Shipping US to Canada

[stevehuckss396]

Is there a cheaper way to ship something from the us to canada. From what I can find on the web border fees are going to be $63can and the post office wants $27usd. Does that sound right to send a 6 by 9 inch envelope about 3/4 inch thick? It will weigh less than a pound. Am i missing something or is that what it costs?

Michigan to Alberta

 

[petertha]

No, that sounds wanky Steve. I did it in reverse, Canada to USA, normal Canada Post (which usually costs more). Small packet is 11.75 tracked is 18.39. Those are Kanuck bucks so divide by 1.3 = USD.
US Airmail should be comparable if not cheaper. If you are using a courier like UPS, Fedex... maybe if they are bundling customs in there where shipping might be 20 & dinger fees 40. But even so sounds way high. Canadians prefer US Post only because max customs processing is 5$. Most of the time on smallish things it comes to the mailbox direct & that's the end of it. With the couriers, they typically charge customs processing fees. So even if the actual duty is zero, they charge 40 just to determine that :/

I did this example from Seattle WA to Alberta (coincidentally where I live) but it doesn't go up hugely by State. Hope this helps.

 

[Wizard69]

You could always drive across the border, find a Canadian post office, and mail from there.

In any event something does sound odd with the pricing you have.

Is there a cheaper way to ship something from the us to canada. From what I can find on the web border fees are going to be $63can and the post office wants $27usd. Does that sound right to send a 6 by 9 inch envelope about 3/4 inch thick? It will weigh less than a pound. Am i missing something or is that what it costs?

Michigan to Alberta

 

[74Sprint]

Steve those prices are way off and are just a way for USPS to make extra money mind you Canada Post tries the same thing. I get stuff shipped to me from all over the U.S. and Asia and first class is the best way to ship or mail things.
All the information below is from https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/Notice123.htm#_c341.

First-Class Mail International
Retail Large Envelopes (Flats)
Weight Not Over (oz.) Price Groups 1 Canada 2 Mexico 3–5 6–9

1 $2.29 $2.29 $2.29 $2.29
2 2.50 2.97 3.23 3.18
3 2.71 3.64 4.16 4.06
4 2.91 4.32 5.10 4.94
5 3.12 5.00 6.04 5.83
6 3.33 5.67 6.97 6.71
7 3.54 6.35 7.91 7.60
8 3.75 7.03 8.85 8.48
12 4.79 8.48 10.72 10.31
15.994 5.83 9.94 12.60 12.13​

Pieces that are rigid, nonrectangular, or not uniformly thick pay package prices

First-Class Package International Service
Weight Not Over (oz.) Price Groups

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9​

1–8 $10.50 $12.25 $14.25 $14.25 $14.25 $14.50 $13.75 $13.50 $14.50
9–32 17.25 21.50 23.50 24.00 24.00 24.50 23.25 22.75 24.50
33–48 26.25 33.00 35.00 36.75 37.50 38.75 37.00 34.75 38.50
49–64 39.00 47.50 52.75 59.50 61.00 63.00 59.50 55.25 62.50

Listing of countries by price group
For First-Class Mail International retail postcard, letter, large envelope, and First-Class Package International Service dimensions, follow this link.


Large Envelopes (Flats)

minimum* maximum
length 11-1/2 inches 15 inches
height 6-1/8 inches 12 inches
thickness 1/4 inch 3/4 inch
* Flats exceed at least one of these dimensions.

Pieces that are rigid, nonrectangular, or not uniformly thick pay parcel prices.

The worst possible way to ship to Canada is by UPS, they show up at your door with your package and want $65.00 Canadian for brokerage fees + duty + taxes. FedEx is @$35.00 + duty + taxes but they sometimes call and ask what you want to do. Purolator is just duty + taxes but Canada Post knows that packages of certain materials or under $20 have no duty or taxes. So just ship everything by first class mail with an invoice in a zip lock baggie taped to the back of the envelope. You also might want to read all b.s. https://pe.usps.com/text/Imm/ce_003.htm#ep2041503

Ray

 

[stevehuckss396]

once again I have someone who wants spark plugs in canada. My plan is to put "miniature spark plugs" on the declaration form with a value of Zero.

Think that will be a problem? I don't want problems and have people waiting longer than a reasonable amount of time.

 

[petertha]

I almost think value = zero will draw more attention. Some people will specify 'gift' or 'sample' but there are guidelines as to what constitutes those descriptions. I'd recommend a nice round number like $22 and call them 'used toy/model/hobby parts'. There are no real adverse implication because if they bother to look up that corresponding duty classification it will be 0%. 'Miniature spark plugs' is probably fine but still the remote possibility someone shockingly motivated interprets this as belonging to some specialized machine (as opposed to toy/model).

Chances are good it will land right in his mailbox, but worst case scenario he pays $5.00 customs processing at the post office, that is assuming you send USPS and not a courier like UPS or Fedex. The couriers charge us big dinger fees, like $40++ The value has no bearing on shipping time. Shipping time is via the method you select. The value does have bearing on a claim if it gets lost or undelivered. That will then be the max you can claim. But usually post office claims are such a convoluted, pathetically slow process most people don't put high probability in getting money back soon. I think USPS can attach tracking numbers cheaper than we can in reverse, so that might be something your customer would pay for to get peace of mind. Good luck!

 

[dsage]

I agree. Don't use zero. That's a big red flag. Nothing is worth zero.
Customs are looking to make a reasonable return at 15% duty. And 15% of a few bucks isn't worth the time to do the paper work.
I agree with everything else mentioned as well.
Call them what they are. Hobby parts or such.
Also, as mentioned, use US Postal Service. The couriers are a big rip off.

 

[cwelkie]

Steve - although many do and get away with it ... don't ever "lie to the Queen". As a Canadian, I see the high cost of shipping and brokerage (if using a courier) as the issue, not the remote chance of paying duty on an item made in the US and shipped from the US.
My recommendation is to identify the goods and their actual value. Then no one has to explain the unexplainable to a customs agency anywhere.
FWIW
Charlie

 

[dsage]

Agreed Charlie
And, as suggest in an earlier post. You shouldn't drive them across the border and mail them in Canada yourself. Legally you have to declare them when you cross the border and then you'll have to pay the duty. No sense forfeiting your vehicle for smuggling.
It's all part of getting stuff from the USA. We (in Canada) deal with it (unfortunately).

 

[Brian Lawson]

Is there a cheaper way to ship something from the us to canada. From what I can find on the web border fees are going to be $63can and the post office wants $27usd. Does that sound right to send a 6 by 9 inch envelope about 3/4 inch thick? It will weigh less than a pound. Am i missing something or is that what it costs?

Michigan to Alberta

 

[Brian Lawson]

Hey Steve,
One comment, one suggestion.
1/2 You may recall my story about bringing some stuff for a club member INTO the USA, and I told the US Customs/Immigration officer that the "stuff" had No Value. He kinda went a bit nutsy, showed me his work shoe, and pointed to that little plastic thingy on the end of a shoe-lace, with the comment "DO YOU SEE THIS THING. IT HAS A VALUE !!!" He made me take the "stuff" back to Canada. Do not EVER tells Customs there is no value to anything!!

2/2 Of course, there is always the Lawson Shipping Service for once a month operations in Canada.
Take care..
Brian Lawson

 

[stevehuckss396]

I went to the post office today and was given the short course by a very nice lady. Showed me how to fill out the forms and showed me the cheapest route for shipping. Shipping to Canada is between 10 and 12 bucks. Add the cost of packing material and I can ship to just about anywhere in Canada for about 14 bucks.

 

[cwelkie]

Steve - I must admire your tenacity and thank you for it. Too many other American vendors have just decided it was too much trouble and went with an exclusive, single source courier (like UPS) or simply stopped shipping beyond their border.

 

[stevehuckss396]

Steve - I must admire your tenacity and thank you for it. Too many other American vendors have just decided it was too much trouble and went with an exclusive, single source courier (like UPS) or simply stopped shipping beyond their border.

Being a one man show it's easier for me. I can hit the post office on my way out to eat or to the store. I'm not paying someone an hourly rate to fill out forms and pack things up. I will do my best to be the best and keep quality of product and service high and prices low as I can.

 

[DanP]

When sending to Canada on the declaration form put scale model parts. This works both direction, going North or South, there is no duty on scale models parts. I just received a package from Aster Hobbies labeled toy train parts with a value of $153.30US by USPS. There was no duty or tax, it just showed up in my mail box. Post is the way to go. Steve the person at the post office must have misunderstood or very new on the job.

 

[stevehuckss396]

What do you mean by post? Enlighten me.

 

[DanP]

By Post I mean either Canadian Postal service or US Postal service. Post office, USPS, CNPS, Royal Mail (if from Britain). The only one I have had problems with is the Italian Postal service, at least 3 month for a post card from Italy to me in British Columbia, Canada.

 

[stevehuckss396]

So what did the person at the post office misunderstand? The envelope I send is more than zero value and more than 1/4 inch thick so it is considered a package. It is still sent by the post office straight to your door in Canada. 6 to 10 working days for delivery.

 

[DanP]

I just received a package from South Carolina, $10.50US to mail. The package is 7" x 7" x 2.75" and weighed 3lbs with a value of $153.30US on the declaration sticker. I didn't have to pay any Brokerage or taxes. This is what I expect when I get a package from the US.

OK, I read your first post again. Maybe the post office didn't give you that cost, maybe you miss understood the charges. It looks like you got the charges from the web.

 

[stevehuckss396]

Gotcha

The package I sent the other day was 10.50 usd. That can increase a little as the weight goes up. Value was 78 bucks. I think that was fair. Beats ups or FedEx.

Think I should be ok from here now that I know how it works and how to fill out the forms. Having never shipped anything out of the country, checking the wrong box can be very costly. Just want anyone who buys a sparkplug to get it at reasonable shipping cost no matter where in the world they are.