eBay has found another way to steal from Canadians

[raycer50]

Just bought an item for $44 from a US seller and was charged $9 import fees by eBay. What? This is criminal extortion ! What am I paying for? When shipped via USPS this package would not even stop at the border in the first place. No tax would be collected .

I will NEVER  buy from any seller participating in this ridiculous global shipping program. Very sad...

Shame on you eBay.

[toby_le_pue]

I would say you got off lucky at $9.00.

If it was shipped by USPS and checked at customs it would

have cost you $9.95 handling fee plus $5.70 in HST.

Anything with a value over $20.00 Canadian is subject to Canadian taxes

depending on what province you live in.

If you have never got nailed before count yourself lucky because you

just might get nailed for the next dozen items you buy.

[chimera148]

From his Feedback, raycer looks experienced.

[raycer50]

I never get "nailed" . The packages simply arrive tax free unless the value is really high.  So no, I don't feel lucky at all. I simply won't buy from ebay sellers using  global shipping policy and I buy lots...

[surplusdealdude]

If you don't buy, someone else will - that's the beauty of the system.

[pierrelebel]

"I simply won't buy from ebay sellers using  global shipping policy and I buy lots..."

That is fair and represents the position of many Canadian buyers.  There is little doubt that overall GSP is not advantageous to most Canadians for most transactions.  We have seen many instances where buyers have experienced savings using GSP but they seem to be the exception.

However, your original post refers to eBay stealing from you.  That is rather unfair and not a refection of the facts.  eBay and the American seller have nothing to do with taxes payable to the Canadian goverment on imports of taxable goods in excess of $20.00.  The tax is calculated by Pitney-Bowes, the reforwarder and remitted to the Canadian government.

While I agree with your decision not to purchase from American sellers offering GSP, let's be honest and call it what it is in this case: avoiding paying taxes (GST/HST) otherwise payable.

[i*m-still-here]

raycer ................ It's hi-time we stopped confusing the way the GSP collects taxes with the the problems with the program.

Canadian law states that taxes will be paid on mailed items with a value over $20, but that law is rarely enforced.

That's why those who buy via the GSP get hung up on the tax issue, but tax collection is just the way the GSP gets a foot in the door.

P-B does not include a receipt for their services with their packages.

That is not the norm, and it also means that we're never quite sure what we just paid for.

The taxes are just a small part of our payments.

There is no transparency!

With that mystery comes a lot of suspicion.

I can say that the way I've been charged via the GSP does not add up at all.

The taxes I paid were not the issue, but the shipping costs didn't add up, and since there was no receipt I couldn't even do the math.

P-G should have to account for fees just like every other company does.

Why are they immune?

IMO we'd all be a lot better off if we leave the tax collecting to our own CPO, and if the government opts to collect on every item over $20, then so be it.

[gotcha.ok]

I hate the new GLOBAL program!!! I can't tell when it will apply. I recently stated upfront, before purchase that I was not interested in the auction IF I would have to pay that additional fee...and still I got nailed....and so did the seller apparently. eBay has indeed found a way to skim more profit out of a multi-million dollar industry! I hope that we are not paying "export fees" on secondhand items. Even if I had actually driven to the states and bought these items and literally carried them across the border, the customs officer would've waved me through. Now I'm paying through the nose for shipping (everyone knows that they pay more than the actual cost....sometimes not very much, but sometimes a significant amount) and now they're nailed again. I would love the option of passing on items that would have this additional fee, but like I already said....you just never know when you will be nailed...it is out of the seller's hands. IT WILL MAKE A HUGE DIFFERENCE IN MY BUYING...JUST WATCH EBAY....I'M NOT BLOWING SMOKE....WATCH MY BUYING HISTORY AND CHECK HOW IT WILL DROP OFF....what it needs is someone to organize a boycot or something of that nature

[pierrelebel]

Reality is simple and as been stated several times: GSP is not a program favourable to most Canadian buyers for most transactions and I fully agree with the decision made by several Canadian buyers not to purchase from American sellers offering the program.

Few Canadians disagree with that assessment.

Listings do show if "import fees" will be charged. The easiest way for canadian buyers to "boycott" is to hit the back button when you see that.

On the other hand, one cannot compare Customs clearance when personally importing goods when crossing the border and when importing by mail.  The rules are different so are the exemptions.

[i*m-still-here]

gotcha........... Sounds like they Got Ya'............ 

They got me too!

In the past it was possible to email sellers who listed via the GSP and for me almost all were eager to revise for me and ship without the GSP.

You can still try that if you have a lot of time on your hands.

However, with instant payments for BIN items the situation has become even more difficult.

If it's a very desirable item the choice is really to buy via the GSP and feel like the system is taking advantage of you (which it almost always is) or to pass on the item because it won't be there long enough for the seller to adjust the listing.

For me, the issue isn't so much with taxes, and IMO buyers should look beyond that.

Tax issues are a nuisance for sure.  For re-sellers it's  because the paperwork is so wonky and for casual shoppers the reasons are more apparent.

The second and perhaps major issue is the way shipping costs sky rocket with the GSP and no one is held accountable for the charges because P-B does not include an invoice for their services.

There is no transparency and a lot of room for suspicion as a result.

[pjcdn2005]

The second and perhaps major issue is the way shipping costs sky rocket with the GSP and no one is held accountable for the charges because P-B does not include an invoice for their services.

You keep saying that GSP has higher shipping costs so I did a couple of experiments to see what the result would be.

First I did a search for Uggs Boots (womens) - the search was set at time ending soonest, shipping to Alberta

I looked at the listings in order, writing down the shipping cost for the first 15 listings without GSP and the first 15 listings using GSP

Results

Without GSP

Shipping prices ranged from $19-$40

average shipping price $29

With GSP

Shipping prices ranged from $15-$30

average shipping price $23.25

The second search was using best match for Coach leather totes

Results

Without GSP

Shipping prices ranged from $11-$36

average shipping price $26

With GSP

Shipping prices ranged from $11-$26

average shipping price $19

Obviously that is just a small sample and it doesn't prove anything. Perhaps if I had checked smaller items, the result might have been different.  But the results do suggest that your statement "shipping costs skyrocket with the GSP" may not be accurate.

[pierrelebel]

Thank you PJ for taking the time to present facts. 

That is something often missing in those discussion about GSP.  Too much assumption about this and that.

[marnotom!]

I would add that since a chunk of the shipping price on a GSP item is whatever the seller is charging to ship the item from their location to the Global Shipping Center, the seller's domestic shipping rate can have quite an effect on the shipping rate charged by the GSP.