OT: GST/Tax on dvds purchased through amazon.com?
 

Okay it's OT but someone once told me that it's ok as long as it's Canadian...

So here it is.

I would like to order some DVDs through amazon.com and have it delivered to me in Vancouver. Does anyone know if I will be taxed on the item? Amazon.ca does not have the same dvds.

I guess GST on $165 won't be too bad. But other than dvds, what about other items... like iPods?

:p

Thanks!

Put it this way -- if Amazon doesn't charge you the GST (which I don't think they will given that it's an American company), CBSA does have the right to levy taxes, duties, etc. when it crosses the border.

I concur. It would be no different from crossing the borders with the DVDs in your hand. The only difference is how the $$ is recovered.

You can reasonably expect that CBSA will intercept the package and will hold on to it, in which case you will have to pay when you pick it up.

Unless things have changed very recently, Amazon.com orders ship from the same warehouse as Amazon.ca (in Mississauga) so you won't be charged PST, GST, brokerage fees or duty. You will be charged shipping and they also only ship books and videos so you won't be able to buy an iPod or any other electronics unless it is shipped to an Amerifriend (and then it would be free shipping).

I believe this is what happened to me earlier this year. I ordered a DVD box set from amazon.com that was super cheap. I expected it to go through customs and have to pay GST, PST and customs fees, which I estimated to be an extra $40 give or take. Even with the extra charges, it was still a steal. But low and behold, it arrived at my house a couple days later with not extra charges other than shipping. I noticed it was shipped from Mississauga.