{"id":4493,"date":"2019-06-28T10:03:07","date_gmt":"2019-06-28T14:03:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/clearit.ca\/canadian-customs-broker-blog\/?p=4493"},"modified":"2019-06-28T10:03:07","modified_gmt":"2019-06-28T14:03:07","slug":"saving-on-duties-and-taxes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/clearit.ca\/canadian-customs-broker-blog\/saving-on-duties-and-taxes\/","title":{"rendered":"Saving on Duties and Taxes When You Import"},"content":{"rendered":"

To those who are not familiar, duties can be somewhat of a mystery and seem extremely arbitrary. Why on earth are you paying <\/span>extra <\/span><\/i>fees on something you already paid for, just because it came from another country?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Paying duty on shipped items may sting, but there is in fact good reason for those extra fees. Duty is put in place to protect Canadian industry, and <\/span>is a protectionist approach<\/span><\/a> to balancing trade with domestic industry. Duty rates may vary greatly from one product to another, depending on if and how the product in question is manufactured in Canada.<\/span><\/p>\n

While they may be useful tools for the government, excessive duties and taxes can eat into your profits and make shopping over the border prohibitive. Luckily, as <\/span>expert customs brokers<\/span><\/a>, we\u2019re familiar with the little ways you can save money on duty and taxes at the border.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Duties and Taxes in Canada<\/span><\/h2>\n

You will have to pay duties and taxes on any shipped import into Canada worth more than $20 — $60 if it was a gift. This is called the de minimis level, and it will raise to $150 for items bought online once the <\/span>Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement <\/span><\/a>is ratified.<\/span><\/p>\n

As a general rule of thumb, <\/span>import taxation is 5% across the board<\/span><\/a>. This tax must be paid at time of import. If you\u2019re importing into a province with HST as a commercial importer, you are not subject to provincial tax and can claim your GST through <\/span>input tax credits<\/span><\/a>. Some items are specified as non-taxable imports, but the vast majority are not.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If the goods you plan to import are for personal use, you will be subject to provincial taxation as well as federal, and have no recourse to take for claiming taxes paid.<\/p>\n

How to Pay Duties and Taxes<\/span><\/h2>\n

Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) collects duties and taxes on behalf of the Canadian Government. In most cases, duties and taxes are paid directly to the broker (that\u2019s us!) who then forwards duties to the CBSA and taxes at the end of each month on their K84. Working with a broker like Clearit simplifies the payment process for you, the importer.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

CBSA accepts the following forms of payment:<\/p>\n