North Carolina and Canada share a strong economic connection with over $6 billion per year in exports to Canada.The North American Free Trade Agreement (USMCA-CUSMA) makes shipping to Canada from North Carolina more accessible than ever. North Carolina has a strong economic relationship with Canada, with Canada being one of the state's top trading partners. The top North Carolina exports to Canada include machinery, transportation equipment, and e-commerce online orders.>
This blog explores North Carolina shipping options for delivery to Canada and the Canadian customs clearance processes.
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Canada’s non-resident importer program enables United States exporters to obtain a business number and act as the “importer of record.” Being able to act as the importer of record removes the burden of customs clearance from the Canadian customer and can facilitates the sale.
View Jet's useful video that covers everything from HS codes, export declarations, free trade and best shipping options. Video presentation:Shipping USA to Canada
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Contact our team to develop solutions for Canadian returns of online orders.
Read more about a solution for your Canadian removal orders. A Canadian address, consolidation and shipping back to the USA via low cost ground.
Companies can consolidate their orders via a single customs entry by becoming a non-resident importer. The process involves shipping via LTL or full truck load, single clearance in Canada followed by domestic distribution.
Read more about valuation for non-resident imports to Canada.
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It is possible to ship items from North Carolina to Canada duty-free if the goods qualify as originating under the "rules of origin" in the USMCA / CUSMA.
Read more: UNDERSTANDING CANADIAN IMPORT FEES
Read more: Customs duty explained and how it is calculated
Read more: Certification of origin and why it is needed.
=Check out the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) page regarding origin requirements.
The CARM system facilitates payment of duty and taxes. Registration is mandatory for commercial imports from the USA and elsewhere.
In CARM importers assign a customers broker and provide a surety bond (or deposit). Learn more about CARM.
Jet Worldwide's team generates rates for parcels, LTL large packages Canadian logistics support.
Canada is the largest international destination for US Postal parcels. USPS offers a great choice for Texans shipping to Canada. Among the most popular US Postal Service post options from North Carolina is the International Flat Rate Boxes to Canada.
Different duty assessment for goods shipped via USPS versus Courier (see above regarding the new USMCA duty-free thresholds).
For shipments shipped via USPS for import via Canada Post, duty is assessed differently than for parcels shipped via parcel carriers / courier:
USPS shipments from North Carolina are imported to Canada and delivered in Quebec via Canada Post.
All parcels mailed to Canada are potentially subject to duty and/or taxes. . Canadian Customs (CBSA) collects provincial sales taxes (PST) and Harmonized Sales Taxes (HST) according to the province of residence on most taxable imports valued at over CAD 40. See note above on new duty-free threshold under the new NAFTA / USMCA.
Dutiable and taxable items mailed to Canada are subject to a handling fee of CAD 9.95 per dutiable or taxable parcel. If charges are applied, the parcel will be delivered along with a CBSA Invoice (E14). Canada Post collects the fees on behalf of the CBSA and accepts payment online via credit card and other methods.
For those who have read about the free trade agreement between Canada and the USA (namely NAFTA and USMCA), it often comes as a surprise that their shipments are subject to duty. To qualify for duty free entry under NAFTA, the goods must be accompanied by a NAFTA Certificate of Origin.
Click here for everything you need to know about Shipping to Canada!
Jet Worldwide assists North Carolina shippers with low-cost express delivery of urgent aerospace parts and equipment for delivery from North Carolina to Bombardier and their suppliers in Canada.
The personal connections between North Carolina and Quebec are stronger than ever thanks to shared employees, employers, universities and tourists. Gifts between individuals can be considered duty and tax exempt, not otherwise restricted and valued under CAD 60. To qualify as tax exempt, the gift must be sent to the recipient personally and include a card or other notice indicating that it is a gift. Advertising material and alcohol cannot be cleared as tax exempt gifts.
FedEx and UPS are by far the most dominant carriers in North America and have extensive operations throughout North Carolina. They also have a sizeable presence inQuebec and, along with Purolator, are market leaders in the Canadian Market.
The “shipping from USA to Canada offer” via FedEx and UPS are similar. Both companies offer air express delivery, economy air delivery and ground delivery.
FedEx USA shipping options North Carolina to Canada include:
UPS USA North Carolina shipping options to Canada Include:
Carrier clearance fees in Canada vary by the service type. Jet Worldwide can help North Carolina shippers minimize entry fees through single entry consolidated entry. Jet Worldwide can receive and store shipments from North Carolina in our Montreal facilities for on-demand distribution within Quebec and throughout Canada.
Typically, there are three elements to standard parcel clearance:
Entry preparation Fee To Canada
Canadian Duty
Taxes
Get a better Understanding of Common Canadian Import Fees
In general, express shipments to Canada are not charged an entry preparation fee by the carrier. However, ground shipments sent via FedEx and UPS to Canada are subject to an entry preparation fee.
The cost advantage of shipping parcels from North Carolina to Quebec via ground service is diluted by the Canadian clearance cost and shipping delay.
Exact FedEx ground and UPS ground entry preparation fees can be found online and can be negotiated for high volume shippers.
For Texan companies with regular volume to Canada, it may be best to establish a high-volume parcel import and distribution process. This type of “zone skipping” has the added benefit of lower per shipment clearance cost- especially for shipping from North Carolina to Montreal and Quebec, Toronto and across Canada. North Carolina companies can establish themselves as a foreign importer of record and do one consolidated entry for many individual parcels.
The most efficient routing for regular parcel flows is via consolidating parcel volumes for a single shipment for single entry cross border entry. After clearance, the goods can be transferred to a Canadian domestic carrier for delivery across Canada.
There is a demand from Canadian companies who are looking for cost effective solutions for receiving goods from their many North Carolina suppliers. Often, ground is too uncertain and air is too costly. Contact Jet Worldwide for a low-cost express solution that includes entry preparation and delivery in 1-3 days from the USA to Canada.
The Canadian Customs online portal which is designed to streamline processes and a useful too for Canadian importers. Read more about CBSA Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM)
For specific items, many shippers in North Carolina can find it cost effective to store and distribute their goods stored in Canada for on demand distribution. For information on Canadian warehouse solutions, contact our parcel logistics team.
Let Jet Worldwide manage your Canadian Returns.
Canada is the largest international market for most US based e-commerce merchants using on-line shopping platforms including Shopify, Big Commerce and Wix. USPS offers discounts via such e-commerce shipping platforms and is the lowest-cost choice for small parcels.
For e-commerce sellers using Shopify, USPS offers value for small parcels.USPS offers low-cost shipments to Canada for packages under 10 to 20 pounds.