If you reside in Canada - and purchase an item from the USA - you need to educate yourself as to the fact that you WILL be paying applicable taxes and possibly duties on the item when it crosses the border into Canada.
Yes, if the item is shipped by postal service, your "brokerage handling fee" will be a nominal $5 or $8 - plus the applicable taxes for your province (and possibly duties, but seldom are they charged.)
And yes, MANY times the items shipped by postal service are NOT charged taxes or duties incoming - so sometimes you will escape paying the taxes that are due to the Canadian and provincial governments.
However, you should ALWAYS - and I stress ALWAYS! - calculate the cost of the taxes and possibly duties into the decision to make a purchase internationally.
Additionally, if your item is sent by the USA seller (or other international seller) through a courier service (for example, UPS, FEDEX, DHL, etc.) then your applicable brokerage fee will be upwards of $25, on a sliding scale dependent upon the value of the incoming item.
Yes, these fees (brokerage, tax, duty) are ALL part of the cost of buying an item internationally and having it shipped to you in Canada.
It is NOT up to the seller to pay these for you - YOU are the importer of record - YOU are the one who will be billed for these charges - YOU are the one who will NOT get your parcel until you pay these charges.
So - before hitting the "BID NOW" button, do a bit of calculating and make an informed decision to see if it is really worth getting that imported widget!
Happy Bidding, Folks!
:-D
Yes, if the item is shipped by postal service, your "brokerage handling fee" will be a nominal $5 or $8 - plus the applicable taxes for your province (and possibly duties, but seldom are they charged.)
And yes, MANY times the items shipped by postal service are NOT charged taxes or duties incoming - so sometimes you will escape paying the taxes that are due to the Canadian and provincial governments.
However, you should ALWAYS - and I stress ALWAYS! - calculate the cost of the taxes and possibly duties into the decision to make a purchase internationally.
Additionally, if your item is sent by the USA seller (or other international seller) through a courier service (for example, UPS, FEDEX, DHL, etc.) then your applicable brokerage fee will be upwards of $25, on a sliding scale dependent upon the value of the incoming item.
Yes, these fees (brokerage, tax, duty) are ALL part of the cost of buying an item internationally and having it shipped to you in Canada.
It is NOT up to the seller to pay these for you - YOU are the importer of record - YOU are the one who will be billed for these charges - YOU are the one who will NOT get your parcel until you pay these charges.
So - before hitting the "BID NOW" button, do a bit of calculating and make an informed decision to see if it is really worth getting that imported widget!
Happy Bidding, Folks!
:-D
That's OK......they all wear high heels and frilly undergarments, anyway, don't they? ]:) :^O
and now that we know, so perhaps does the government... and they'll be out looking for people WORKING on the reserves and reciving international parcels at WORK address instead of home address....
sooner or later, that kind of thing catches up to you
sooner or later, that kind of thing catches up to you
they will catch on to that - how many people can you POSSIBLY be sending gifts to in a year's time???
Not only that, but should an item be over what the gift allowed amount is (different countries have different amounts), the buyer could very well be responsible for paying additional charges, something that they may not have to if the parcel was marked correctly.
Rick
Rick
I'm not a Native American, so no tax breaks for me, but I can live with that, what bothers me are outrageous courier charges.
I've discovered, that unless it's mentioned by the seller that they will ship to you with USPS, you can expect a courier.
Before bidding, ask what they are using to ship the item, and after you win confirm that they will actually use it to ship your item.
I actually had one seller promise to ship with USPS, and then shipped it with UPS cause it was cheaper, and also he thought UPS and USPS were the same.
So now I don't tell them USPS any more but United States Postal Service. And hey, there are so many Yanks who have no clue where Canada is, so should it surprise you that some don't know what USPS means?
Thanks to canuckchat for a great original post, and he's so right. Informed buyers always do best.
Oh my Sweet Je....Skeksis!!!!
I've discovered, that unless it's mentioned by the seller that they will ship to you with USPS, you can expect a courier.
Before bidding, ask what they are using to ship the item, and after you win confirm that they will actually use it to ship your item.
I actually had one seller promise to ship with USPS, and then shipped it with UPS cause it was cheaper, and also he thought UPS and USPS were the same.
So now I don't tell them USPS any more but United States Postal Service. And hey, there are so many Yanks who have no clue where Canada is, so should it surprise you that some don't know what USPS means?
Thanks to canuckchat for a great original post, and he's so right. Informed buyers always do best.
Oh my Sweet Je....Skeksis!!!!
Very good thread...deserves a bump to the top for others.
