Are U.S. sellers losing canadian customers because of Ebay Global Shipping Program`s import fees?

[gerard488]

I avoid US sellers and buy from China when possible because of this. After the exchange rate, after shipping costs then Ebay charges me an import fee with the Global shipping program. A lot of U.S. sellers don`t even know this but on an item that costs $15.05 US, Ebay charges me 6.59 US for bringing it across the border even though it is sent US Postal Service. If the seller were to send it directly to me via US postal service there is usually no extra charge on anything less than $40.

On a $40 item, Ebay`s Global Shipping charges me about $11.32. Because of this, I am not buying as much from the US and more from China or elsewhere. I feel sure that a lot of Canadian buyers feel the same'

Gerard488

[ricarmic]

Totally agree with PJC how many times have we seen sellers stop selling to a given country, or continent, or internationally after their first loss?

I also think the GSP was to give the US sellers the "warm and cozy" feeling about selling internationally....

[lady.stark]

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@sylviebee wrote:

With a few tweaks it could even become a pretty good program.

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It already has improved a lot since it was introduced. First, combined shipping is now available, which is great.

But mostly, if you know how it works, it can be very advantageous. For example, I recently purchased 3 items for a total of US $185 with free domestic shipping. Considering the kind of items (TV props), most sellers would use Priority Mail over First Class to ship this. It would cost about US $40 to ship - without knowing if taxes would be charged upon receipt (in my experience, Priority shipments always attract customs more often than First Class shipments - so chances are I would have been charged fees). GSP charges were US $37.77 including shipping. So it was in my favour to use GSP and not ask the seller if he would ship without it.

[pierrelebel]

Russ Patterson, the operation manager at eBay-Canada, gave a fairly good explanation of the program today:

"We've heard the feedback that ideally the actual duties and taxes should be split out, so they can be claimed as an input tax among other things, but that isn't possible for the program as designed today, because the buyer is actually paying estimated duties and taxes, not actual duties and taxes. The buyer gets price certainty, and our partners lose on some transactions and gain on others. To be explicit and accurate up front, we'd need to have a different kind of program. And if we do that, we're giving up on providing price certainty, which was part of the point in the first place. "

[hlmacdon]

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@pierrelebel wrote:

Russ Patterson, the operation manager at eBay-Canada, gave a fairly good explanation of the program today:

"the buyer is actually paying estimated duties and taxes, not actual duties and taxes. The buyer gets price certainty, and our partners lose on some transactions and gain on others. To be explicit and accurate up front, we'd need to have a different kind of program. And if we do that, we're giving up on providing price certainty, which was part of the point in the first place. "

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I can see the point there given the issues with the accuracy of seller declarations. Not as transparent as would be liked but the buyer at least knows what they are getting into ahead of time.

[femmefan1946]

Yes. And with the exception of B2B buyers,  the exact numbers are unnecessary.

And of course PB has covered that by stating that they do not cover B2B sales. (Although businesses , buyer or seller, often don't want to know that.)

There's a big difference between want to know and need to know.

[bkarnot]

Global shipping has wrecked my business. I sell stickers but can no longer buy anymore because of the global shipping rate. Shipping can be as high as $25 for one sticker!!! Sellers have no idea the impact on other countries. Far as I'm concerned ebay looses money with the program, if your like me you don't buy anymore. Too bad because I'm sure eBay doesn't read these forums. Ebay Canada needs to support buyers.

[ypdc_dennis]

Zombie thread

Only sellers in the USA or the UK can use the GSP.

Buyers can ask the seller who has GSP if they are willing to allow direct shipping to Canada. Point them at the eBay.com help file that has a section that tells them how to convert an active listing.

http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/shipping-globally.html

USPS International First class

https://www.usps.com/international/first-class-mail-international.htm (has tracking for parcels to Canada when the label is bought online)

-..-

[femmefan1946]

I sell stickers but can no longer buy anymore because of the global shipping rate.

Do you consistently buy from the same US or UK suppliers for your online stock?

Perhaps it is time to go to your PP account and find the email address for those suppliers.

Not necessarily as off-eBay sales, but they can set up listings for you, as a repeat and trusted customer.

The supplier makes a normal listing, but without the GSP and with First Class International Package shipping.

https://postcalc.usps.com/?country=10440

It's under the Size and  Shape icon and waaaaaaay down at the bottom of the list.

I get the impression that USPS doesn't want to tell users about a relatively cheap, Delivery Confirmed service.

Note that any import valued at $20Cdn (~$16USD) MIGHT be stopped by CBSA for duty and Sales Taxes plus a $9.95 service fee to Canada Post.

Small and low value parcels tend to be ignored. Think of it as the 6/49 of importation.

The GSP, as noted, is only available to US and UK sellers. So buying Canadian (or Chinese) means no GSP.

I'm sure eBay doesn't read these forums.

They basically don't. You are talking to your fellow sellers on this Board.

While we don't much like the GSP as buyers, as sellers it means we are in the catbird seat.

Our Canadian customers also hate the program and it does not affect our exports to the USA.

[bkarnot]

Thanks for the info. I was aware that sellers can modify the listing to opt out, however, it is just too complicated for most sellers to figure it this out, OR they are just to busy to take the time to do it (like me), OR are suspicious to modify it (the program intention is to provide protection, and now some Canadian is asking to remove that protection).

GSP is a total joke. Today I had to buy two stickers I was interested in. Stickers folks, guess the weight. I payed $22.50 for the GSP. This was with combined shipping!!! I change $5 for a shipping and at that some people complain. A sticker costs only one stamp to mail, in case anyone was wondering.

I've even bought on shirts and other apparel and see how other Canadians get BURNED by the program. I see the enormous import charges.

Again the US sellers don't see the impact, they click a button, and the app "conveniently protects you", but they are unaware of the brutally high calculations.

Would be nice if Ebay could recognize this issue and work it out in a fair way. I don't mind committing to a little more for protection, but $20-$30 to send a few stickers in an envelope is outrageous. I'm not a complainer by nature.

[dutchman48]

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@bkarnot wrote:
Thanks for the info. I was aware that sellers can modify the listing to opt out, however, it is just too complicated for most sellers to figure it this out, OR they are just to busy to take the time to do it (like me), OR are suspicious to modify it (the program intention is to provide protection, and now some Canadian is asking to remove that protection).

GSP is a total joke. Today I had to buy two stickers I was interested in. Stickers folks, guess the weight. I payed $22.50 for the GSP. This was with combined shipping!!! I change $5 for a shipping and at that some people complain. A sticker costs only one stamp to mail, in case anyone was wondering.

I've even bought on shirts and other apparel and see how other Canadians get BURNED by the program. I see the enormous import charges.

Again the US sellers don't see the impact, they click a button, and the app "conveniently protects you", but they are unaware of the brutally high calculations.

Would be nice if Ebay could recognize this issue and work it out in a fair way. I don't mind committing to a little more for protection, but $20-$30 to send a few stickers in an envelope is outrageous. I'm not a complainer by nature.

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Old thread

The US does not need Canadian buyers. They marginally tolerate us and only worry about protecting themselves.

I refuse to buy from anyone using GSP in the US or the UK, I don't care what they sell.

You could make the same decision, but I gather you wanted the items very badly.

[bkarnot]

I wish I purchased from a single supplier.  I buy stock from many sellers.  I used to be very active, now it's about navigating the sea of listings and ignoring the ones who use GSP.  One hack I discovered is if you change your address in the App to a US address, win the auction, you can message the seller before you pay that you moved to Canada and negotiate a little more postage.  I've had that backfire a few times if sellers miss that detail and you lose your item 🙂

Yeah buying from China is no issue.

Totally see the benefit for the program for Sellers, but again I think Sellers are unaware of the other countries that want to participate in US auctions but don't.  It's not just little old me that impacted, it's every other country other than the US.

[bkarnot]

Agree this is a protection mechanism. But eBay does need Canada and International sales to work so they can deliver value to shareholders.

I'm the same for most part, I avoid majority of GSP auctions, but I run a side business online and need to continue buying product. At the point of trying to find a US citizen to hold my cargo for a few months, send it back to Canada for a fee. LOL

[marnotom!]

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@bkarnot wrote:

GSP is a total joke. Today I had to buy two stickers I was interested in. Stickers folks, guess the weight. I payed $22.50 for the GSP. This was with combined shipping!!! I change $5 for a shipping and at that some people complain. A sticker costs only one stamp to mail, in case anyone was wondering.

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Probably without realizing it, you've discovered why the GSP often charges outlandish shipping rates for small, lightweight items.

If the seller doesn't provide the GSP "bot" with any useful information on an item's packaged shipping size and weight, the "bot" has to take a guess, or base the shipping price on an average for the category.  If the seller is sending the stickers domestically as letters, it's unlikely that the GSP bot will know the size of the shipment.

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@bkarnot wrote:

I've even bought on shirts and other apparel and see how other Canadians get BURNED by the program. I see the enormous import charges.

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Getting confused now.  Are you still referring to the shipping charges, or are you now referring to the import charges, which are something different?

[pjcdn2005]

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@marnotom! wrote:

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@bkarnot wrote:

GSP is a total joke. Today I had to buy two stickers I was interested in. Stickers folks, guess the weight. I payed $22.50 for the GSP. This was with combined shipping!!! I change $5 for a shipping and at that some people complain. A sticker costs only one stamp to mail, in case anyone was wondering.

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Probably without realizing it, you've discovered why the GSP often charges outlandish shipping rates for small, lightweight items.

If the seller doesn't provide the GSP "bot" with any useful information on an item's packaged shipping size and weight, the "bot" has to take a guess, or base the shipping price on an average for the category.  If the seller is sending the stickers domestically as letters, it's unlikely that the GSP bot will know the size of the shipment.

GSP used for a small amount stickers is always going to cost too much even if the correct measurements are put in simply because the minimum shipping cost for the gsp is around $15. 

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[momcqueen]

Zombie thread dated 11-23-2015 03:21:00 PM @happy_pigeon. Thanks.

[marnotom!]

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@pjcdn2005 wrote:

GSP used for a small amount stickers is always going to cost too much even if the correct measurements are put in simply because the minimum shipping cost for the gsp is around $15. 

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This is true.  The GSP is structured to be competitive with parcel post, not letter post.  And once the item's in Canada, it's likely to travel by some variation of parcel post.

Getting the item to Canada is likely dirt cheap.  It's the cost of transporting the item within Canada that likely makes up the bulk of the GSP's share of the shipping charges.

[salonist7]

ebay global shipping program disgusts me

what did i use to buy $10,000.00 a year

today, it's $0.00 cause of your global shipping


there are tons of us deal sites, with exceptional pricing and i no longer have to bid and wait

i just order

i rather use amazon.com and use the services of a cross border shipper

[momcqueen]

There are literally millions of sellers on ebay that DO NOT use the Global Shipping Program including all the Canadian sellers on these boards that did nothing to deserve your vitriol.