Is it a hassle to sell equipment to Canadians? (1 Viewer)

[Len Cheong]

Just wondering how come some sellers in the US only wish to sell within the US and not north of the border. Is it the extra paperwork?

 

[Richard Travale]

I'll bet it's because once a product crosses the border or a transaction becomes international, the penalties for fraud are stricter. That was just a guess, I could be completely off-track.
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Rich
"A) You can never go too far and B) If I'm going to get busted it is NOT going to be by a guy like DAT."
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[Kevin. W]

Its just so much easier to deal with someone in your home country. I personally will deal with anyone in Canada and US who belongs to this forum. Only once I had a problem but that was eventually taken care off.
Kevin

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

Len,
Yes, there is extra paperwork. I sold a laser disc player to a Canadian a couple of years ago (great guy by the way), and there were Customs forms to fill out in triplicate, etc. I think there may have been additional forms for UPS, too, I can’t remember.
In addition, I believe there is a Canadian duty for anything valued over a certain amount, and the number where it starts is pretty low. Of course, this would be the responsibility of the Canadian buyer, not the U.S. seller.
Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt
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My Equipment List
[Edited last by Wayne A. Pflughaupt on October 09, 2001 at 07:34 PM]

 

[BobPeck]

Didn't NAFTA get rid of all these customs obligations?

 

[Francois Caron]

NAFTA got rid of the customs charges for US and Canadian made products, but it certainly didn't get rid of the blasted taxes!

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The Milnoc
News, Views, DVD Reviews.

 

[BobPeck]

Really? I'm new to this, but I was told by a Paradigm dealer I can get back both my Ontario Tax and GST charges when I bring the stuff back to the US.
Even said he had all the forms to fill out so I'd get back my money, probably in a three weeks or so. Said I would get GST back at the border(in cash?!?!?), and the Ontario tax in the mail, later.
I hope this is true, I'm "this close" to ordering my Studio/60's and CC. . . . .

 

[Glenn Overholt]

It should be easy, but a lot of US retailers don't know what to do, so saying 'no' is the easiest way out.
I am not sure, but you might be able to set up an arrangement of sorts. Call up a customs house broker in Vancouver and tell them exactly what you want to do and how much it is. Maybe the retailer in the US could ship/sell it to an exporter in Blaine, Washington, and for a fee they'd get it over the border.
Glenn

 

[Kwang Suh]

Really? I'm new to this, but I was told by a Paradigm dealer I can get back both my Ontario Tax and GST charges when I bring the stuff back to the US.

To clarify, the poster is asking about sending goods TO Canada, not the other way around.
Yes, you will get back both the Ontario Tax and GST when you bring your speakers to the US.

 

[Kwang Suh]

Oh, and to reply about companies sending goods to Canada. Yeah, it's a pain. Having my own business, let me tell you I don't want to even touch cross border goods and services. The amount of extra work needed is horrendous. It's probably just as bad in the US as well.

 

[Paul_C]

I have received many goods from the States and have sent a few down south as well. I did this personally so a business might have different restrictions/requirements.
Basically I send stuff via Canada Post and I fill out a customs declaration form (takes a couple of seconds) and off it goes. Most of the time the clerk fills out the form for me.
Packages coming from the states also have a customs declaration form on them but it should not take long to fill it out.
These customs forms basically have address information, a dollar value and a short description of what the item(s) are.
I never get stuff done by UPS as they act as a broker and charge huge dollars to process a package. Canada customs on the other hand charges $5.00 CDN to process a package. UPS also might have paper requirements that go beyond the regular customs forms.
I guess I don't see what the fuss is all about. For me, it has been a painless experience.
Paul.

 

[JohnnyG]

The biggest issue for me is that in most cases, the US division of the manufacturer will not honor the warranty for a product bought in this manner. So, if I ship a Panasonic DVD player from Canada to a customer in the US, Panasonic USA will not honor the warranty and the customer would have to ship the item back here for warranty service or pay for the repair themself.
The paperwork is indeed a major pain too.
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John Golitsis
Next Big Thing Electronics