My Experience re. shipping to Canada

[Little_Kopit]

Yes, anything being imported with a price over $20.00 should have the GST collected, most of the time.

Sometimes, when you've bought used off a market site, such as Ebay, they will not collect the GST. Their option their rules.

What is the most maddening is that there is a difference in fees charged for the shipper to collect that GST. My most recent experience is:

- Postal Services Us, Au......, = $5.00 collection fee
- UPS $20.00 up to a value of $200.00 $30.00 after that.

Beyond that I have no personal experience.

:C

Yes, I have been known to ask an Ebay seller to ship via their postal service and explained my preference.

[JaxDad]

robatthelake wrote:
Compounded taxes are when a sales tax is applied to the goods ,then shipping charges are added and yet another Tax is applied to the sum of the goods plus shipping . it amounts to Tax upon Tax. great for the Government but hardly fair to the purchaser!

It's also an improper calculation and illegal if you are talking about all Canadian taxes.

As a Canadian consumer with a product being delivered to you in Canada, a US retailer should not be applying local sales tax to your purchase. If they did, go online and obtain the form from that State and apply for a refund of the sales tax.

[alfredmay]

Little Kopit,

You are correct, but many times the cost of shipping Parcel Post (now called Standard Post) is the same as or more than using a flat rate box from the US Postal Service. Standard Post weighs everything and calcuales distance too. Therefore, a light weight box going a short distance will be inexpensive, but a heavy box or one going a long way will be more expensive.

USPS flat rate boxes come in varying sizes. Businesses like them because if the item fits in the box it ships for one rate regardless of distance or weight. Priority Mail International Flat Rate Box to Canda could be a very good choice shipping a small, heavy object from Florida to BC. It could be a poor choice shipping a large light weight object from Detroit to Windsor.

The problem here is that the shipper has to THINK about the best way to ship an item........ and sometimes thinking is not what can be expected from those in the shipping dept of a company. In addition, most retailers rarely charge the true cost to ship an item.

[Little_Kopit]

alfredmay wrote:
The US Post Office picks up and delivers mail and packages. My guess is that the sender does not want more than one account to maintain and has chosen FedEx or UPS as their sender.

Yes, but you can do all forms online and print at home or your office, except for parcel post. For parcel post you have to fill out forms at the post office.

:C

[alfredmay]

The US Post Office picks up and delivers mail and packages. My guess is that the sender does not want more than one account to maintain and has chosen FedEx or UPS as their sender.

[Little_Kopit]

I used to ask for parcels to be shipped 'parcel post' or ground. But when things got computerized, that one became a: "have to bring that to the post office" item.

Means of shipping where forms can be filled out online cost more. I don't know all the names. But yes, I always feel guilty about pushing the sender to go to the Post Office, when, do it online and the P.O. picks up. Very hard to blame the sender on that one.

Still, the item could go through the Post Office and you wouldn't pay that brokerage/record keeping fee. That's what I ask for.

:C

[Harvey51]

I bought a solar panel kit on Amazon.ca for $250, shipping included. It was shipped from the USA. It arrived via Canada Post at our local post office. A few days later a poorly photocopied bill from FedEx arrived. Then I opened the paper attached to the box and found it was the same bill, about $3 sales tax and $20 brokerage fee (plus tax on that) based on a "commercial invoice" from the seller setting $57 as the value of the parcel. When I called Fedex to pay the fee I was told it was for paperwork and was a percentage of the value. I suppose the fee would have been $100 had the true value been given. I feel bad about cheating the government out of $8 in sales tax - it's the only way of taxing a company doing business in Canada from outside the country. But I'm grateful for cheating Fedex out of a ridiculous brokerage fee. Why would it cost more to fill out the paperwork for a different amount? Why can't a computer be trained to print out the paperwork at the cost the postal service charges, $5 I think?

It turned out FedEx carried the package as far as Edmonton, then mailed it! Perhaps Fedex knows the Post Office is better at delivering parcels in Canada, at least outside major cities. I once asked an American business why it wouldn't send via postal service. I was told it was because it was too slow and therefore costly to have an employee take parcels to a post office. Is this true? In Canada shippers can get the right to do everything that is done at the post office themselves and then drop off a truckload of parcels at a post terminal.

[dieharder]

pianotuna wrote:
Hi,

Let's suppose you live in Edmonton. To pick up a parcel in Montana would require a road trip of 8 hours one way.

But I live in Regina, so it is only 2 hours one way.

Personally I can't drive for 4 hours round trip to save $50.

If you only do it for that, then no it doesn't make sense. However, if you combine it with a whole bunch of groceries and some clothes shopping, you'll up those savings considerably.

[robatthelake]

Compounded taxes are when a sales tax is applied to the goods ,then shipping charges are added and yet another Tax is applied to the sum of the goods plus shipping . it amounts to Tax upon Tax. great for the Government but hardly fair to the purchaser!

As to choice of Shipping Company ..there was none offered! The Sender of the item was appalled at the report that I gave and has promised to find alternatives for Canadians purchasing from their Company.

They are the manufacturer of the product and sell directly to the consumer?
As I stated it is an item that was needed to facilitate and satisfy my particular situation and needs ,not something easily sourced elsewhere!

They manufacture in Minnesota for the RV and Heavy Truck industry. Since I am located in a smaller Community on Vancouver Island the choice of Delivery is rather limited!

[pianotuna]

Hi,

Let's suppose you live in Edmonton. To pick up a parcel in Montana would require a road trip of 8 hours one way.

But I live in Regina, so it is only 2 hours one way.

Personally I can't drive for 4 hours round trip to save $50.

[JaxDad]

I agree they often will ship by only one carrier.

That doesn't mean you only have one way to get it across the border and/ or cleared through customs.

[pianotuna]

Hi JaxDad,

No, often the seller will only ship by one source. So if you need the product you may end up paying egregious fees. I have paid $10 for an item and $50 for brokers fees.

[JaxDad]

robatthelake wrote:
In short I have no problem paying the Taxes provided that they are calculated on the correct value of the Goods and Service! I do resist compounding taxes on already taxed merchandise and that lead to my comments.

The Brokerage Fee charged by The UPS Broker is my main objection! It is a whole lot of Bunk and My principle complaint !

Can you explain what you mean by "compounding taxes"?

As for brokerage fees, different companies charge varying amounts for any service or product, we as consumers have the freedom of choice. There's no gun to anyone's head.

[sue_t]

FedEx is far more reasonable when it comes to brokerage.
Even so, I usually request shippers use the US Postal Service. It works just fine, gets things across the border without delay, no extra fees, and I can easily track the shipment, Canada Post's tracking picks it up when it crosses the border too.

Here in Yukon, I have to drive 65 km to get my mail or parcels anyway, as nobody here delivers mail or packages to a GPS coordinate. Propane guy finds us though, which is a good thing.

[robatthelake]

Since My Post was closed I could not respond to the GST and PST remarks!
In short I have no problem paying the Taxes provided that they are calculated on the correct value of the Goods and Service! I do resist compounding taxes on already taxed merchandise and that lead to my comments.
The Brokerage Fee charged by The UPS Broker is my main objection! It is a whole lot of Bunk and My principle complaint !
Had the product not been absolutely necessary I probably would have refused to accept it ,but since it is something that I absolutely had to have ,I paid the piper!
That said I really hate to knock a business that has a great reputation and does deliver the goods on time within the USA !
Just watch out if You need something from the States delivered to Canada. Choose another carrier.