Comments on: Tax Exemption for Mailed Goods

By: Isabella

Isabella — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 09:39:56 +0000

Hi, im looking at ordering a cosmetic product thats going to cost $ 144 US, shipping is going to be about $20 US to canada via USPS Priority mail international and i was wondering what the customs fee’s, brokerage, taxes ect would be on it to determine wether i’ll have it shipped to my aunties in alberta or have it shipped to the UK ( cause i know roughly what it will cost to ship it here ,where I am for the next month) Thanks

By: Amy

Amy — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 16:16:18 +0000

hi, i live in ladner, british columbia, and ordered from victorias secret for myself, total cost being $280.00. I got it delivered to point roberts, washington and am wondering if i am going to be charged taxes at all coming back and how much?

By: John

John — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 13:48:58 +0000

They won’t. Its all about volume. Customs target certain things, sizes, etc. The rest is random. The wrongful declaration on the packaging also makes customs look over the package, and onto the next one.

You may want to read up on AMPS though….

By: Andy

Andy — Mon, 31 May 2010 21:57:35 +0000

This is strange. I’ve ordered countless things on ebay and even things from online cigar retailers that ship internationally and have never had to pay duty or tax on any of those things. Most of the time when I get the package, I notice the seller’s marked the package as Gift or other so how would the customs agents possibly know what’s inside the package without opening it?

By: ashie

ashie — Wed, 12 May 2010 03:45:25 +0000

Good question. I ordered some this week. Will let you know, but I’m assuming I’ll get jipped and charged duty. Although, I have a friend who ordered from babyhalfoff.com and wasn’t charged (order was no more than $30).

By: N

Mon, 19 Apr 2010 15:49:40 +0000

I’m looking at buying some diapers (some cloth, some disposable liners from the US. Would diapers be exempt duty?

By: tania

tania — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 18:44:00 +0000

Hi Bob,

I am planning on sending some small gifts (shirts, toys) to family in Canada. Each gift is less than $20 each. However, I’d like to save on postage and send all ten gifts (each one to a different person) in one box, addressed to one person. Would this be a problem for duty exemption?

I would appreciate your feedback. Thank you.

By: BoB

BoB — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 01:37:31 +0000

If all 3 are sent in one parcel, duty and tax are paid on the amount exceeding the $60. If sent individually, each will have the $60 exemption. You have to balance the shipping cost and the tax+duty.

By: Alex

Alex — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:06:26 +0000

hi,
I was wondering how the per item $60 gift rule applies.
I have a friend in the US, and he’s sending me 3 things, two worth more then $60 (100 each), one less.
If he sends them all in one parcel, what happens?
Do I pay the amount over the $60 for the two items over $60 (i.e. pay duties on the 40+40 extras) and taxes on the $200?
Or can i only have only one $60 exemption in the parcel of three items? If so, it’s better to ship seperatelyto get the most $60 gift exemptions? That = higher shipping costs though.
Also, one item is a softshell jacket from Arc’teryx, which is should be canadian made, would i not have to pay anything on that anyways as it would be covered by NAFTA?
What if the softshell was made in China eventhough Arc’teryx is a BC company?
Thanks a lot for your help!

By: BoB

BoB — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 18:22:06 +0000

Yes, tax on the amount after adding duty.