Cost of duty for new diaper from US?

[Koolio11]

I will also post this in the CDN FSOT forum but, I'm considering purchasing a new diaper that is only available in US. Does anyone know how much I will pay in duty (over and above the shipping costs)? Does the cost of duty increase incrementally if I were to end up buying a while lot? TIA!!!

[RebeccaMomof3]

depends where you are buying it from and how it is shipped...NEVER have stuff sent by UPS...you will pay SO MUCH. If it is a FSOT item and the seller marks it as something like "Cloth baby diapers" or if for woolies "Used baby clothes" I have only once been hit with customs fees, and that was a case of a mama over-valuing the item on the customs form

If it is sent by the regular postal system and does get hit with the fees it is a flat $5 processing fee plus a percentage of the amount claimed Hope this helps and GL with your purchase

[lilsonicfan]

You can always call Border Services if you want to know specifically. Generally for clothing not made in North America, duty is around 18%, and then you have to pay PST and GST as well (or HST or whatever.) Last time I called, they told me that if it was made in the US but the material was made in Asia (eg) then there would still be duty. Kind of odd. But anyway, depending on where you buy from, you often don't really have to pay duty, as the above poster said it depends on how the item is shipped. UPS and Fedex will always charge duty plus taxes plus a steep brokerage fee. Canada Post often does not.

[Koolio11]

Thanks for letting me know!!!

[patooty]

i think diapers are duty free

[luna13]

I've only paid duty if it's over $20 I think. I had an issue once with sun tan lotion I ordered from the US and I called the courier company to complain and they said they'd waive the fee that time but I believe they said anything over $20 I had to pay customs on. I can't remember the exact details..but it was something like that. I bought a diaper bag that was around $70 and had to pay $17 for duty.

[wordmama]

I've bought diapers from American mamas about four times now and haven't been charged at the border once yet. As long as the value is low and they state that it's diapers, they seem to let the packages through without charging.

I agree with the PP about couriers - that's where the big costs come in! Go with the US postal service.

[chickenmonkeybaby]

Canada mamas I ship to always tell me that as long as I label the package "Baby" cloth diaper, etc it will be duty free. The important thing is to ask your seller to put the word Baby on the customs form. HTH

[eastcoastmomma]

Originally Posted by lilsonicfan You can always call Border Services if you want to know specifically. Generally for clothing not made in North America, duty is around 18%, and then you have to pay PST and GST as well (or HST or whatever.) Last time I called, they told me that if it was made in the US but the material was made in Asia (eg) then there would still be duty. Kind of odd. But anyway, depending on where you buy from, you often don't really have to pay duty, as the above poster said it depends on how the item is shipped. UPS and Fedex will always charge duty plus taxes plus a steep brokerage fee. Canada Post often does not.

This has been my experience exactly...sales tax, duty and hefty brokerage fees. I was told by customs that the only way for this not to occur is for the value to be less than $20 or for it to be a gift. I think if you google border services or customs you will be able to find a site that explains it all....I once bought used sleepers off ebay for my ds and ended up paying more in fees then for the sleepers themselves and by the time that was all said and done I could have gone to the store here and bought new ones for less. I am pretty leery after that experience...good luck!

[Koolio11]

Thanks to everyone!