Custom Duties for Canadian eVendor Purchases

[englishm]

I've buying from B&H for over 10 years.  No problems, No duties are payable.  Just be sure to check the warranty issues for the specific manufacturer you are considering.

[Mark D Segal]

It's true that most of what we buy from B&H is in a duty free tariff category, but we are still dinged with GST and PST at the front door, so be prepared to pay when the merchandise is delivered. Also, depending on choice of carrier there can be seriously high brokerage fees for clearing the merchandise through customs. Be especially wary of UPS on this. I usually discuss shipping in some detail with B&H and ask them to use either the US Post Office or FedEx.

[DaveLon]

Avoid UPS like the plague as they charge upwards of $50 fees. However FedEx and DHL are either no fee or very low fees.

Of course you have to pay GST and PST but then you would if you shopped in Canada too.

Dave

[dmcginlay]

Since the Canadian dollars is gaining against the American peso due to our surplus of oil, prices at online vendors such as B&H camera look attractive compared to some local vendors.

What amount of custom duties would you expect for Cameras and lens?

Any issues with warranties, repairs, etc?

Thanks!  

[dmcginlay]

Thanks for your reply!

Ohh, my poor credit card, it just went through a marathon at B&H - it is still hurting.


Don

[bosseyedoldbat]

it's been several months since I bought from B&H, but when I did so, I had the stuff shipped UPS "expedited" or "express", in both cases with no additional brokerage charges, just the GST and PST at the door when the parcels arrived. I've had excellent service from B&H (no connection, just a satisfied customer)

[Mark D Segal]

You probably require some kind of residency or business affiliation to get one, and then you must still import the merchandise into Canada.

[Robert Roaldi]

I have also had problems with UPS brokerage fees but apparently that only happens with UPS Ground. With their other servies, Expedited or Express the brokerage fees are included in the quoted price. Not all shippers necessarily understand this difference when sending across the border so you have to ask specific questions.

I have also had a similar problem with Fed Ex but never had the chance to determine how best to use their services to avoid high fees.

U.S. mail works fine. Generally, so does the Canadian mail. I think that the residual suspicion of government mail services may be in part mythology that just won't die. I have never had a problem with them and try to use them exclusively.

[Mark D Segal]

I agree. It is necessary to ask questions about shipping quotes - specifically whether "brokerage" at the border is included or not. Sometimes it it embedded and sometimes it is added on, depending on the carrier and service. From my experience UPS seemed to be the worst of the lot, and the government postal service the most reasonable.

Both the USPS and Canada Post work well. There was a time quite a few years ago when the Canadian postal system left much to be desired, but that is legacy and now is now - it has improved dramatically. Unfortunately, a number of US firms either won't ship outside the US or won't use the USPS because they say it takes them too much time to get the stuff to the post office and stick a little declaration notice on the package (courrier services do pick-ups and handle the paperwork). I tend to avoid doing business with such outfits, but that cuts us out of quite a few suppliers.