januarymix

and send it to Canada, will Canada tax me?

If so how much and is it for every package.

I miss UK shopping

Former Lancastrian

Read this link

http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/publicati...f5092-eng.html

januarymix

Doh!
Thanks FL!

withabix

Amazon.co.uk will take off UK VAT and add a maximum Canada duty charge. That way you know what you will be paying.

There are some things they won't send overseas however.

Amazon.de often has better prices - just use Google Chrome to translate the web pages automatically if you don't 'do' German.

I buy a few things from the USA and have them sent to Shipito, who forward it to Canada. I have found that if you choose USPS (who hand it over to Canada Post) as your forwarding delivery method from there, you might not get charged Customs/Import duties.

This is probably because the new Canada Post mail centre in Richmond is not working properly and as a result I think they are just processing incoming parcels from the USA with the rest of the post.

I have had stuff over $200 delivered recently without getting charged Duty.

If you buy something from a company that uses UPS for Fedex (and some others) as the carrier, you WILL get charged Duty, because these carriers deliberately look for parcels that Duty is payable on, so that they can add $15-$50 as a processing fee. Nice little earner.

Former Lancastrian

It probably has something to do with Canada only having 3 x International Mail sorting centres and the volume of packages being sent that perhaps have only a $50 or less value CBSA officers elect not to collect on low value items and focus their priorities on drugs, weapons and their parts and other high risk commodities rather than 6 pairs of panties from Marks & Sparks.

withabix

M&S orders don't arrive by Canada Post, so those knickers will cost a lot in Duty, as Mrs Withabix found to here cost

colchar

Depends if they catch the shipment or not.




Tax is based on the value of the goods so this question is unanswerable without knowing the value of each package.

Aviator

Not always, we have purchased German made product from Amazon UK for less than listed on the German one. As with everything is pays to shop around and know what you're buying.

jimf

The link includes the following:

Duty and tax owing on mail

The CBSA enters the description and the value of the goods that it gets from the declaration, or during its examination of the contents, into its automated system. The system will automatically calculate any duties and taxes owing and print this information on a Form E14, CBSA Postal Import Form. This form includes the following information:
•the recipient's name and address;
•the tariff classification and description of the goods;
•the value in Canadian funds;
•any duties and excise tax owing;
•any GST or HST owing;
•any PST or tobacco tax owing (if the CBSA collects the tax on behalf of the province); and
•the Canada Post handling fee.

So there is a "magic box" for staff to use to determine the duty/tax due. Where is the basis of the calculation and rules available for review? Is the tax/duty based on a certain percentage for different categories of goods?

As an example, 100 GBP worth of towels from John Lewis - what would the tax/duty be?

The tax/duty can usually be avoided by getting items delivered for free in the UK to someone who will send on marked as a gift preferably under $60 (splitting up if needed). If it's send by surface mail the cost isn't usually too bad but there's just the inconvenience of someone having to handle it in the UK.

JonboyE

Here you go. Happy reading. Chapter-by-Chapter Customs Tariff - T2014-4

Note that no duty is charged on goods made in the USA or Mexico. Just taxes.

Former Lancastrian

An example would be
100 GB pounds converted into Canadian dollars.
Duty is based on country of manufacture of goods i.e. towels made in India/China or if lucky made in the UK and are they 100% cotton or synthetic fibres etc
Duty is 17% of the Canadian value on 100% cotton items.
That amount is then added to get the value for GST, PST or HST
Then the $5 handling fee by Canada Post

Example value for duty is $100 Cad
plus 17% duty = $17
value for GST, PST/HST is now $117 so using 15% HST = $17.55
plus the $5 handling fee

Total of all taxes is $39.55.

jimf

Thanks for that. So for Alberta it would be little bit less approx $27 with just 5% PST.

Is that the worst case for the country of origin.

Former Lancastrian

Clothing, bedding, fabrics and shoes usually carry the highest duty rates. Some items regardless of where they are made attract no duties or might be exempt the GST portion or exempt the PST/HST.
With so many items being available online its impossible to tell you every duty rate or tax rate.
Many forget that the purchase price has to be converted into Canadian dollars.
Avoid shipping by courier companies like UPS, Fedex etc etc as they will charge usually a minimum $25 brokerage fee if you don't self clear.
Unless you are getting a great deal sometimes the items costs more than what they would have cost if bought in Canada.
Know your pricing and tax rates before buying or at least add about 15% for taxes on top of the purchase price.

jimf

Ordering from John Lewis wouldn't be intended to save money but rather to get the product I prefer. If 15% is a typical figure then that's good enough for me. I had wondered if it would be something ludicrous like 50%.

I don't know who John Lewis use for shipping. Is there no brokerage for Canada Post?

Former Lancastrian

Handling costs

To process goods imported as mail that are subject to duty and/or tax, Canada Post charges the recipient CAN$9.95. If the item is duty-free and tax exempt, no amount is charged.
Importing by Mail

Courier companies like UPS, Fedex, DHL etc usually charge a brokerage fee of around $25 plus all of the applicable duties and taxes unless you self clear goods which may or may not be convenient.
IMHO Canada post is the way to go if not in a rush.

I did quote a $5 handling fee for Canada Post but it appears that fee has now gone up to the $9.95. There are no brokerage fees with Canada Post as CBSA officers process the packages and CP delivers them.