Shipping from U.S. to Canada

[Runscott]

I'm sure this has been covered a few times, but my searches aren't showing it.

I don't ship ebay items to Canada for several reasons, but I do from my web-store. I declare the value, ship and hold my breath. 1-3 weeks later the item gets to the purchaser, often with several 'emails of concern' in-between. Now I have a customer who I've finally worked out a deal with for over $600 worth of items, and he wants me to declare it as a gift worth less than $50. I understand the additional tax problem on his end, but isn't this very illegal? I refused to do it, but just wondering.

[Gamebits]

Yes it is illegal, what are the chances the custom will find out? Very slim.
Is there ways to work around the system? Yes, split the load in multiple packages, assuming it can be done , no need to cut the Wagner in half

The only time I have been charge duty tax on a package was because it has been sent using a UPS.

[grainsley]

Yes, illegal. They can not only hold the shipment up, but call the recipient in for questioning on the item(s). He'll have to answer some questions, at which point it may come back to you. This happened to me, but luckily I wasn't trying to get away with anything. I had to go in and prove my case before they gave me the package, but it was a card I had bought from a U.S. dealer, and I had the ad to prove that the declared value was exactly what he was asking. They gave me the package without further questioning. I'm sure Canada Post and the USPS cooperate fully with each other. Many U.S. sellers fear selling to Canada, for no good reason. Canada Post is VERY reliable....you can count on them to be slow. I have not seen anything go missing in the mail over many years. And if the buyer has to pay Customs duty, so be it. Let it be on their head, not yours.

[Runscott]

Thanks for your responses. The customer understood and is looking for someone on the U.S. side to accept the shipment. I really hate that this mess exists, especially given all the Canadian vintage baseball collectors - some of my best hobby friends.

[Deertick]

Originally Posted by Runscott

Thanks for your responses. The customer understood and is looking for someone on the U.S. side to accept the shipment. I really hate that this mess exists, especially given all the Canadian vintage baseball collectors - some of my best hobby friends.

I used to sell quite a bit to Canadian buyers. I had several who would have me send it to an address on the border and they would go pick it up. One of the most memorable was about a $1000 shipment of electronics that I sent to a bait shop in northern Minnesota. The whole time I thought I was somehow being scammed.

[Ray Van]

Sad to hear there are still sellers that refuse to ship to Canada and/or are worried about issues doing so (in some cases valid worries from past experience). I live in Canada and have had literally hundreds of packages sent to me with zero issue. Some sellers state the actual price of the item on the green customs form while others state a different amount. I don't ask them to lie on the claim form, yet I have had to pay duty/fees on less than 5% of parcels received. Shipping takes about 1 week, 2 at the most on rare occasions (though it may depend where you live in Canada).

I hate seeing the dreaded "seller does not ship to Canada" in ebay auctions - I have passed up many nice items because it isn't worth the bother, while sellers are losing out on a dedicated group of potential bidders. Also, for US sellers that do ship to Canada, please please please do not use ebay's Global Shipping Program ... it's just another way for ebay to gouge buyers and sellers. In this case it is the buyer that foots to outrageous fees of this program ($30-40 shipping for 2 graded cards which actually costs less than $10 to ship - and I've heard worse!).

Ray

[Runscott]

Originally Posted by Ray Van

Sad to hear there are still sellers that refuse to ship to Canada and/or are worried about issues doing so (in some cases valid worries from past experience). I live in Canada and have had literally hundreds of packages sent to me with zero issue. Some sellers state the actual price of the item on the green customs form while others state a different amount. I don't ask them to lie on the claim form, yet I have had to pay duty/fees on less than 5% of parcels received. Shipping takes about 1 week, 2 at the most on rare occasions (though it may depend where you live in Canada).

I hate seeing the dreaded "seller does not ship to Canada" in ebay auctions - I have passed up many nice items because it isn't worth the bother, while sellers are losing out on a dedicated group of potential bidders. Also, for US sellers that do ship to Canada, please please please do not use ebay's Global Shipping Program ... it's just another way for ebay to gouge buyers and sellers. In this case it is the buyer that foots to outrageous fees of this program ($30-40 shipping for 2 graded cards which actually costs less than $10 to ship - and I've heard worse!).

Ray

Yeah, we purposely exclude Canadians and their revenue for no good reason. Damn it's tough being an idiot.

[Kawika]

Originally Posted by Ray Van

Sad to hear there are still sellers that refuse to ship to Canada and/or are worried about issues doing so (in some cases valid worries from past experience). I live in Canada and have had literally hundreds of packages sent to me with zero issue. Some sellers state the actual price of the item on the green customs form while others state a different amount. I don't ask them to lie on the claim form, yet I have had to pay duty/fees on less than 5% of parcels received. Shipping takes about 1 week, 2 at the most on rare occasions (though it may depend where you live in Canada).

I hate seeing the dreaded "seller does not ship to Canada" in ebay auctions - I have passed up many nice items because it isn't worth the bother, while sellers are losing out on a dedicated group of potential bidders. Also, for US sellers that do ship to Canada, please please please do not use ebay's Global Shipping Program ... it's just another way for ebay to gouge buyers and sellers. In this case it is the buyer that foots to outrageous fees of this program ($30-40 shipping for 2 graded cards which actually costs less than $10 to ship - and I've heard worse!).

Ray

Ray: I live in Victoria. My experience is that shipping from the States takes at least two weeks or longer but otherwise I could have written your post almost word-for-word. It's always disheartening when sellers won't ship to Canada, but in a way it acts as a control on impulsive buying. If it's something I really want I generally am able to come up with a work-around. Glad to see I'm not the only one who loathes Global Shipping. It is presented as if it were a good thing but that is a total crock. It generally doubles or triples shipping costs by tacking on taxes and duties one never has to pay in the first place for low-cost items. A while back I wanted to buy a non-sports card for a two dollar BIN; Global Shipping was nineteen friggin' dollars. Seller was in Seattle, 75 miles away. Took a pass.

[auggiedoggy]

Originally Posted by Gamebits

Yes it is illegal, what are the chances the custom will find out? Very slim.
Is there ways to work around the system? Yes, split the load in multiple packages, assuming it can be done , no need to cut the Wagner in half

The only time I have been charge duty tax on a package was because it has been sent using a UPS.

I've had to pay duty on a few occasions and not just for packages shipped via UPS, FedEx, etc. Once or twice for items worth less than $80.00. Another time for a card that was worth over $5000.00, which I expected, and once for an item that was delivered via UPS. Generally speaking, I don't have to pay duty so I really detest the GSP more and more eBay users seem to be adopting. I never ask a seller to send an item as a gift nor do I ask them to falsify the declared value. Having said that, I have had a few sellers specify a very low declared value by their own choice. It was much appreciated, I won't lie.

[steve B]

It's might be worth asking if a seller will ship to Canada. When I was selling bicycle parts and other random stuff on Ebay I would sometimes check off that I wouldn't ship outside the US. Especially if the item was heavy or expensive. And did it more often once the system became prone to abuse.

One bike guy asked about a hub and I shipped to Canada, answered a few questions afterward about the technical stuff. And ended up with a new hobby friend.
Another buyer asked if I'd ship something heavy outside the US. I said yes, but bear in mind it will weigh about 60 Lbs once it's packed. And shipping will be very expensive. (I think it would have been in the $250 range at the time. ) But if he didn't mind the cost, then yes I'd ship it to him.

Most European sellers have it setup that they don't ship to other countries, or outside Europe. But many will if asked.

I'm betting that most sellers that are on Net 54 would ship to Canada for another member, since it's someone known to them.

Steve B

[Runscott]

Steve, that's the point some are missing (asking the seller). This is all about eliminating hassles. I can do that by shipping to Canada non-ebay, or even when a Canadian ebayer contacts me in advance and we discuss the possible issues. What the 'good Canadian customers' don't get is that, while there are just as many 'problem customers' in the U.S., we can mitigate risk with them, but not with Canadians who feel like taking out their frustrations over duty, shipping costs and long waits, on the seller.

Also, I realize there are business models where shipping U.S. to Canada works just fine, just as there are workable models for shipping to Indonesia or Slovenia; however, mine doesn't. Some day I hope it becomes feasible - I like profit as much as the next guy.

[Bocabirdman]

Originally Posted by Runscott

Yeah, we purposely exclude Canadians and their revenue for no good reason. Damn it's tough being an idiot.

I dunno. I must be doing it wrong. I find it quite easy.