chris_gaetz Posted January 12, 2004 Share Posted January 12, 2004 are video cameras exempt aswell, i'm about to order a sony vx2100 and was wondering if this is true. because i can only afford to pay ground shipping, and i sure as hell can't afford some crazy duty charges. thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
awahlster Posted January 12, 2004 Share Posted January 12, 2004 have it sent via US Mail as with the Post office you will be least likely to have to pay duty from what I hear buying and selling to Canada on ebay and through my camera collector groups. AVOID UPS and Fed EX as they can charge a duty fee that is not really even owed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael R Freeman Posted January 12, 2004 Share Posted January 12, 2004 Chris, Photographic equipment is duty free in Canada if imported from the USA. I have purchased dozens of photo items (lenses, cameras, misc. accessories, etc.) over the past couple of years and have never paid duty. I would expect video cameras to fall under the same or similar classification. You could contact CCRA to make sure (1-800-461-9999). You will most certainly have to pay sales tax (7%GST,PST,15%HST depending on where you live), plus a $5 handling fee if importing via USPS/Canada Post. As Mark has suggested, avoid UPS/FedEx ground services like the plague unless you want to get hit with bogus and excessive "customs clearance fees". Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_gaetz Posted January 12, 2004 Author Share Posted January 12, 2004 thanks a lot, i'll call and be sure to ask what method they use for ground shipping. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_oleson Posted January 12, 2004 Share Posted January 12, 2004 No, it's not true. a zeiss contax i sent after repair got zapped with a $185 fee at the border (on a $40 repair job). i had filled out the little paper wrong (following the instructions of the person at the post office) and so was responsible for the difference. there were no winners. :(= Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_katz1 Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 <html> <head> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=windows-1252"> <meta name="GENERATOR" content="Microsoft FrontPage 4.0"> <meta name="ProgId" content="FrontPage.Editor.Document"> <title>New Page 1</title> </head> <body> <p>Camera equipment (including digital and video) is exempt from duty no matter which country it is imported from.</p> <p>You can find the tariff rates on almost anything here:</p> <p><a href="http://www.ccra-adrc.gc.ca/customs/general/publications/tariff2003/table-e.html">http://www.ccra-adrc.gc.ca/customs/general/publications/tariff2003/table-e.html</a><br> <br> However, if your goods are shipped by ground, expect to get charged duty (and brokerage) regardless. The morons that work for the ground shipping departments of companies like UPS charge whatever they feel like, and you have no choice but to pay if you want the package. If they do charge you duty when they shouldn't, you can request a refund of the extra charges from the CCRA, but it can be a lengthy process.<br> <br> Paying a few dollars more up front for air shipment will almost always cost less (usually, a lot less) in the end than ground shipping (unless you're talking about using the post office).</p> </body> </html> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgo Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 I concur with the UPS/FedEx warnings. They don't charge you duty but they do hit you very hard with brokerage fees. On one shipment a few months ago, they charged me $40 on a $75 package! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
photojim Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 Some of you are mixing up the terminology. There are three fees you might pay when importing a package: - brokerage fee or service charge: a fee to cover the paperwork for importing the package. applicable if any duty or taxes are owing at all. Canada Post, e.g., charges $5. - duty: a form of tax designed to dissuade importation of certain goods in place of consuming domestic goods. For example, Japanese automobiles are subject to a duty when imported into Canada. - tax: in this context, a sales tax that is normally applied on goods sold domestically but also applies to imported goods. This is what you are usually paying when you import. You would pay these taxes if you bought the same goods at your local camera store. These are your provincial sales taxes (Alberta of course has none) and the federal GST, or the harmonized tax (HST) if you have one instead. Photographic equipment is duty-free in Canada because Canada does not have a photographic industry per se. There is no Canadian industry to protect. Goods manufactured in the US and Mexico are not subject to any duty (not merely goods sold there; they can be bought from any country if they were made in the US or Mexico, and foreign goods bought from the US or Mexico are still potentially dutiable). They are still subject to taxes. On photo gear you will pay a brokerage fee and PST/GST or HST. If you pay duty you should appeal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_katz1 Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 "<i>On photo gear you will pay a brokerage fee and PST/GST or HST. If you pay duty you should appeal</i>"<p> UPS Air shipments (Express and Expedited) do not incur any handling fee or brokerage fees of any kind - they only collect the appropriate taxes (GST/PST or HST). <p> UPS Ground (also called UPS Standard), all FedEx services, and the post office all charge a handling fee and/or brokerage charges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert_davis2 Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 FedEx air didn't charge me anything but GST and PST. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_gaetz Posted January 13, 2004 Author Share Posted January 13, 2004 so if i use second day shipping instead of ground, i don't need to worry about the bogus charges? i'll be paying gst and pst only? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertfarnham Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 No duty, always tax (unless value is less than $50), but brokerage charges vary. Have it shipped by USPS (insured) so it comes through Canada Post. Never have somethng shipped UPS if you have a choice - brokerage charges are extremely high - example being a C$400 value strobe was charged about C$40 brokerage along with 15% tax. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert_davis2 Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 Best to ask the shipper what charges they have at the moment. Stuff changes. Both Fedex Canada and UPS Canada used to have the info on thier websites. It was a pain to find but it was there. I assume it still is. You might try calling them but my expierence is finding someone who knows anything on the subject will be a chore. Nice thing about FedEx is they let you pick it up if they miss you. UPS ends up ruining your day. Or worse several days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary_watson Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 Items shipped to TO via USPS so often arrived damaged that I went with Fedex and swallowed the brokerage fees. You'll pay taxes but not duty.Avoid UPS: slow, indifferent service and maddening "where's Waldo?" tracking.Have you looked into Sony.ca warranty coverage, Chris? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_katz1 Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 I used to use FedEx, but they only allow you a lifetime limit of three import shipments if the value is over US$1100. Luckily, B&H switched to UPS as their primary shipper just after I received my third, and last, shipment permitted by FedEx. The difference in service is like night and day - UPS is cheaper, faster, and has a tracking system that actually works. And if they're late, the shipping charges are refunded! FedEx, on the other hand, seems to think that "customer service" is a four-letter word. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert_davis2 Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 I've had no problems with USPS. FedEX lost a package and caused me grief getting that figured out. UPS was supposed to deliver me a package the Friday before a long weekend. The website claimed it was out on the truck to me. The call centre people said it was coming. It never showed. The driver claimed that nobody was home. Pure BS. Oh and the delivery time they give you is something like 8am to 8pm!!!. The package finally showed up Tuesday night. Costing me two full days of waiting. The FedEx tracking website actually shows what is going on. They just managed to lose stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iam_gotnoname Posted November 23, 2004 Share Posted November 23, 2004 I just called Customs Canada. The lady says that for all camera gear, duty depends on where it was manufactured. If made in USA then no duty. Elsewhere, 5-8% 3 weeks ago, I phoned and they say no duty regardless of where it was made! Can't get a straight answer. Assuming the first situation, I'm thinking of buyint Canon body and lenses from bhphotovideo. NOT the grey market ones. Does this mean they were manufactured in USA? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael R Freeman Posted November 23, 2004 Share Posted November 23, 2004 There is no duty on MOST cameras or lenses (single use cameras are subject to 5% duty) imported into Canada from the USA, regardless of where they are made. http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/general/publications/tariff2004/tablewithamendments-e.html 35mm SLR's fall under tariff code 9006.51.10, and are shown as FREE in the "Customs Tariff Schedule". 35mm lenses fall under tariff code 9002.11.10, and are shown as FREE. The regulations are so complex and convoluted that I'm not surprised you can't get a straight answer. You WILL pay taxes however. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
novastorm Posted August 20, 2005 Share Posted August 20, 2005 A friend is bringing a lens back to Canada for me ,from a shopping trip to Boston. The Tariff number listed above is still valid as of this date I just checked. What happens at the border? Is there a form that has to be filled out and this number put in, or? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
novastorm Posted August 20, 2005 Share Posted August 20, 2005 A friend is bringing a lens back to Canada for me ,from a shopping trip to Boston. The Tariff number listed above is still valid as of this date I just checked. What happens at the border when crossing by car? Is there a form that has to be filled out and this number put in, or? I would like to make it as easy as possible for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael R Freeman Posted August 22, 2005 Share Posted August 22, 2005 Nova, Your friend will have to declare the lens at Customs (now Canada Border Services) when he/she re-enters Canada, unless you want to take a chance and try to "sneak it in" (they will NOT be amused if it isn't declared and then discovered in a random search). I am not sure of the forms to fill out at the border for a land crossing, since all of my visits to the USA were for business and I had "nothing to declare" when I came back across, but I doubt that it is very complicated. But knowing the correct tariff code will insure that the lens is properly classified as duty free (but GST/HST will be collected). If your friend is flying back he/she will get a simple form to fill out on the airplane prior to landing to declare any "shopping goodies" (at least that was the case the last time I flew back to Canada from the USA, but that was before 9/11). http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/travel/faqs-e.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
novastorm Posted August 23, 2005 Share Posted August 23, 2005 Appreciate you taking the time here. I ended up not getting them to get the above lens, as a new version is just coming out from Canon. In the end I purchased a 28-105 locally which I think is going to work out way better for me. This is still all good info to know though as I am probably looking at an L series next and our dollar makes everything south of us look very attractive right now. :) Good to see you by the way! Cheers Nova ~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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