Import duties and taxes from US to Canada

[Rike255]

I'm looking to buy an Onkyo TX-SR805 receiver from ebay and the seller will be shipping from the US, I'm curious if anyone knows a ballpark figure of what I can expect to pay for duties and/or taxes, etc? I've never imported anything this expensive before so I've never had to pay duties but I'm sure I will this time.

Not sure what imformation is needed to figure it out, the shipment will weigh 51lbs.

Any help is appreciated, thanks.

[jw]

ask the seller to mark it as a gift and undervalue it, that should save you alot

[unreal1080p]

The best thing is to have it shipped marked as "Return for Repair"
and idealy to a place of business that would "sound" plausible (to the attention of your name of course).
Also, putting the minimum J6P plausible amount as the value of the item does'nt hurt (don't put 1$... people are not that stupid... unless you fall on a HD DUD fan )

[Thegide]

If it's new, marking it as gift could be risky. Customs is more than used to watching new merchandise fly over the border with "gift" labeling and making you pay dearly for it. They have the authority to seize smuggled goods, which you may or may not be able to obtain afterwards, depending on the severity of the offense.

If the unit is used, i.e. ebay sale, a generic box works wonders for customs as it allows you to estimate value based on its undisclosed condition. Used electronics don't have any particular street value, so it's hard for them to charge you for duty other than what is marked by the shipper for insurance purposes.

While I'm no expert, I did grow up in a border town. Duty = sales tax. Expect to pay 13% of your sale when it comes over the border. The only reason I can think of for it to be otherwise would be if they dispute your declaration value, in which case I imagine you pay the tax equivalent of their book value.

All of this info is available on the customs website. My suggestion is don't mess around... the duty won't be that much and doesn't seem to be worth risking a hassle over.

[Rike255]

I found this site that tells you how much you can expect to pay in duties for certain items. When I type in my product number it says there is no duties.

http://www.myborderpro.com/

I bought the Onkyo TX-SR805 item number 140201122630
Shipping to Alberta.

If you put all that information in, it tells how how much GST, postal fee, and that it is [b[duty free[/b]..

Is this site actually acurate or am I screwed?

[Thegide]

It might be accurate, but incomplete. I wouldn't expect them to have a book value for every product ever made on that site.

I just ordered $120 worth of Blu movies from Amazon.com and did not have to pay duty. I ordered other things valued at less and had to cough up duty fees.

The official rules:
http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/import/co...ty_free-e.html

- anything over $20 you should be charged duty (13% of its value)
- anything valued over $60 cannot be considered a "gift"

According to the rules, your seller should declare the value of the item based on what you paid for it, and you would pay the appropriate sales tax for duty. So, if you won your auction for $400.... 13% = $52 in duty fees. You can try to bend the rules in your favour, but be careful what you do. If your item is selected for inspection, it might be a hassle for you to get your item and you will end up paying duty anyways.

Alternatively, you could declare full sale value on it and it might squeak through unnoticed and you won't have to pay anything.

Regardless, I wouldn't say you're "screwed". A new 805 will probably cost you at least double in Canada. I bought a [new] Onkyo SR800 over xmas and even after duty, it was still less than half the sticker price had I bought it here in Ontario.

[Rike255]

Even with 13% duties I'll be paying at the most $900. That's being generous, 13% duty, 5% GST, shipping of $70 (it was actually less then $60).

A canadian 805 is at least $1200 and almost always more then that. I think I'm getting a pretty good deal.

I went ahead and ordered it so I'll let you guys know what happened when I find out in a couple weeks.

[Thegide]

Originally Posted by Rike255

Even with 13% duties I'll be paying at the most $900. That's being generous, 13% duty, 5% GST, shipping of $70 (it was actually less then $60).

A canadian 805 is at least $1200 and almost always more then that. I think I'm getting a pretty good deal.

I went ahead and ordered it so I'll let you guys know what happened when I find out in a couple weeks.

The 13% duty should = 5% GST + 8% PST. Normally you wouldn't pay the US sales taxes, since they are like PST - they only apply if you had purchased it in-state.

Yep, you're still getting a good deal.

[reiella]

Originally Posted by Thegide

The 13% duty should = 5% GST + 8% PST. Normally you wouldn't pay the US sales taxes, since they are like PST - they only apply if you had purchased it in-state.

Yep, you're still getting a good deal.

Depends alot on the state of origin. In some states, while they cannot force the point of sale to collect the tax, they ask the purchaser to pay the sales tax. That said, I have never read of any states actually successfully pursueing or 'forcing' the matter. And the practical nature of such laws is that they can't be enforced, so it's typically a non-issue.

But ya, for the most part, you shouldn't have to pay Sales Tax for the point of sale during a mail order.

[Rike255]

Just as a follow up. I ended up paying NOT ONE PENNY for anything upon arrival.

Here's a breakdown of the costs:
Cost: US $674.90
Shipping & Handling: US $62.40
Total: US $737.30

I didn't pay anything for import duties, taxes, brokerage fees. Nothing. I'm so happy!!

[PrinceLH]

It might be smart to have them ship it U.S. postal. UPS and FEDEX are brokerage *****s, and will screw you royally. You can always do the return and exchange thing, saying it's a relplacement for a broken unit and try to get around the government rape session.