Ebay FORCES Me to Pay CP Import Charge and Return Shipping to Get a Refund!

[emie_ca_bsqltgseam]

The item I bought from Ebay has delivery by Canada Post when I was not home. CP left me a notice stating they're holding my item as well as there's an amount of fee due for the item. I believe it's for import charges, which was I was totally not expected to pay for. I've read from most of you guys saying if I refuse the delivery, I will forfeit Ebay's Money Back Guarantee Policy. And if I accept the item, I'll need to pay for the import fee as well as return shipping fee.....which totally sucks because I will get neither back!! What should I do??

[mrdutch1001]

Any time one purchases items of any significant value from the USA and/or elsewhere, the buyer is responsible for any and all import duties, taxes, delivery charges, etc...

I guess you have to ask yourself "what's the item worth to me"? and I think you have to decide that....

[marnotom!]

The import charges you're likely going to be paying are the same sales taxes you'd pay if you purchased from a Canadian seller plus a ten dollar fee from Canada Post for collecting the taxes on behalf of the Canada Revenue Agency.  There may be duty charged as well, but as Canada has free trade agreements with many countries now and many imports are duty-free anyway, I think the odds of you being charged for duty are pretty low.

If you really don't think the item is worth paying taxes and a modest processing fee on, and returning it to the seller in order to get the item price plus your taxes back is not a cost-effective option, I think your only other practical option would be to sell the item yourself for an amount with which you feel comfortable.

[reallynicestamps]

Canadians pay import fees of duty and sales taxes on imported goods.

Under CUSMA (the current iteration of NAFTA) imports from the USA have a duty free allowance of $150Cdn* and a tax free allowance of $40Cdn.

If it is from any other country the duty and tax free allowances are based on a $20 USD value.

Canada Post and CBSA have had a (mildly illegal) policy of ignoring imports valued under $100 or so, because it costs the taxpayer too much to assess and collect the import fees.  Couriers have always had too, and there is an archived thread over 5000 posts long complaining about that.

The new eIS program is a Seller Protection. Unlike the earlier GSP**, import fees are not paid in advance.

It is likely that the amount due is not the duty, but the sales taxes. The same ones you would pay at Canadian Tire or WalMart.

So somewhere between 5% and 13% of the value of your purchase.

Plus a $9.95 service fee from Canada Post.

Again, this is a Seller Protection program and has nothing in particular that is meant to be helpful to the buyer.

*About $120 USD.

** One complaint about the GSP was that "shipping" was too high. Much of that cost seems to actually have been those prepaid import fees.

[reallynicestamps]

And if I accept the item, I'll need to pay for the import fee as well as return shipping fee.....which totally sucks because I will get neither back!!

One or the other, not both.

If you refuse the shipment, you will not be required to pay import fees. The package will eventually make it back to your seller.

The seller, as you have said, is not required to refund on an Undeliverable/refused purchase.

If you accept the shipment, you will be required to pay import fees and service fee. If you then decide to return it, you can make a claim with CBSA for the import fees, and the cost of the return shipping label may be on you or on the seller depending on your reason for return.

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

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@emie_ca_bsqltgseam wrote:
The item I bought from Ebay has delivery by Canada Post when I was not home. CP left me a notice stating they're holding my item as well as there's an amount of fee due for the item. I believe it's for import charges, which was I was totally not expected to pay for. I've read from most of you guys saying if I refuse the delivery, I will forfeit Ebay's Money Back Guarantee Policy. And if I accept the item, I'll need to pay for the import fee as well as return shipping fee.....which totally sucks because I will get neither back!! What should I do??

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@emie_ca_bsqltgseam 

Just a small followup to what has already been posted. When you buy from an international seller you should one of the following:

or this:

They have changed what gets displayed and where you find this info over the last number of years but you should always pay attention to if it is collected in advance or at delivery. Really all depends on the method  your item is being shipped. Options/fees can and do vary between the post office and couriers. Best to note prior to hitting the buy button.

-Lotz

[emie_ca_bsqltgseam]

I don't buy things often on Ebay so I'm totally clueless with this kind of stuffs. This is the first time that it happens and I lowkey feel like I'm being scammed. But thank you, I'll pay a lot more attention next time.

[reallynicestamps]

I get that.

Everyone hates paying for shipping and for taxes/duty.

But there they are.

It would have been possible for Mulroney to allow businesses to include the new GST in the  price of goods, as is done in Europe, but like Tory governments before him, they actively wanted voters to be unhappy about paying those taxes. /rant