This might not be a standard question, but was hoping to get some answers by you fine knowledgeable folks!
We’re getting pretty close to purchasing our first latex mattress! This site is a fantastic resource!
I was hoping to save a few $$ and pickup the mattress in the USA and drive it across the border to bring it into Canada. This would save me a bit on shipping as well as the extra fees that UPS will stack on it (8% brokerage, then i think they also add some fees on top for having to ‘pay’ for the HST that they collect from me later).
The cost of the mattress will be around $2000US. From what I’ve read, it won’t qualify as a “Low Value item” (which is $1600). But since it is produced in the US, it should qualify under NAFTA, but I’ll need a “Certificate of Origin”?
I was wondering if anyone has done this and could give me some ideas on what to expect and what I’ll need. I was guessing I’d have to get the “Certificate of Origin” from the mattress manufacturer?
There is some good information here about what is involved in bringing consumer goods into Canada.
The amount of your exemption will depend on how long you are outside Canada. The 48 hour or longer exemption and the 7 day or longer exemption are both $800 but they can’t be added together. Any duty or taxes would apply to the excess amount of your purchase (in Canadian Dollars).
You won’t need a certificate of origin if the goods are either marked as made in the US, Canada, or Mexico or if they aren’t marked as being made somewhere else. The mattress law tag will specify the country of manufacturing so if it’s a US made mattress you will be fine.
In provinces that have HST (harmonized sales tax) they will collect the HST amount for that province. In provinces that don’t have HST they may only collect GST or both GST and PST depending on the province.
Thanks for that link, was a bit easier to understand than any of the other government sites I found!
I also found a “duty calculator” site, which seems to confirm my findings that mattresses are duty free based on NAFTA, and it seems I’ll just have to pay the HST (I live in Ontario) on it, which is fine as I’d have to pay that if I purchased it locally too!
