What is involved with shipping skis to Canada?

**Crass3000** · 10-13-2007, 12:22 PM

What is involved with shipping skis to Canada? When I ship things to Canada for work I have to fill out packing slips, certificates of origin, and a couple other forms for customs. It's quite a bit of work to get all the paperwork done. When shipping skis to Canada do what type of paperwork do you have to fill out?

Assuming you have to fill out all that paperwork, anyone know the harmonized code used for shipping skis?

From your experience what is the cheapest way to ship skis to Canada? (UPS, FEDEX, USPS?)

Thanks,

Mike

**hemas** · 10-13-2007, 03:25 PM

Can't comment on the shipping, but as a private person you only need to fill out one small customs-paper (basicly it you write on it what you have there, how much it weighs and what is its value).

Off course if you're shipping some contraband or nastier stuff, well then you most likely have to fill out kazillion forms. But for skis, just the easy version will suffice (and takes around 2 min to fill, if you're relatedly slow).

**Eds** · 10-13-2007, 03:44 PM

Make sure you mark it as a gift, if possible. That way the person you are shipping it to will not pay customs.

**wicked_sick** · 10-13-2007, 05:14 PM

Everytime I've received skis from the USA they've only got one form attached that the seller hat to fill out. Same deal when i shipped them to the usa. I form with a million carbon copies.

Always use Fedex or USPS when shipping to Canada. UPS rapes us with customs and brokerage fees. I had to pay $58 to the man in the brown van before he'd give me what i ordered.

**dapesche** · 10-13-2007, 06:47 PM

USPS has always worked best for me. GIFTing is always a good idea.

Just know that if you are charged duty on the skis, RAISE some hell, as you should not be. Basically anything manufactured in the North America's should be duty free. But for skis and boots, among other products, that are manufactured by countries 'of confidence' (or some rhetoric like that), duties should not be charged.

If they are caught by customs, you'll be paying taxes on the estimated value of the skis. So that brings up the debate, if they call bullshit on the gift idea are they going to determine the value at like $700, or if you mark the value of the package @ $100, will they just tax you on that amt.

Someone might be able to confirm this as well. But I believe the brokerage charge is based on a tiered value system. I think, I repeat THINK, that if you state the value as $100 or lower, the brokerage charge is much less that a package sent w/ a value >$100.00. Ran into this issue w/ a purchase of Garmont's from Truckee. Charge $80+ is brokerage fees. <$100 value would have saved me quite a bit of cash.

**wicked_sick** · 10-13-2007, 07:19 PM

I recently purchased 2 items from some people here.

The first was a snowboard for my girlfriend. The sender underdeclared the value, and sent it as a gift. No duty, only taxes on the declared amount.

The other item was a jacket. Same situation, but I was not required to pay duty OR taxes. The declared value on each item was pretty well the same.

Not sure how that works. Perhaps the fact that the jacket is made in canada has something to do with that

**Altaholic** · 10-14-2007, 11:47 AM

Originally Posted by dapesche

USPS has always worked best for me. GIFTing is always a good idea.

Just know that if you are charged duty on the skis, RAISE some hell, as you should not be. Basically anything manufactured in the North America's should be duty free. But for skis and boots, among other products, that are manufactured by countries 'of confidence' (or some rhetoric like that), duties should not be charged.

If they are caught by customs, you'll be paying taxes on the estimated value of the skis. So that brings up the debate, if they call bullshit on the gift idea are they going to determine the value at like $700, or if you mark the value of the package @ $100, will they just tax you on that amt.

Someone might be able to confirm this as well. But I believe the brokerage charge is based on a tiered value system. I think, I repeat THINK, that if you state the value as $100 or lower, the brokerage charge is much less that a package sent w/ a value >$100.00. Ran into this issue w/ a purchase of Garmont's from Truckee. Charge $80+ is brokerage fees. <$100 value would have saved me quite a bit of cash.

Wow

,... that sucks

**Eds** · 10-14-2007, 11:59 AM

Yeah, courier services make ALL their money on int'l shipments. I got charged 80 bucks for some guy to ship me a 250 dollar fork. He claimed he had no idea so his local shop picked up the charge but I nearly had a heart attack when I found out that that Travis wasn't such a great deal. UPS in particular is very nasty, but Fedex and obviously USPS are the best ways to go. USPS and Canpost probably have the best rates out of anything I've tried.

**snoboy** · 10-14-2007, 07:15 PM

USPS (and delivery from Canada Post obviously...) charges a flat $5 brokerage fee, plus applicable duties and taxes.

The courier companies charge whatever they can, including percentage fees on any money they pay out on your behalf.

**dirtybryan** · 10-14-2007, 07:24 PM

Count me in as one who has been fucked by brokerage fees. Its not the customs fees that are bad, its the brokerage fees. Here is a thread that has some goods ideas on how to best avoid them http://tetongravity.com/forums/showthread.php?t=65028

**Wiilbert** · 10-14-2007, 09:17 PM

UPS is shit. Do not use them, whatever you do. USPS is probably your best bet for price. Fedex is a bit more reliable but more costly.

I'm not sure how it works for regular Canadians. I run my own business and charge people GST. If customs charges me for something they shouldn't have, I'm allowed to take that money out of the GST that I send to the government.