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Purchasing Canadian items for US consumption. Brokerage fees? (Page 1/3) |
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Raydar
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MAR 18, 04:13 PM
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I recently purchased a couple pieces of used stereo equipment thru eBay, from a seller in Canada. Worked out to ~$200 USD, plus shipping. It was shipped via the Postal Service. I received a USPS tracking number, almost immediately.
The only other times I have purchased anything from Canada, it was large pieces (a decklid spoiler, and a set of wheels/tires) so a commercial carrier was used. (DHL, I think?) A few days after those shipments arrived, I received a not-so-insignificant bill for "brokerage fees".
It was my understanding that brokerage fees are not charged if the Postal Service handled the shipping. Is that true? If it's not true, how much should I expect to pay for a $200 USD purchase? Or... what happens if I just ignore the bill? (Hey... I'm not in Canada. )
Thanks!
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Patrick
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MAR 18, 05:08 PM
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quote | Originally posted by Raydar:
It was my understanding that brokerage fees are not charged if the Postal Service handled the shipping. Is that true?
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No sir! I recently got burned by an eBay purchase from the States, when the vendor did not choose the option for eBay to collect the taxes and duty along with the shipping fees. (Yes, eBay's International Shipping program was used by the vendor, but without choosing the correct options.) In my case, Canada Post would not release the package to me until I paid the taxes, duty, and "collection" fee. Pissed me off. The vendor actually gave me a nice partial refund due to his mistake, so all was forgiven.
quote | Originally posted by Raydar:
Or... what happens if I just ignore the bill? (Hey... I'm not in Canada. )
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Your outstanding bill is to the USPS ![This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 03-18-2024).]
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maryjane
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MAR 18, 06:09 PM
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quote | Originally posted by Patrick:
Your outstanding bill is to the USPS !
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And never take them lightly. Delivering the mail is simply a front for this 1/2 million person uniformed, mobile army of a sleeper cell just waiting to be called into action. Think about it. They know where you live, they know what hours and which days you're home and when you are away. The know if you are married and know how many children you have. In 95% of cases, they know what kind and what color vehicles you own and drive. They know who your creditors and lenders are. They know if you have video security or canine protection. A highly trained and capable, all weather, all terrain, urban, suburban and rural day and night potential fighting force able to endure heat, traffic, freezing temperatures, rain, snow high winds and, they know every highway and back road in their area of operations. Don't pizz 'em off! He who controls the mail controls the.........[This message has been edited by maryjane (edited 03-18-2024).]
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Raydar
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MAR 18, 08:07 PM
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quote | Originally posted by maryjane:
And never take them lightly. Delivering the mail is simply a front for this 1/2 million person uniformed, mobile army of a sleeper cell just waiting to be called into action. Think about it. They know where you live, they know what hours and which days you're home and when you are away. The know if you are married and know how many children you have. In 95% of cases, they know what kind and what color vehicles you own and drive. They know who your creditors and lenders are. They know if you have video security or canine protection. A highly trained and capable, all weather, all terrain, urban, suburban and rural day and night potential fighting force able to endure heat, traffic, freezing temperatures, rain, snow high winds and, they know every highway and back road in their area of operations. Don't pizz 'em off! He who controls the mail controls the.........
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Meh... Based upon my most recent experience, they'll never find me. Or at least not quickly. They'll bounce around between Palmetto and Atlanta for a couple of weeks. Maybe camp in a trailer for a few days. Maybe they'll make their way here, eventually. I'll just tell them that my payment is in the mail. That being the case, they won't expect it for another couple of weeks. Or hell... maybe the bill itself will get lost in the mail.
This is all based upon a package that was mailed from Indiana, something like 12 days ago. It finally found its way here, today. They can't find their own butts with both hands. ![](https://www.fiero.nl/forum/biggrin.gif)
But yeah... if it's the USPS, I'll just go ahead and pay them. We're actually friends with our mail carrier. Now if it were DHL... ![](https://www.fiero.nl/forum/tongue.gif) [This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 03-18-2024).]
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cliffw
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MAR 19, 07:55 AM
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quote | Originally posted by maryjane:
And never take them lightly. Delivering the mail is simply a front for this 1/2 million person uniformed, mobile army of a sleeper cell just waiting to be called into action. Think about it. They know where you live, they know what hours and which days you're home and when you are away. The know if you are married and know how many children you have. In 95% of cases, they know what kind and what color vehicles you own and drive. They know who your creditors and lenders are. They know if you have video security or canine protection. A highly trained and capable, all weather, all terrain, urban, suburban and rural day and night potential fighting force able to endure heat, traffic, freezing temperatures, rain, snow high winds and, they know every highway and back road in their area of operations. Don't pizz 'em off! He who controls the mail controls the.........
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Mickey_Moose
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MAR 19, 01:09 PM
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"Brokerage fees" - bane of existence.
Now I know here in Canada a person can self clear customs and forgo these usually unreasonable brokerage fees. Basically the process here is:
- get the paper work from the carrier (here in Canada you have to right to self clear ad they need to supply it if requested). - visit local customs office and submit the paper work to them. - pay any taxes required and they give you a sheet in return that you send back to the courier company.
There are no forms you need to fill out (at least here in Canada).
Easy peezey. Beats paying a $60+ "brokerage fee" for just submitting some paper work. You will always have to pay the taxes, but no need to pay all the extra fees.
My only complaint is that our local customs office has moved out to our airport vs being downtown before, so a bit further drive (but parking is easier and free now). ![](https://www.fiero.nl/forum/wink.gif)
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Patrick
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MAR 19, 06:36 PM
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quote | Originally posted by Mickey_Moose:
Easy peezey. Beats paying a $60+ "brokerage fee" for just submitting some paper work. You will always have to pay the taxes, but no need to pay all the extra fees.
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What has your experience been in regards to Canada Post collecting duty, as well as the taxes? I was a bit surprised when Canada Post collected duty on a $103(CDN) purchase (converted from US funds) on an eBay item shipped from the States. When driving across the border with a cross-border purchase, anything under $200(CDN) is just waived through... no taxes, no duty. Now granted, we're not talking big bucks here, but I had to pay Canada Post an extra $32 for a $103 purchase. It just seemed petty to have to pay that much more for such low dollar item. (None of these figures include the additional cost of the actual shipping fees.)
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cliffw
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MAR 20, 08:07 AM
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quote | Originally posted by Patrick: What has your experience been in regards to Canada Post collecting duty, as well as the taxes? |
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What is duty ?
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maryjane
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MAR 20, 09:36 AM
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quote | Originally posted by cliffw:
What is duty ? |
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Customs Duty is usually an import tariff. It is there to supposedly protect a country's economy by financially restricting the inflow of goods from another country.
You can read all about USA duty tariff:
https://www.cbp.gov/travel/...0of%20the%20country.
I bought lots of stuff when I was overseas and brought a lot or shipped it back to the US. I had to 'declare it' but was exempt from duty tariff because of my active duty military status.[This message has been edited by maryjane (edited 03-20-2024).]
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Mickey_Moose
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MAR 20, 12:17 PM
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quote | Originally posted by Patrick:
What has your experience been in regards to Canada Post collecting duty, as well as the taxes? I was a bit surprised when Canada Post collected duty on a $103(CDN) purchase (converted from US funds) on an eBay item shipped from the States. When driving across the border with a cross-border purchase, anything under $200(CDN) is just waived through... no taxes, no duty. Now granted, we're not talking big bucks here, but I had to pay Canada Post an extra $32 for a $103 purchase. It just seemed petty to have to pay that much more for such low dollar item. (None of these figures include the additional cost of the actual shipping fees.) |
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I have never had to pay duty on anything on got in the mail or other.
You also don't have to pay duty/taxes on anything that you bring back to Canada when you cross the border up to $800/person (assuming 48 hours from when you left). ![](https://www.fiero.nl/forum/wink.gif)
$200 is 24 hours.[This message has been edited by Mickey_Moose (edited 03-20-2024).]
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