Customs kicks me in the face

[flyingwhale]

So just a rant from a Canadian trader here.

Recently got a package from a trader on here they lived in the States and I live in Canada. There have been times when I have had to pay taxes on items but no big deal it happens.

but this time......

The American trader used UPS and only listed the item at $100 customs gives me a fee of $55!!!

$55 dollars!?!? That's 55% tax!!! That's a price increase that would make games workshop would even second guess themselves on.

Any other traders have any stories like this? Maybe it's just UPS?? who knows?

Share your thoughts
Jordan

[HarlequinZero]

It's because the other trader was using a shipping company like UPS or FedEx and not the US Postal Service. UPS and FedEx apply seemingly random brokerage fees to international packages. For them it's simply another fee as far as I can tell. They estimate the maximum possible tax liability on the package, charge you for it, pay the actual tax to the govt. and then pocket the rest. (At least that's my understanding of it.) That's why I always use the regular postal service. It's cheaper to ship 9 times out of 10 and if there is a customs duty owed it's the actual amount and not an inflated number.

[flyingwhale]

UPS and FedEx apply seemingly random brokerage fees to international packages

Is this only the case with private businesses? Any cases of this with public/government post? I have only ever had to pay taxes at most.

[HarlequinZero]

Umm...you might want to reread the end of my post as I answered that question.

[flyingwhale]

Umm...you might want to reread the end of my post as I answered that question.

You win this round lol

[Ironhide]

Sounds to me that someone did not fill out a customs form correctly.

[flyingwhale]

Sounds to me that someone did not fill out a customs form correctly.

Define "correctly"

[kturock]

used toys, if they are open. toys if they're not. I believe 1 of the mods from Canada, looked and posted a section of their mailing/customs manual and it stated used toys have no fee.
So. Take a NiB and unwrap it. It's now no longer NIB, since the box is open. It's unsued, but not new.

Just like cars, if a salesman drives it home and back to work, it's no longer new. If only customers test drive it, it's new.

[flyingwhale]

Maybe the guy who sent it to me marked it as rare diamonds, because jeez that was a shocker.

[kturock]

marked as new and if they didn't use the word 'toys' or 'used toys' it was charged by a guess by the customs agent based on the declared value.

Also, all of the private mailers, UPS, FedEx and such, charge a handling fee, that they get part of, to caculate the customs fees for the customs department.

Sales tax is the same way. Merchants collect sales tax and report it, and get paid a small percentage of it. [amount vaires by state, country, region]
That's why some merchants charge sales tax on things non-taxable. In Florida, for example, services and some unprepared food items are tax exempt. Bring you car in for repair, and the entire amount is taxed; parts & labor.

[Ironhide]

kturock has the right of it. If the items were used, they should be marked as used. I thought however that private mailers charged the fee to get items thru customs easier and to avoid the customs fee altogether. In the future I would request you have your southern cousins mail the items thru the United States Postal Service and to fill out the customs form correctly with what is actually in the package. For example, if they are mailing you some plastic space marine sprues that are not new in box(NiB), then they should mark them "used plastic toys". Don't say "plastic space marine". because they will not know what that is. You got to dumb it down for them.

[kturock]

and they are toys.. even if we don't want to admit it.

[flyingwhale]

Don't say "plastic space marine". because they will not know what that is. You got to dumb it down for them.

lol

Custom officer freaks out upon reading space marine and think it's weapons and everyone goes to jail.

[HarlequinZero]

Somebody wrote "figs" for contents on a package they sent to me. It got impounded because the PO thought it had fruit in it.

[flyingwhale]

Somebody wrote "figs" for contents on a package they sent to me. It got impounded because the PO thought it had fruit in it.

bahahahaha.