posted on November 20, 2000 04:49:16 PM
I recently had a buyer ask me to ship to Canada, even though my listing says US only. I agreed because I really didn't want to relist. When I went to the post office they told me that it wasn't any different than shipping to the US, as long as the package was under 3 lbs. (or maybe it was 4 lbs.). My package was, so I didn't worry about it. Well, I decided that if it was that easy, I'd ship to Canada on all auctions that weigh under 3 lbs. Well, today, I asked my UPS man for a shipping slip to ship another package to Canada, and it say something about Custom's fees. What did I get myself into? Can anyone explain to me what shipping to Canada will entail?
posted on November 20, 2000 04:55:22 PM
Whatever you do - don't use UPS to ship out of the US!!!!! At least, I wouldn't recommend it...
Use USPS - under 3 lbs can usually go for small packet Air Mail for less than $7. At least I ship a LOT to Canada and nothing is more than $7 for me. And I ship all my items by Small Packet Air. (Australia is usually twice as much.)
If you ship by UPS, your customer will get hit with a huge Custom's fee when their package is delivered. Many customers don't know about it, and then when they get hit with the $25+ fee they decline to accept the package and it gets sent back to you. I've seen it happen lots of times.
The best, cheapest, easiest and safest way is to ship by the USPS. There is a customs form you will have to fill out - just a little form with your name & address and your customer's name & address, and the name and value of the item (usually the bid amount). You stick that on the package and you're good to go. Your customer will have to pay a customs fee for the package - but not the extra UPS fee. I've shipped out hundreds of packages to Canada via the USPS (Small Packet Air) and have NEVER had a problem. Good luck!
posted on November 20, 2000 05:00:47 PM
No problem - glad I could help!
By the way - if you go to www.usps.com and go to "rate calculator" and then "international rates" and type in the country you are shipping to and the weight of the package, you can see all your options and what the measurement/weight requirements are. I refer to this quite often and it helps a lot!
