, you will be charged sales tax and service charge plus any applicable duty (duty varies).
With USPS /Canada Post you will probably avoid this. Probably. Usually.