Get them installed at a shop in the states!!

Besides Hagen's, what are some commonly used mailboxes at Blaine?

it's not bad considering you'll need more time if you ship to point roberts.

http://www.pacificmailandparcel.com/

Everyone responds like they know what they're talking about, but yet pretty much everything that's been said is incomplete or even plain wrong.

Listen up, here's the scoop.

If you ship it to the US and bring it back yourself, it will cost you the following: $60 shipping + Duty + HST

If you ship it to Canada directly by UPS Ground, it will cost you the following: $100 shipping + $61.40 brokerage + duty + HST

So basically, you're looking at paying at LEAST over $100 extra for shipping to Canada directly by UPS Ground.

HOWEVER... if you can get the seller to ship it to Canada directly via UPS Expedited, then there is NO brokerage charge. Say the cost to upgrade to UPS Expedited is $25, so the total will be the following: $125 Shipping + Duty + HST

It will still cost over $60 more to ship directly to Canada.

Bottom line is, anytime there is a significant difference in shipping price to the US and Canada, that alone is enough to determine that shipping to Point Roberts is a better option.

I wouldn't trust the brokerage on their site... it could be 300.. I swear some guy just marks it however he wants. i've seen boxes double in price by UPS. IE $400 worth of goods with a $400 UPS bill at the door.

with courier companies if you under declare it is very unlikely custom will open it and check as the company declares it for you. 80% of my large packages from usps has been open by the custom and i swear it gets lost in the custom warehouse for a week before it gets moving, doesn't really make a difference if you are shipping something cheap but it you are shipping something really expensive it could make a big difference.

I've seen this as well, I've since stopped using UPS for anything. They're a bunch of scheisty bastards.

My family and I use Mail Boxes International. It's right by the Cost Cutter/Shell Station/mini mall on D Street.

Except when you factor in your time, particularly if you cannot get to Point Roberts during business hours (the last time I checked, none of those PO box places are open on Sundays, or into the late evening.)

nvm...

I usually have stuffs sent to Point Roberts or Blaine, picked them up from the PO box then repacked it and mailed it to my house using USPS as gifts ...

post office is 2 blocks away from Hagen's in Blaine and right next door from TSB in Point Roberts, so easy ...

gift doesnt always work. You can still be taxed on it by the discretion of the officer dealing with it.

"Goods returned" however....



I dont understand the need to go there and ship it to yourself again though. Why not just bring it over the border since you are there. If it's something significant enough that you'll have to pay alot of tax on, im sure the shipping cost will cost the same.

I wonder about this...Seeing as I have family in the States, what if I did a private sale with a seller for rims/tires down there (or with a shop for that matter), installed them on my car, and came back up? Would I still need to pay taxes on them, even though they are on my car?

True to a degree. It takes about half hour each way from East Vancouver, plus factor in another half hour for the borders and pickup.

However, you can also factor getting a full tank of gas for cheaper while you're down there...

So...

Shipping to Point Roberts is worth it if:

90 minutes > Difference in shipping cost - $3 for picking up package + Savings of gas purchase

hagens is open until 8pm on wednesdays.

if you're buying wheels, what are you doing with your old ones?

I ship it because there is a good chance I dun get tax on it ... bring it over in person will get taxed for sure ... been there, done that ...

shipping cost is cheap for me because what I order regularly is pretty light in weight ...

What if I picked up and bring over used wheels or used car parts over from point roberts/blaine. Do I need to declare or pay tax and duties? But there is no receipt, just forum deals.

If you paid via Paypal or some other similar method, print out the payment page and bring it with you just in case. That's what I usually do, although to be honest, I think they've only ever looked at my receipts once in the 4 years I've been going back and forth across the border.

Trunking them. I should be able to fit 4 15-inch wheels in there since my trunk is pretty big... Or I can keep them at my uncle's until I can find a way to bring them back.

Yes, you'll technically still have to pay taxes on them even if they are on your car. You're still importing them whether they're on your car or in your trunk. Therefore, you have to pay the associated taxes and duties on the item.

Most people try to get away with paying the taxes by having the tires mounted in the US (and the retailer would discard their old tires) and driving back with the new tires. Essentially, they're evading the taxes by making it look like they didn't buy anything. (as it would be difficult for the Customs people to prove if they had new tires going down or whether they bought them in the US). The fact that you have them mounted on your car, and the old ones in the trunk would make it even more difficult if you wanted to try this method as there is fairly concrete proof in your trunk that proves otherwise.

^ Thanks for that. Now I can just figure out whether or not the price differential of buying used in the States or up here (ie. RS if the right ones come up on the B&S), is worth paying the duty and taxes.

I don't know why you people say you get dinged for Duties going across Point Roberts when the stuff is shipped into the states, and you've picked it up yourself. I've only had to pay GST & PST (Before June) last time I went. It was a whopping $44 in taxes for $400~ set of shocks, and I got the items shipped free to USA. And its only 60KM to & from so if you need gas it will save you 20c a litre filling up down there.

P.S never ship UPS. For service and value you're much better off with Fedex or USPS, even DHL FFS

Because you're supposed to. Of course, it depends on what type of item it is and where it is made.

If you've never had to pay duty, then it's one of three things:
1.) The type of items you bought are not subject to duties
2.) The type of items you bought are subject to duties, but was made in North America
3.) The border guards were too lazy to look up the proper designation of the item to determine the actual duty rate, and just classified it under something more common that does not have duties instead.