2. amps-preamps
  3. 1034360019

25 customs/tax fee to ship audio to Canada ??

Hi folks:
I sold my Sonic Frontiers Line 3 to a buyer in Canada about three weeks ago. I'm located in California and the buyer is in Ontario, Canada. I find that Canadian customs are holding the preamp, and want about $700CDN in customs/fees/tax before relinquishing the used preamp, which was declared and insured for $2,500USD. To me this excessive charge has been very surprising. Have others had the same experience? Are there ways to contest or overcome this problem? It would seem to make prohibitive any Canadian purchase of gear from the US. The whole problem is particularly disturbing given that one would think that there is such a thing as NAFTA. Also, the Line 3 is manufactured in Canada, and marked clearly as such on the paperwork. FedEx Ground was the shipper in this instance. Anyway, any advice would be welcome. Thanks!!!
outlier

Showing 2 responses by outlier

outlier's avatar
outlier OP
381 posts
 
Thanks folks for the advice and guidance. Well, it looks like the tax was the reason for the chage. Hard to believe it can be so high. Just to answer Dogpile's question on the comparable tax/customs charge for goods into the US - I got a Supratek Syrah preamp about three weeks ago from Australia. I received the preamp and got my customs bill about two weeks later. The charge was 4.5%. Not bad, if you ask me. Certainly not prohibitive, wheras the Canadian charge does seem prohibitive. Well, thanks again for the info and advice. Cheers,
Outlier.
outlier's avatar
outlier OP
381 posts
 
Actually, just wanted to ask one more clarifying question - does the fact that the preamp was originally made in Canada have any bearing on the tax charge, or would it need to be paid irrespective of country of origin? Thanks!!
Outlier.
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