Ebay selling to Canada

[plowjockey]

And other countries for that matter.

Have have some good photgraphic equipment and other stuff, that I want to sell on eBay.

In years past, I seem to have got higher auction prices, by selling to Canada and elswhere, including Australia. The last item ebay item that was sold in Canada, I nearly got burned for about $25, for unpaid customs and duty charges, theough FedEx. Luckily, the buyer agreed to (and paid) the charges, but could just have easily blown it off.

So U.S. ebay sellers, yea or nea on selling outside? If so, how do you ship and structure auctions, to help ensure, that extra charges are paid by the buyer, so you don't end up with a bill, or an unclaimed package at the CPS?

[Rocky Fields]

Hey.

Put your terms for foreign sales in your ebay listing. If the winning bidder doesn't pay any extra fees upfront, relist the item.

RF

[mellowguy]

Fedex and UPS charge extra for custom brokerage. It's not obvious unless you research it. As a Canadian who got burnt a few times (UPS charged $60 for custom brokerage), I know to insist on USPS shipments, and to steer away from large sellers that only use Fedex or UPS.

With USPS, the only additional fee is what Canada Customs will impose. That includes the sales tax, an inspection fee (I think no more than $2 if they inspect), and duty fees. Anything under $20 sails through without a fee. Over $20, the sales tax usually doesn't get added if the custom declaration form says it's "used XXXX", and custom duties don't apply to products made in Mexico, the USA, or a large number of other countries.

All the charges become COD, so it's really a matter of letting your buyer know of the risks and fees in advance, so that the shipment is not declined and returned to you with all the fees and no sale.

You may want to do your own research to confirm the above, but I hope it's a starting point.

[ErinP]

Originally Posted by plowjockey

And other countries for that matter.

Have have some good photgraphic equipment and other stuff, that I want to sell on eBay.

In years past, I seem to have got higher auction prices, by selling to Canada and elswhere, including Australia. The last item ebay item that was sold in Canada, I nearly got burned for about $25, for unpaid customs and duty charges, theough FedEx. Luckily, the buyer agreed to (and paid) the charges, but could just have easily blown it off.

So U.S. ebay sellers, yea or nea on selling outside? If so, how do you ship and structure auctions, to help ensure, that extra charges are paid by the buyer, so you don't end up with a bill, or an unclaimed package at the CPS?

I only mail USPS to international customers.
I've always included international customers and have never had a bad experience. (Though I did have a package that came back from France this summer. Never heard a word from the buyer. Very odd)

[GoldenCityMuse]

USPS is the only good way to ship outside US for the reasons stated above. Plus, if your items fit in the flat rate boxes, shipping is fairly reasonable.

Canadian buyers especially hate the excessive brokerage fees charged by fedex & UPS. Many of them ask to have the item listed as a gift, but I do not tend to do that. If they have to pay customs fees, then maybe they will complain enough to their MP's and change the min value subject to the tarrif.

[Ken Scharabok]

My local UPS drop-off point will not ship outside the U.S. due to the additional time it takes to complete the various forms. From what I was told while USPS PM may be a bit higher initially, it will actually cost the customer less than UPS or FedEx. Again, as told, the CPS does their own customs work, UPS, at least, contracts it out for an additional fee.

I simply won't ship UPS out of the U.S.

In my description I indicate buyers outside the U.S. are responsible for any customs or additional fees (such as value added).