CANADIANS: Read before you purchase from the USA!!!

[canuckchat]

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

[neal.currie]

I just wrote a guide on this topic after reading your post.

It's main purpose is to help people with calculations where:

"Well I'll spend $350 Canadian Dollars on that watch, how much can I bid in US Dollars so I don't go over $350 after shipping it across the border?"

And

"If I bid $140 US Dollars on that camera lens, how much will it cost me in Canadian Dollars by the time it gets to me?"

[canadannarama]

Very many US sellers will refuse to mark "gift" on the customs form because this is illegal for them to do. Most of them, if they sell much on Ebay, are known at their post offices as Ebay sellers, so they do not want to risk it.

The only thing I do (as most of the stuff I purchase are not big ticket items) is to ask politely that they ensure to mark only the amount I won the auction for on the form, not the original retail price.

I once purchased a baby dress, gently used, which was a $50 dress originally however I paid $14 for it. When the seller shipped she put the original retail price on it, which gave me a tax and customs duty bill of almost $20. No way did I want to pay more on a used clothing item than I had even paid the seller! So I refused the package, it got sent back to her. I expained the problem to her and she apologized profusely for the trouble. Apparently she thought she was doing me a favour - go figure! Anyway, she re-shipped it to me, and we split the cost of the second shipping bill. This time it arrived in my mailbox with no problem. This is now the worlds best travelled baby dress, two trips from Florida and back!

[randall-prue]

Yeah, some smug little bunny just informed me that he bought the same item (as mine) from the US, for "less".

I really wanna see what it actually costs him if someday it arrives.

2007: Granny goes to jail. Read my predictions and tales of eBay misadventure.

[ferret-mom]

It should also be remembered that if the item is over the limit even by 1 cent, the whole amount is taxable.

Which can be a problem when currency values fluctuate on a daily basis, since the value that is calculated for assessment purposes is based on the day's rate.

In other words, it is always wise to allow for a slight rise in the value of the Canuck Buck between the time the auction ends, and the time the parcel crosses the border.

[maxmillion7007]

good thread...

... "bump" -------------------------------------------------------------
Let Darwinism work.
Remove safety labels and warnings for the blindingly obvious.

[canuckchat]

burp

[cool_purple_dude]

Does belch count?

[canuckchat]

[canuckchat]

bump

[aquafina_green]

Ok, I get how any item valued over $20 gets taxed plus commission. But if you sell an item to a US buyer and it's worth, say $100. The US buyer pays no duty under $200. However, let's say the buyer is not happy with the product and returns it. Would the seller have to pay duties plus commission on the returned item? How would the buyer declare it? Should they include the original invoice? Anyone know? Thanks. aqua

[canuckchat]

No, its an item being returned to the original country it was sent from.

[marniel2005]

But the item should be MARKED as "return" or Customs might charge you anyway. Including a copy of the invoice would be a good idea, not just for Customs but for the seller to keep track of who returned the item.

[graver42]

Hi, noob heree

I'd like to ask a question

I won an item that was less than 20 CAD, but when I placed the item# on the "Myborderpro" website there was a postal fee & taxes on it.

Is the site 100% credible on this? which items might get no taxes?

Thanks

[marniel2005]

Myborderpro is handy as a guide, but you can't count on it. Probably wrong as often as it's right.

What is your item number?

[graver42]

Item #: 160084300972

[s.brake]

Sometimes using a courier service can be worthwhile despite the higher duty charges.
I bought 2 extremely expensive items with a value coming close to $4K in C$. Using Fedex was a deliberate choice for insurance and delivery purposes.
Fedex picked up the items on February 2nd and by the 4th it was lost in their system; it's amazing how it went from Arizona, to Mississauga and back to Memphis all in 2 days. Supposedly, the person who originally handled the item "went on a course" and the issue of where the item is still open.
I am lucky to have a seller, whom I have dealt with before, who is willing to put an effort into finding the items. We are both disappointed as the one item is irreplacable. In addition, I think she is a seller who does not spend her proceeds in advance and a refund will not be an issue. I do believe that a good number of "item not received" claims become contentious because the seller has already spent the proceeds prior to ensuring that the client is satisfied.
Any ideas as to what to do with Fedex would be appreciated by both of us.

[adam12adam12]

Bump-e-de-bump. I think that could be a typo.

[canuckchat]

[rockabodyboutique]

Well I wish I had seen this before I have bought lots from US and guess I slid through as the first time having shipped UPS I just got a bill for $25 So I paid over $100 for a bread box. Ha ha I still love the item so worth it in long run! I will not buy from buyers that send courier and hope I slide through on reg mail.

[maxmillion7007]

this should be made a full on sticky.... -------------------------------------------------------------
Let Darwinism work.
Remove safety labels and warnings for the blindingly obvious.