ExecutiveGirl
|
posted on April 12, 2001 03:33:45 PM
Ok, had a customer from Canada win an item the other day. I give him his total with shipping to Canada. This was for an item under $20.
Today he emails me telling me to please mark the customs form as a "gift" or to lower the value so he won't have to pay duty on it when it gets there.
I responded saying that I am very sorry, but I will NOT lie on the form, it will be marked as "merchandise" and I will mark the value the amount of his bid.
He just responded with this:
Often sellers offer to do this, and as I believe it is ethically wrong for the government to be charging duty on used goods,I appreciate it when they do. However ,as you're not comfortable with that , I understand.To put it in perspective, by the time this XXXXXXXXX gets here, it will cost about $70.00, and our salaries here in Canada are no higher to compensate for our weak dollar.Payment has been sent via Bidpay.
Regardless of his reasoning, I will NOT lie on the customs form, under any circumstances. It irritates me that someone would ask me to outright LIE on a government form - I've gotten several of these emails in the past, but my answer is always the same. Perhaps these international bidders should ask the sellers BEFORE bidding if they will lie on the forms so they can decide if they want to bid or not. (So they can avoid these high taxes).
Now out of curiosity - would a less than $20 item really cost $70.00 after taxes?? That does seem quite high!
If I knew I was going to have to pay $50 taxes on an item I would have certainly considered that when placing my bid.
[ edited by ExecutiveGirl on Apr 12, 2001 03:34 PM ]
|
lorndav
|
posted on April 12, 2001 03:44:36 PM
I don't know the answer to your question, but I will say I have had this happen, more then once. I have actually not shipped because the person wanted me to lie on the form. I let them back out. I now have in my TOS, all international items will be declared though customs for value at auction end. Not that anyone ever reads the TOS, but that's another topic!
|
cdnbooks
|
posted on April 12, 2001 03:51:01 PM
Yawn
Thread number 2475 on this topic.
Bill
|
toke
|
posted on April 12, 2001 03:54:58 PM
I truly don't know. The only time I was asked to do this, was by a British buyer. A really nice one, too. I'd already shipped the book, so I was spared. He wrote me later that he'd gotten lucky, and the book went through without duty.
I'm really torn. I like my customers, and I dislike the taxman. I don't like to lie. I could maybe talk myself into a generic form of civil disobedience...
|
cdnbooks
|
posted on April 12, 2001 03:55:32 PM
Assuming the item costs US$20 and shippng is US$ 8.00 and adding taxes and handling charges and converting to CDN$ gives a total of about $57.00
Bill
|
toke
|
posted on April 12, 2001 04:09:54 PM
Good grief. That's brutal.
|
reston_ray
|
posted on April 12, 2001 05:08:08 PM
I have heard that some sellers find a middle ground by puting a value on the item near (when not insured)or at their cost.
That way the item is marked correctly, a valid price (replacement) is used (no outright lie) and life goes on.
|
magazine_guy
|
posted on April 12, 2001 05:15:57 PM
I've shipped hundreds of items internationally, and only had one buyer make such a request. So your Canadian buyer is overstating things a bit, I suspect.
Also- I don't see what the exchange rate has to do with anything. Canadian dollars are different than US dollars- just as Yen and Pounds are different than US dollars. If a $20 item ends up costing a Japanese buyer 800 Yen, is that a compelling argument for ANYTHING?
That said, Ray's thought of putting a wholesale value on the custom form seems reasonable to me.
S
|
toke
|
posted on April 12, 2001 05:35:05 PM
mag_guy...
It's pretty obvious the monies are different.  So what would the $57 hypothetical Canadian dollars be in U.S. dollars?
|
magazine_guy
|
posted on April 12, 2001 05:44:11 PM
HI toke!
Here's a currency converter:
http://www.xe.com/ucc/convert.cgi
The whining buyer's $70 Canadian is about $44 US. (Not sure where you got $56??).
But $70 sounds more compelling, no?
|
toke
|
posted on April 12, 2001 05:50:28 PM
Hi!
I got the $57 Canadian figure from cdnbooks post. Thanks for the converter.
Can you tell I'm fairly math challenged?
|
magazine_guy
|
posted on April 12, 2001 06:04:03 PM
I just checked Canadian customs site for tarrifs. A quick reading only.....but it appears that most items under $20 Canadian (about $13 US) is tarrif free. Some exceptions- tobacco and magazines and such. Above that, the tarrif is generally either 7% or 15% depending on province-- some provinces have other rates.
So a $20 US item would likely suffer Canadian customs tarrifs of either $1.20 US ($2 Canadian), or $3 US ($4.65 Canadian).
The buyer was blowing smoke, methinks.
S.
|
cdnbooks
|
posted on April 12, 2001 06:20:07 PM
Actually there is unlikely to be any duty. There will be (depending on the province) 15% tax and a $5 handling fee.
Bill
|
Lisa_B
|
posted on April 12, 2001 07:02:09 PM
Exec Girl, I don't accommodate such requests either, although I've had these requests numerous times and as I do empathize with their situation, I guess I don't get hot and bothered about it. I've taken to including a disclaimer in my auction TOS that I provide full disclosure on customs forms.
HOWEVER -- I have also offered to ship to a U.S. address if the buyer wishes me to do so. Sometimes they have U.S. acquaintances who are willing to accept packages on their behalf -- then any subsequent shipping arrangements is their problem.
|
eventer
|
posted on April 12, 2001 07:39:40 PM
Gosh, maybe in this massive infrastructure change ebay is going to do, they'll consider adding a couple of new boxes:
Seller Will Lie on Customs Form
Seller Will Not Lie on Customs Form
That would make it easier for us international sellers. 
|
gravid
|
posted on April 12, 2001 08:06:17 PM
Perhaps the buyer should work to overthrow the thieving government or move to the US where the dollar is worth more instead of asking the seller to assume the risk of overcoming this injustice.
|
reddeer
|
posted on April 12, 2001 08:21:57 PM
Some sellers are idiots.
|
ExecutiveGirl
|
posted on April 12, 2001 08:26:56 PM
Some sellers are idiots.
Excuse me, Reddeer? Care to explain??
|
camachinist
|
posted on April 12, 2001 08:38:46 PM
Interesting...bought a Steiff from a dealer in England and it arrived with "gift" on the declaration...
Not at my behest, to be sure.....
I surely would never ask such a thing...I figure the duty as part of the price I'm paying, like sales tax on something bought locally....
Sounds like you have a whiner, EG.....
Maybe reddeer can give us the particulars about the spindly $C......I always thought it was relative...
Pat
edited to correct the spelling of a certain posters' name so I wouldn't get slapped..*G*
[ edited by camachinist on Apr 12, 2001 08:41 PM ]
|
gmi
|
posted on April 12, 2001 11:16:05 PM
Hello
Some clarifications when you ship to Canada. First make sure the declared value for customs is the actual auction amount, not the retail price. Secondly regardless of tariff we are charged both Provincial and Federal Sales taxes plus the customs clearance fee if a package as a value of over $20.
I received a leather coat recently that I won for $40 on Ebay. The seller declared the value at $100 US which came $155 canadian. I was charged 13% duty because the coat wasn't made in the US and then the taxes and the $5.00 customs clearance fee by the Post Office. At the end this totalled $55 canadian. If the declared value would have been the actual auction price it would have cost me $23.
This is why it is important to declare the proper value. Also do not include the shipping into the declared value since that is not taxable.
Finally a note about sending UPS to Canada. They apply the same rule but their Customs clearance fee is $16 +.
I hope this will help the American sellers.
Bye
Gilles
GMI on Ebay
|
naru
|
posted on April 12, 2001 11:28:58 PM
Don't like the subtle pressure or the guilt trip the buyer tried to send you on. Oh poor Canadian with medical coverage, nice roads and a relatively crime free country (politicians excepted)which these taxes pay for. Remain firm and polite and just say no!
Canadians know exactly what the exchange rate and taxes are. Any highly taxed country will have a few buyers that try this tactic.
An embarrassed Canuck.
|
Zazzie
|
posted on April 12, 2001 11:36:06 PM
It's not DUTY he's paying it is 'GST--General Services Tax'----which he would have to pay if he bought the 'used' item at the local Good Will.
I make a point of writing USED in capital letters on the custom forms---I don't know if it makes any difference--but who knows!
|
Commentary
|
posted on April 12, 2001 11:59:03 PM
Question - what is the hubbard about lying on a customs form? Has anyone ever been arrested for stating an item is a gift when value is less than $20?
I think accomodating a buyer is the proper thing to do. It seems like the buyer avoids a $5 admin fee and a trip to the post office. The admin fee and the time to the post office seems more of a hassle than the small duty on the item.
Also, all these righteous posters here, do you file a sales tax report and send in the sales tax due on your purchases from out of state?
|
Libra63
|
posted on April 13, 2001 12:37:40 AM
I sure don't want to be the first one arrested for lying on the custom form. I think the laws in Canada are rather tough.
EG you have the best threads and the cookiest buyers. You must have a magnet to your auctions that attracts all the weird buyers. Love to read them.
|
eventer
|
posted on April 13, 2001 04:54:22 AM
Question-what is the hubbard about lying on a customs form?
Because it's against the law.
|
cdnbooks
|
posted on April 13, 2001 05:58:05 AM
so is jay-walking.....
Bill
|
eventer
|
posted on April 13, 2001 06:02:22 AM
Take a hike, Bill
|
grayowl
|
posted on April 13, 2001 06:07:14 AM
customs if item is value at $100.00
customs charges $60.00
i paid $5.00 for it
would you pay that duty
it reminds me of the Boston Tea party
maybe we Ebay party
I am canadian yes our dollar is low so low you cannot see it.
|
cdnbooks
|
posted on April 13, 2001 06:42:32 AM
eventer, you could take me for a ride....
Bill
|
musicman12533
|
posted on April 13, 2001 06:43:39 AM
IF YOU SAY "GIFT" ON THE PACKAGE HOW IS THE
GOVERNMENT GOING TO PROVE OTHER WISE?
|
