@marnotom! wrote:
@arlene_v wrote:
Is it legal under Canadian law for for a company to charge Canadian tax and duty, and yet not be obliged to provide taxpayers with the exact amounts charged? Does a company's T&C override Canadian law?
I'm not a lawyer so I can't answer these questions. That is why I would very much like this program to be subject to serious legal scrutiny. Maybe what is legal in one country is not in another?
The precedent is worrying. This is not what Canadians are accustomed to. We are very used to paying tax all the time, day in and day out, LOL, but we know the charges exactly to the last cent.
As for action, I agree. Something other than posting here needs to happen.
eBay or Pitney Bowes has argued that it's not charging tax and duty, at least in the sense that you and I generally know it. Pitney Bowes as appointed "importer" pays the tax and duty owing on a GSP item. What the buyer effectively does is pay Pitney Bowes that money back out of those mysterious import charges.
It's been brought up in this discussion at least once that the process in which Pitney Bowes gets granted power of attorney so that it can be considered "importer of record" may be questionable since nothing is ever signed to grant this. I don't know how much substance there is to this argument, but that's probably what should be looked at first rather than the issue of the GSP "charging tax and duty".
Thanks for that additional info Marnotom!
I found this info online as a guide to Non-Resident Importers of Record ....
http://www.livingstonintl.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/NRI-Managing-your-tax-responsibilities-as-a...
"Even though you may not have a permanent establishment
in Canada, you may be considered to be “carrying on
business in Canada”, in which case, you’d be required to pay
GST/HST if your worldwide revenues are more than $30,000
CAD.
If you do register for GST/HST, you’ll need to collect it from
your customers on behalf of the Government of Canada.
(The GST/HST should be indicated as a separate amount
on the commercial invoice.) ...
If you choose not to register for GST/HST, you’ll still be
required to pay GST to Customs when importing your
goods. A non-registrant is not legally allowed to collect GST,
however you should include the GST/HST in the selling price
as a cost (GST/HST must not be shown as a separate line
item on the commercial or Canada Customs Invoice)."
Then I found this page:
http://www.trilliumcustomsbrokers.com/TCB/nri.html
To quote.
"Should you choose not to register, then a copy of the Canada Customs entry evidencing the amount of GST paid must support your invoice to your client.... It is also important to ensure that the tax you pass on will match the amount paid at the border."
This article also clearly states "Non-Registrant (importers of record ) must supply Canadian customers with a copy of their B3 (Canadian Import Entry) to substantiate the GST paid status of the goods purchased.
Sorry for the verbiage, but my reading (not a lawyer, though) is that amounts paid in GST (and HST) should be made clear to the Canadian customer (ie eBay buyer) by the importer of record (ie PB) whether PB is registered to collect tax or not.
Which is currently not the case.
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