Not Free Product If Value is Declared

[globewalker]

To Whom It May Concern:

Quoting "While the CDs and the shipping are completely free of charge.."
from your website, this statement ought to be changed if a value is
declared on the shipment.

I recently ordered 50 CDs (not the first time) and somebody at your end
declared the value of shipment as $25, thus customs and taxes were
slapped on the $25 worth of CDs when shipped to Canada! I have no
problem with the $11 duties paid but I can't do that if I am helping
Ubuntu to fulfill requests for these CDs by schools and non-profits I am
working for in long term. I hope somebody can clarify this asap, or
better still, refund me the $11 that were imposed this time, as this has
not happen on previous occasions when ordering the same quantity of CDs.
If $25 is it, then you should declared on your website about the value
of each CD before people request them under your "ShipIt Free" label.
This is only fair to the community supporting Ubuntu by helping
distribute the CDs, while a clear cost of the CD is posted.

[vayu]

You got 50 free cds of a kick butt OS and you're complaining that you have to pay $11?

[Rinzwind]

Globewalker: I suggest sending them back. That's the only way customs allows you to not pay for it.

Next to that: it's not shipit you need to complain to. It's your government. they are the people telling you you need to pay 11 usd.

If you would look at the rules regarding this you will see there's an amount where you need to stay under in order for you not having to pay tax. Order your CD's/DVD's in amounts below that price. In the Netherlands this amount is 22 euro. Under it we can import it without paying additional taxes.

ShipIp will most likely NOT be pursuaded to put 20 euro on any shipment to Holland (that would be illegal) so I would suggest next time to check what laws your country has and to stay underneath the amount required. Nothing is keeping you from ordering several sets.
ShipIt also can not be asked to take in account all laws about importing goods to any country in the world. YOU are by law suppose to know every law that's enforced in your country so you should have known there would be importtaxes and VAT applied to your shipment.

[jeremy]

Why did you post this in two different places (your only two posts)?

[jeremy]

ShipIp will most likely NOT be pursuaded to put 20 euro on any shipment to Holland (that would be illegal) so I would suggest next time to check what laws your country has and to stay underneath the amount required. Nothing is keeping you from ordering several sets.
ShipIt also can not be asked to take in account all laws about importing goods to any country in the world. YOU are by law suppose to know every law that's enforced in your country so you should have known there would be importtaxes and VAT applied to your shipment.
It may be possible for shipit to put something like "Free pomotional merchandise" on the label, rather than a value. Just a thought.

[Rinzwind]

It may be possible for shipit to put something like "Free pomotional merchandise" on the label, rather than a value. Just a thought.

No they can not.

The amount has to reflect the ACTUAL price. So it would be the price of the physical disc and plastik box.
50 cd's with box at a price of 25 dollars is 50 cents a cd. That's a normal price for a cd with a box. So ShipIt is doing it the correct way.

Thing is: for Holland it's 3 dollars above the amount due for taxes.
I would have ordered 25 cd's and 2 days later another 25.. Simple ain't it?
Like any other citizen in Holland I am suppose to know the laws regarding importing stuff and I made DAMN sure I knew what I was doing when I started buying dvd'd on the web.

[blastus]

If the package is commercial and more than $20 C.D.N., then taxes (and possibly duty) are added. If the package is a gift and is more than $60 C.D.N., then taxes (and possibly duty) are added. This at least applies to U.S. shipments coming into Canada. Under NAFTA, there is no duty on U.S. shipments (at least not that I am aware of.) If charges apply, you pay a brokerage fee + duty + 7% G.S.T. + P.S.T. Duty and taxes are ultimately payable to the CCRA. The brokerage fee is payable to your broker.

Some carriers provide full brokerage services, others do not. If Canada Post brokers your package, for example, you pay them a fixed $5 fee. However, just because Canada Post may be your carrier, does not mean that they will broker your package. That depends on the method of shipment. Depending on the broker and the value of the package, the brokerage fee can be extremely high (like fifty bucks.) If Canada Post or UPS or whatever is the broker, you pay them up front. Some brokers (like the one that Canada Posts uses which I can't think of the name right now) mail you a nasty invoice a couple of weeks after the fact demanding payment. Alternatively, if you live near your Canada Customs processing center you can broker the package yourself. Basically the broker is responsible for clearing the package through customs once it has been determined that charges (duty and taxes) apply. It is usually the responsibility of the broker to collect the duty and taxes for the CCRA.

I'm not familiar with duty, but it is probably dependent not only on the declared value of the package but also on its contents and possibly the country of origin. I'm not sure if the G.S.T./P.S.T. is added just on the declared value or the declared value + duty. There is no G.S.T./P.S.T. added onto Canada Post's $5 brokerage fee, but other brokers add the G.S.T./P.S.T. onto it because it is a service. If the $20/$60 rule applies to international shipments, then ShipIt could declare the package as a gift and that may solve the problem. I'd talk to a Canada Customs officer to check if you order from ShipIt in the future.

Edit: It looks like the taxes (G.S.T./P.S.T.) and duty are added on top of the declared value + brokerage fees + duty.

[WildTangent]

I ordered only 10 CDs and I didn't have to pay anything. Like what's been said already, there are limits at which you need/don't need to pay taxes. Anyway, its only $11, big whoop. Don't order so many CDs next time

-Wild

[peterbrowne]

Please read this before complaining about CBSA-Assessed Taxes: http://www.ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php?p=568223&postcount=18