eBay

dinomitesales · ‎09-06-2025

[I posted this earlier but it was removed by the mods for reasons that don't make any sense to me, but who am I to argue with the AI that controls these forums. I've rewritten it to hopefully avoid that from happening again]

For those of us that have decided to use Zonos please be diligent when using it. It seems as though there are still known errors in how certain HTS codes are being processed. If the app is telling you that zero dollars is owing, but you think that shouldn't be the case, then I highly recommend reaching out to their support team for clarification. Thankfully, their support has been responsive and helpful.

Here’s my conversation with them regarding a shipment I tried creating that was telling me there was $0 duty owing (HTS code 9403.70.40.15, CoO Canada, Value $100). I asked them for clarification as to why the IEEPA rate of 35% for Canada wasn't applying to this particular category (furniture made of plastic).

Zonos:
Thanks for flagging, we have fixed this. I just ran a quote and got the IEEPA rate. There was an issue with our logic and the ch 94 codes in our database. That has been resolved.

Me:

Okay so just curious - had I sent out this product while paying zero duty (as it was telling me), what would have happened at the border? Would my package have been rejected? Would I have been charged?

Zonos:

It is likely your package would have been rejected.

[aside: yes, this was their actual response verbatim, in full lol]

Me:

Well that is frustrating. How can we as sellers trust this service then? We’re paying you to ensure our packages cross the border properly and smoothly.

Zonos:

I understand how frustrating this feels. Border processes can sometimes be unpredictable, but the goal is always to make things as smooth as possible. We’re here to help work through these situations and make sure you have the clarity and support you need moving forward.

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So yeah, just do your due diligence. For many, it might be easier to wait until all the kinks are worked out before relying heavily on this option for shipping to the States.

dinomitesales · ‎09-06-2025

I also asked another question that I had seen pop up in a few other places: vinyl records from Germany were showing up as duty owed so I asked why.

Me:

I do have one other question maybe you can answer. It's been brought up on a couple of forums. From what I understand there is a carve-out in the IEEPA regulations that allows "informational materials" to pass through duty free into the USA. This is why things like DVDs, audio CDs, and books are showing zero dollars duty on Zonos regardless of country of origin. We thought it would also apply to vinyl records (HTS 8523.80.1000), since it applies to CDs. But there seems to be some anomalies when trying to process a vinyl record on Zonos. For example it will show zero duties if the country of origin is USA/Canada/Mexico/UK (those are the ones I've tested), but will show a duty owing if the vinyl record is made in Germany. Do you know why that is? All my testing has been with a value of $25 CAD. Thanks in advance.

Zonos:

It turns out this was related to the previous bug — not as resolved as I originally thought. I know it’s extra frustrating since you’d already reached out to us about that earlier issue, and I’m really sorry you’ve had to flag yet another one.

You’re correct about the IEEPA carve-out for informational materials — it should apply consistently to vinyl records just as it does to CDs, DVDs, and books. The fact that you were seeing duty assessed on German-origin vinyl is unintended behavior tied to that bug.

Our team is actively working on a fix, and I’ll keep you updated as soon as it’s ready.

Thank you again for catching this and for your patience. We really appreciate the thoughtful way you’ve engaged with us on these questions. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you spot anything else — you clearly have a keen eye. Again very sorry about this.

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They actually sent a follow-up a few hours later saying that glitch has been fixed. So those of you that were having issues declaring records from various European nations, you're welcome lol.

cottagewoman · ‎09-06-2025

To rebuild what was originally posted - if Zonos wants to pay me a QA employee salary, I'll let them know about the issues I've noted and posted in another thread. Otherwise forget it. This is such a big problem as this was so rushed out. Imagine shipping 100s of packages a day , set everything up to integrate with Zonos and automated billing trusting their solution, and then getting 100s of returned, rejected packages. Not good!