UPS custom Charges

[jabjab]

I shipped out my own cluster to the states to repair a screen on this display, cost me 225 USD. I got an invoice from UPS saying I owe 85 dollars in duty but is it normal to pay duty on just services? I called them and asked how this was calculated but they didn't give me a straight answer but agreed to reduced it to 35.

After the reduction UPS said another department will call me so that I can pay it and nobody every did and now the package is being held in Winnipeg until I pay. Offices aren't open till Monday, very annoying.

Anyone experience this with UPS?

[tirebob]

There should be no duties on it but if it had to go through brokerage anyways they may just be charging you their "fee" and not so much duties. I dunno man... Sounds like they got you by the balls though. That is a shitty deal for sure!

[Thaco]

this has always been a nightmare, and after the fact it's not worth fighting, whether it was needed or not they already provided the "service" so it's typically so much of a fight it's not worth your time... based on my experience you're lucky they even reduced it for you.

[ExtraSlow]

customs is a nightmare after the fact, agree. need to use a shipping service where all customs, duty and brokerage is included in the up-front costs, which looks expensive, but often ends up comparable or cheaper.
UPS is also the absolute worst courier for this.

[rage2]

Should be no duty on the repair since us is a free trade partner, but you’re liable for GST, and UPS rip-off brokerage on top of that.

I wonder if trumps new trade deal changed the duty thing for automotive repairs.

[ThePenIsMightier]

UPS is the worst carrier in the history of Earth for getting anything from the USA. It's been this way for more than 10 years. Their arbitrary "brokerage fees" are/were the subject of a class action lawsuit.
They got me once in like 2006 for fees that exceeded the value of what I bought and I've been singing their praises ever since.

If Rachel McAdams put herself into a box and got UPS'd to my house to be my fuck toy, I'd refuse the delivery.

[The_Penguin]

I always refuse UPS as a carrier for anything from the U.S. for this reason.

There are different service levels, and some include "brokerage" so I will make exceptions. Digikey seems to be able to ship me stuff overnight for $8.00 flat fee, and magically no B.S. brokerage fees.

[tirebob]

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I always refuse UPS as a carrier for anything from the U.S. for this reason.

There are different service levels, and some include "brokerage" so I will make exceptions. Digikey seems to be able to ship me stuff overnight for $8.00 flat fee, and magically no B.S. brokerage fees.

Oddly enough, while I hate UPS brokerage for shipping parcels, I use them specifically when shipping skid orders/line haul all the time. I have tried a few brokers over the years but they always seem to be super fair for this type of thing and never any issues with shit going into bond.

[D'z Nutz]

People just assume whatever fee you're paying is lumped into "customs" but it's not the same as brokerage, duty, and/or tax. What does the invoice say the fee is for? It should be broken down for you.

[jabjab]

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People just assume whatever fee you're paying is lumped into "customs" but it's not the same as brokerage, duty, and/or tax. What does the invoice say the fee is for? It should be broken down for you.

There is no break down, it just says "import fees" should i be asking for a breakdown? I don't mind paying it but the annoying thing is that they held my package in Winnipeg until I pay.

[Rocket1k78]

I just got a text from DHL wanting $20.00 on a US$27.00 shirt. The shipping was only $11.00. I just emailed the store to see whats up but WTF

[AndyL]

dhl only wants 20$?

They seriously nail me 90$+ every time - they must really like you.

[RX_EVOLV]

If this was a ground (UPS Standard) shipment they probably charged you ~$35 in Brokerage fee to clear the package for you at customs.

There should be no duty on repair / return products, but that depends if whoever setup the shipment actually declared it as such. If not, there's no way they would know it's a repair/return shipment and will charge you the associated duty as if you are just exporting to the States. It could very well fall under duty-free exemption, but you usually have to declare that the item is eligible via a Certificate of Origin declaration form. UPS Standard shipment usually only comes with insurance for up to $100 in value. If you declared a value higher than that (e.g. $300 CAD), then you could be charged addition fee for that. I don't remember what they call this fee.. I think "Bond Fee". This declared value for shipment is different than the declared value you would have in the Commercial Invoice which is what the Duty calculation is based on.

So in short, you likely got charged a mix of brokerage fee+ bond fee + potential duty fee + GST on fees = $85.

[msommers]

DHL charged me $12 for tax and duty, and $17 for brokerage fee

[Kobe]

I e-mailed this guy with my tracking number about tobacco once and he explained how duty is charged for me.


[email protected]

Send him an e-mail prob you're best bet to get an answer or for them to be able to fix the screwup.

[jabjab]

Update:

UPS customer service told me they reduced fees needs to be approved by a manager and it takes 5 business days but my package was coming the next day. They forwarded me to a "supervisor" and they said they made notes in my file so that the driver can drop off my package. Package comes and i'm working from home so my dog hears someone at the door, i go out and look and he's walking back to his truck with my package.

I go out and get it and he says i owe 8x.xx dollars, i said no i don't and explained the situation. He told me supervisors dont' exist on the phone and the call center is in the Philippines and they probably didn't let me talk to a supervisor. The driver didn't really care about the fees and said ok here you go, i'll let you deal with it.

Nobody from UPS has contacted me yet about the fees, very odd.

[e31]

You will get an invoice in the mail probably 6-7 months down the road (after forgetting why you hate UPS, and should avoid doing business with companies who use them).

Also not a fan of the hit-or-miss CBSA staff when trying to self-clear items to avoid UPS "brokerage" theft. Some people just hate to lift a finger, unless it's the middle one.

[RX_EVOLV]

You will get an invoice from them. Don't you worry! But like e31 said, it might not be immediate.

I don't understand why some of you guys are complaining about the cost of the Brokerage Fee relative to the Duty/taxes charges. The Brokerage Fee is a flat fee charged by the shipping company to represent you in clearing the import at the border on your behalf, while the duty fee is what the govn't collects depending on your import value X duty rate for your item class + GST. They are completely independent.
Sometimes you might get 'lucky' that the item you are importing is duty-free (0%), but it still needs to be declared and cleared.

It's like ordering take out where the delivery fee is a flat rate regardless of how big or small your order is, which is the norm. If you want to pay $6 delivery fee for a $6 bubble tea order, that's on you.

That said, I hate the brokerage fee and hate the bond fee even more. I've spent MANY hours fighting with Fedex/UPS/DHL on those fee for personal and work and those calls sucked every time.

Good luck OP. At the very least, do not pay the fee until they at least give you a detail breakdown.

[ThePenIsMightier]

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You will get an invoice from them. Don't you worry! But like e31 said, it might not be immediate.

I don't understand why some of you guys are complaining about the cost of the Brokerage Fee relative to the Duty/taxes charges. The Brokerage Fee is a flat fee charged by the shipping company to represent you in clearing the import at the border on your behalf, while the duty fee is what the govn't collects depending on your import value X duty rate for your item class + GST. They are completely independent.
Sometimes you might get 'lucky' that the item you are importing is duty-free (0%), but it still needs to be declared and cleared.

It's like ordering take out where the delivery fee is a flat rate regardless of how big or small your order is, which is the norm. If you want to pay $6 delivery fee for a $6 bubble tea order, that's on you.

That said, I hate the brokerage fee and hate the bond fee even more. I've spent MANY hours fighting with Fedex/UPS/DHL on those fee for personal and work and those calls sucked every time.

Good luck OP. At the very least, do not pay the fee until they at least give you a detail breakdown.

Not with UPS! The brokerage fee they assess is arbitrary and frequently literally exceeds the value of the goods.
That's why there are a thousand threads on a thousand forums about this and a class action lawsuit.

The only time I've seen it be a fixed fee with UPS was with Tire Rack, or if you select their insanely expensive Air Freight option where the brokerage is included in their ludicrous markup.

Everything you're saying is correct, except when dealing with UPS which is why people lose their bananas.

[RX_EVOLV]

Here's the UPS brokerage fee schedule https://www.ups.com/ca/en/shipping/z...clearance.page

Use this as reference as you fight the fees as it should adhere to this schedule at the very least. That's why it's so important to get the fee breakdown before paying anything. But again, don't confuse or mix brokerage fee with duties and taxes, which are just fees charged by the govern't regardless of how much you paid for the shipping.