Canadians: Ask me about Canada Post and shipping - I work there!

[#1]

On top of my "real" job and my etsy shops, I also work part-time at a Canada Post outlet, for 4 years now. I'm very knowledgeable about all things related to shipping. I can be your resident expert! Ask away and I will do my best to answer clearly.

jackie ♥

Here's the original post from a forum thread I started before etsy did the shut-down to teams :( It describes CP's rate increases for 2011, which took effect on January 17th.

Like clockwork, Canada Post is raising their rates as of January 17th. I work at the post office part-time so I thought I would give my fellow Canadians a head's up. Here's a link to the complete list of new rates including all the price tables you could ever want (a very helpful sleep aid for insomniacs!).

http://www.canadapost.ca/tools/pg/prices/ (click on the red "new prices" button)

I'm not sure how bad the increase is for domestic and US Expedited parcel rates, but here are the new Lettermail, Oversize Lettermail, Light Packet, and Small Packet rates.

Lettermail (max 24.5 X 15.6 X .5cm):
Canada >>
0.59 (0-30g)
1.03 (31-50g)
USA >>
1.03 (0-30g)
1.25 (31-50g)
International >>
1.75 (0-30g)
2.50 (31-50g)

Oversize Lettermail (max 38 X 27 X 2cm):
Canada >>
1.25 (0-100g)
2.06 (101-200g)
2.85 (201-300g)
3.25 (301-400g)
3.50 (401-500g)
USA >> (printed matter only)
2.06 (0-100g)
3.60 (101-200g)
7.20 (201-500g)
International >> (printed matter only)
4.10 (0-100g)
7.20 (101-200g)
14.40 (201-500g)

Light Packet (max 38 X 27 X 2cm):
USA >> 4% increase over 2010
2.36 (0-100g)
4.92 (101-250g)
7.91 (251-500g)
International >> 3.5% increase over 2010!
4.60 (0-100g)
9.25 (101-250g)
15.80 (251-500g)

Small Packet (max L + W + H = 90cm)
USA >> 7.5% increase over 2010!
Surface 5.85 (0-250g)
Airmail 7.46
Surface 8.35 (251-500g)
Airmail 9.90
Surface 12.41 (501g-1kg)
Airmail 15.36
International >> (rates vary according to the country.. please see zone and rate tables through the link above. Amounts below are for shipments to the United Kingdom, zone 02 - surface rates are 10% higher than 2010, airmail rates are 8% higher, except in the 1-2kg category)
Surface 6.54 (0-250g)
Airmail 8.53
Surface 8.95 (251-500g)
Airmail 17.06
Surface 15.02 (501g-1kg)
Airmail 33.45
Surface 21.07 (1-2kg)
Airmail 50.26

I don't know about you, but I am really bummed about this. Increases of 7 and 10% are really going to hurt!

Convo me if you have any questions.
(Posted at 2:55 am, January 3, 2011 EST)

[TigersandDragons]

Elisabeth - Within Canada, you can ship objects as Letter/Oversized Letter (except goods on the restricted list).

For shipping anywhere else, only Paper can go by Letter. Objects must ship by Light Packet, Small Packet, etc... with a Customs Declaration form.
So YES, the employees do have the right to have your parcel/envelope sent by the correct service and with a Customs form.

Whether your item was shipped by Light Packet or Small Packet should depend on the thickness of the envelope.
OVERSIZED Letter and Light Packet have the same maximum dimensions
(max 38 X 27 X 2cm), though the weight classes are different.

As Natalie said, if your envelope weighted 200 grams or less, the cost should of been $5 for Light Packet to the USA.

In the future, if you ship just paper, such as stickers, you could get away with using Letter, without a customs form. Just state "paper" when asked.

However, The stamped customs form is proof of sending, and may help you win an Etsy or Paypal case. Also I realize that your items are inexpensive, but you CAN buy insurance for Light Packet & Small Packet from 3rd party companies such as InsurePost. You cannot buy insurance for Letters.

[TigersandDragons]

Linenspace, I don't know for sure when scans occur during the process of mail being handed to Customs before clearance, and then going to Canada Post to be sorted, then delivered.

Did you promise your customers a specific time-frame for delivery?
I noticed that it states on your policies page;
"Items sent to other countries may take up to 2-5 weeks to reach the buyer."

It has been 17 Business days (Monday to Friday) since your item was mailed, just over 3 weeks. So tell your customer what Canada Post told you, that their parcel is likely delayed in customs, waiting to be cleared.

This lack of tracking, after and item leaves the host country, until it is finally delivered is not unusual (usually the delivery info. is shown in tracking)....especially if the article is being held in Canada Customs.
It happens in many countries. I know it's frustrating, I read about this all the time in the general forums. There's nothing you can do to MAKE postal employees in any country scan parcels more often.

All you can do is ask your customer to please be patient. You can both keep checking the tracking. Once it leaves your hands, the parcel is at the mercy of the postal system and you don't have any control over that or over any other country's Custom department. I think it's too early to be worried.

Was the item insured through Lithuania Post? Then when and if the specific amount of time has passed that allows you to make a claim at your postal service has passed, and the item still hasn't arrived, is considered "lost", then you can make an insurance claim.

[LinenSpace]

TigersandDragons, thank you. Yes, I communicate with the client and informed her about possible delay in customs, and she is really patient. I woud say I am more concerned at the moment than my client :). It is just so bad feeling to know that I can do nothing but wait, especially when tracking info is missing for so long. And yes, if the item is lost, I would be able to make a claim for compensation. Maybe, after hundreds of sale in my shop I will get more used to situations like this - now for me it's just beginning on Etsy.

[ItsJustYouandMe]

Hi - I just shipped from the US, my first order to Canada. It was a little tricky but I think all went well. Other than the postage to Canada, are there any other hidden charges, fees or taxes that I may not know about that might come back to me, which I may owe? I did the online postage thing and printed directly from USPS.com, took my package to the post office, and asked them about any import tax that might be due...they were clueless. I'd like to open up my entire store to the Canadian market, and need to know all the ins and outs of shipping to Canada. Any information you can provide would be awesome. Thank you for your help!

[TigersandDragons]

You won't be paying any fees as the shipper. Any taxes, duties or brokerage fees for importing good are entirely the responsibility of your Canadian customers (and customers in other countries, if you decide to ship to the EU for example).

The tax free limit for imports in Canada is $20 CAD (Canadian dollars), any shipment over that value could possibly be charges sales tax (depends on the province, ranges between 5-15%). This is the same rate that the customer would pay if they bought the item in a local store.

The Canadian Post Office charges a $10 CAD brokering fee per parcel for doing the brokering paperwork. It's unlikely that they would charge duties. However if you ship through postal service, Canada Post is pretty lax when it comes to doing tax paperwork, so while you can't count on it, if the value is under $100 CAD, it's unlikely that a parcel will be brokered, or charged.

But COURIERS follow customs laws to the letter, so I recommend that you do NOT use any courier companies to ship to Canada, without discussing it first with your customer and getting their approval. Couriers are known for charging high fees($30 and up) for doing the brokering paperwork, on top of charging sales tax, and possibly duties on any shipments valued over $20 CAD.

Right now $1 USD is worth $1.24 CAD. This is unusually high, but the exchange rate is projected to stay high for awhile.

[JacquieVintage]

Elisabeth,
As Tigers said, only printed matter can go as Lettermail to US/Int'l destinations. Postal clerks do have the right to ask you what the contents of your parcel are. However, I always recommend that sellers learn what they should be paying for. In your case, if the clerk insisted that you send it by Small Packet even though it fit the dimension/weight requirements of Light Packet then the clerk was in the wrong for not giving you the option. And, while I don't promote doing this, if you ask for Lettermail and respond that the contents are "printed matter" then the clerk must oblige you. Whether you take the risk is up to you :)

[TigersandDragons]

Some clerks don't know about Light Packet, it's the option on the very bottom of the list on their computer screen, they have to scroll down to see it.

It's the bamboo skewers that were the issue, the toppers by themselves could of squeaked by as paper items.

Glad to see you back Jacquie!

[TigersandDragons]

As Jacquie advises, it's important to be familiar with the services yourself....know what the cost will be before you go to the post office.

I've been given misinformation plenty of times, and had to correct the clerk.
Also had shipments miss-weighed, miss-measured, the wrong country or size typed into the screen.
Since this is a business, these mistakes can cost me, or cause problems, so I always pay attention to what the clerk is doing.

[terrabryn]

Seems to be a lot more of my parcels from the USA and elsewhere being processed through customs and arriving with tax and handling fee owing - since the new year. Even a couple low value ones. Anybody else noticing that?
Maybe customs has upped their processing capacity.

[TigersandDragons]

What are the values of your parcels that are getting brokered?
I haven't had any supplies come in since December except some low value chain samples, all under $10.

[terrabryn]

$80 - $100. The one today was $99.

[TigersandDragons]

They can charge on any merchandise over $20 CA. You just have to expect it as a cost of doing business, and plan accordingly. The sales tax is the same as you would pay locally, and you can claim it back if you are registered for GST/HST and PST (for materials).

If you're no longer going to be able to slide under the radar, you could try:
-Bigger orders, but less often.
-put an group order together with other crafters,
-find Canadian suppliers.

I remember when I would have to pay for a $21 postal shipment (the handling/brokering fee was $5 back then), that was a kick in the gut. If you had anything sent by a fast Postal service, then it went through Purolator, and they sent you a bill a month later, and charged $8.
And the exchange rate was even worse than it is now, a $1 CAD was worth .63 USD.

Well, if this is the way things are going, I expect we'll hear about lots of freaked out Canadian customers, who "never had to pay before", possibly blaming their Sellers.

[Former_Member]

Today I received a notice from Canada Post saying that I had mismeasured a parcel recently sent within Canada via Etsy shipping. I was charged $.86 - my measurements 55X18 X 14cm, their measurements 55x18.5 x14 cm!
I find this laughable- how many times have I rounded up from .5 to the nearest cm, I don't think the online shipping of either Paypal or Etsy even accepts .5 measurements. I don't recall getting any refunds from CP over the years for under measuring. Nickle and dime us until you lose all our business.
Just saying!!

[TigersandDragons]

At least it was only .86cents.
But I doubt CP is going to lose our business, courier prices are still pretty high, especially for light and small items. UPS (courier) has worst customer service than Canada Post, I refuse to use them.

CP did give me a refund, when a clerk at an affiliated outlet insisted my letter had to go Oversized, when both the weight and thickness were within the standard letter category.
This was part of a multi-complaint, as the same clerk also did not scan my Xpresspost shipment, even though I was there before the 5 pickup (with two receipts to prove it!). So my Xpresspost arrived an extra day late, I got a full refund for that too.

[Former_Member]

Yes it could have been worse! It was such a petty thing, I always measure carefully and as I said round up . The effort to collect that $.86 has me wondering!

[TigersandDragons]

Years ago I had my long distance through Sprint Canada. My final bill was less than $1, the cost for writing a cheque and the stamp to mail it was more than what I owed....so I didn't pay it. They must of sent me 8 letters, it was ridiculous.

[StudioMilika]

haha tigers! Same thing happened to me... I owed 1 cent! It was a miscalculation on their part... So I sent them a real cent, taped to the letter letting them know that my account was now to zero! haha!

[KCowie]

When a package says it's "Cleared Customs" on the tracking that does mean it has completed the customs process and is on it's way right? Normally when I see this my package takes just a couple more days until I receive it. This "Cleared Customs" has now been like that for 4 days no movement. Called C.P. and they blamed it on the backload and said it could take a week to get it moving???

[EightMileVintage]

FYI, Canada Post is offering free parcel pick-up for Venture One customers until March 27th.

http://www.canadapost.ca/cpo/mc/business/tools/parcelpickup/default.jsf?LOCALE=en&ecid=email|pdn|jb|1

[EightMileVintage]

Also FYI from the same Canada Post page, this information for volume based discounts if you ship 100 parcels a year to the US.


Ship larger volumes?

Qualify for a volume-based commercial parcels agreement if you make a minimum of 750 parcel shipments within Canada per year or a minimum of 100 parcel shipments to the US and around the world per year.

To apply, contact a sales representative at 1 866 282 7175

[KCowie]

I ship large volumes to the US all light packet does this include a volume based discount or is it on parcels only?

[TigersandDragons]

From everything I've read, CP doesn't give discounts on Light Packet or Small Packet, even at volumes.
BUT my suggestion would be to phone CP sales rep and ask them for a definitive answer. Wouldn't take much time, certainly would be worth it if you were able to arrange a discount.
Let us know how it goes.

[EightMileVintage]

I AM a little suspicious of the use of the word "parcel" in their promo. KCowie, please let us know what you find out.

[KCowie]

Thanks I will call and ask because I do qualify for the large volume sent to the US, it would be a shame if it's not for light packet.

[terrabryn]

Does anyone have experience with/or a recommendation for - a particular courier company for shipping china dishes (or other breakable things) to the USA. Thanks. Catherine