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Re: [OM] OT - Shipping to Canada

Subject: Re: [OM] OT - Shipping to Canada
From: Garth Wood <garth@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sat, 07 Jul 2001 08:40:48 -0600
At 11:51 PM 7/6/01 -0400, you wrote:
Hi folks,

I need to ship an OM-1n body from Atlanta, Georgia to Wasaga Beach, Ontario, Canada. Are there any tricks of the trade or other tips I need to know before I make a trip to the post office?

Well, as the only Canadian to speak up on this issue so far, I'd say "Not really." Most (not all) Customs inspectors know their stuff, and are aware of the NAFTA classifications of camera equipment etc. Every so often, a single package seems to get picked off the line at random and given "special treatment" (i.e., they're going to be a pain in the ass and open the package, check everything, question everything, blah blah blah).

If you can, note on the package or the Customs forms that this is a non-commercial transaction involving second-hand goods, which, if the value's low enough, can save the recipient the GST (the Customs folks just don't bother). Nothing can save the special $5.00 handling fee which Canada Customs and Revenue Agency imposes on all packages entering the country. You know the fee -- it's the one which the Canadian government imposed in the early 1990s after the usual round of hand-wringing, and which specifically violates NAFTA rules by being an additional tariff, designed solely to discourage Canadians from cross-border shopping (as if!).

Sorry for the rant. Somedays, my government pisses me off. I'm a patriot, not a nationalist.

Garth


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