[CJ_LO]

do you need to pay custom fees to bring stuff into canada?
let say im a set of coilovers and a vender says 150 shipped to canada, that's just 150 to my door right? No extra custom charges? Or it's luck issues, you only pay when you get caught.

[DESI4life10]

Originally Posted by i.hope.

do you need to pay custom fees to bring stuff into canada?
let say im a set of coilovers and a vender says 150 shipped to canada, that's just 150 to my door right? No extra custom charges? Or it's luck issues, you only pay when you get caught.

Yes you will get charged with duty and taxes when shipping stuff into Canada. The quote you got from your vendor, $150, is the cost for the product and the shipping only. As the package goes through customs, the courier company will clear it for you and charge you the brokerage fee and the tax and duty set by the customs officer.

When shipping by courier you will always get charged with tax and duty. With postal service, you can get lucky here and there and get away without paying anything.

[CJ_LO]

oo .. how do they charge the tax and duty? by percentage?
when they send coilovers, do they use postal or courier?

[yeung330xi]

postal or courier will depend on how your vender shipped it

if its shipped by postal it generally takes longer to go through customs...but you may get lucky and not have to pay anything extra

[tolkino]

stay away from UPS and FedEx if you are getting an item to your door. U could use USPS and declare a lower value. The USD price will be converted to CAD and you will be charged %13 tax, plus brokerage fees which can be brutal sometimes..

[CJ_LO]

so the brokerage fee is like a fine? ..

[DESI4life10]

Originally Posted by i.hope.

oo .. how do they charge the tax and duty? by percentage?
when they send coilovers, do they use postal or courier?

Postal service cannot ship big items which is why a lot of vendors ship via courier.
If you are given the choice pick postal service. It might take a little longer to clear (postal service) but you may get lucky or may not have to pay as much.

Generally they was the charges work is by looking off the declared value written on the box (however customs have the right to open the box and confirm if the declared value matches the value of the actual product) and convert it to cdn currency.

They than apply the gst and pst tax as well as the duty 6% (I think). Duty is charged if the item was made outside of Canada and USA. You might get lucky and not have to pay duty.

Then depending on the courier service you use you will get charged brokerage fee (depends on the value of the goods). For example $150 of goods will get a brokerage fee of $20-$30.

[DESI4life10]

Originally Posted by i.hope.

so the brokerage fee is like a fine? ..

It is not really a fine, it is more of a service to clear your package.

The courier company has there own broker that provides the service of getting your package cleared.
You can save this fee, by clearing out the package yourself. Essentially you representing (broker) your package. Clearing out packages depends on how your item will enter canada. It could be at the boarder or at pearson airport.

[CJ_LO]

thanks for the information.
sounds harsh tho. haha

[DinoMite]

I freaking hate this stupid brokerage fee, these bastards are full of shit.

I received an item via UPS and ended up paying more for the fucking brokerage fee than the actual item. FUCKING PIGS.

[Spoolin335]

what ever you do, dont have anything shipped UPS!
ie. i bought a part from the states that cost 45$+ 15$ to ship. when it came to my door, UPS wanted 60$ brokerage + taxes. i told the guy to send it back as i was not going to pay them 60$ in brokerage fees.

i wont even buy anything from the states that is shipped with UPS. its not even worth the savings as you end up paying more in the end anyways.

[Lewis@MWDesign]

All customs charge a flat rate brokerage fee regardless of the value of your item. That is basically how these firms make most of their money, from the flat rate fees.

That is why we clear our own customs which at the end saves our customer a fair share of money

[Me_Hi]

got burned with UPS as well. Wanted the item so bad but I was so mad to pay more $ I almost punched the delivery guy. I thought for sure he was going to pocket the $. Thank god I just got laid before the guy came. Took some testasterone out of me.


get USPS from the states. If the guy doesn't offer it in the add, ask if he can ! or sometimes ( it has to be mentionned in the add ) that they pay customs and brokerage all included )

[Aramel]

100% agree with the above. I've been billed through the teeth by UPS. However, most of my USPS packages show up without problems. Even when I get billed, it's always way less with USPS.