Shipping from the US and customs

[greenman1867]

Okay, here is a "what if" type question.

If I had a snake shipped in from the US, with all CITES etc taken care of, then I picked it up at the airport, what kind of "duty" would I have to pay on a $1000 US snake? (I picked $1000 just for the ease of math calculations).

Anyone know?

Thanks very much,

Shawn

[mykee]

Shawn, if you have a snake shipped to you from the States, CITES are not your responsibility, they are the responsibility of the shipper. You would simply go to (I'm guessing Pearson) provide the Req. #, pay for your shipment ($80-$125 roughly), get appropriate paperwork, take that to Customs, where you will pay 15% of the total declared cost of the shipment, bring that receipt back to Air Canada Cargo, and pick up your snake.

[C.ADAMANTEUS]

:jawdrop: Is that all?
Rick

[Stockwell]

There is no duty on wildlife. Just GST and PST.
The real big problem is getting the US seller to obtain the export CITES, plus it takes at least 4 months to get, if it is approved. You should also let them know they'll need their USF&W import/export permit to ship to you,(50US per year) not to mention an inspection at a designated port(55-90) before the shipment can board an international flight

[greenman1867]

Ahh thanks guys, and thanks for my never ending barrage of questions. I am always in search of more and more info, mostly just out of curiosity. So once again, thanks for bearing with me.

Shawn

[Stockwell]

Here is copy of my web page on KS, just to give you a bit more info
US IMPORT/EXPORT INFO
Everybody please save this for future reference.

For Americans shipping out/receiving into the USA:
All animals leaving or entering the USA must be inspected by US fish & wildlife
This is generally done at what is known as a designated port.
http://international.fws.gov/animals/wildlifeport.html
If you are not located at a designated port you must contact your
local branch of F &W and arrange an inspection.
At this point a document called a 3-177 will be
completed. It is a declaration of import/export of wildlife.
This must be done with all animals regardless of whether they
are listed under the Washington Convention (CITES)
It is also possible and fairly common to have animals shipped first to a designated
port for inspection and clearance, before heading on to the consignee. This is done
when the shipper or recipient in the US is not near a designated port.. It can however, sometimes
get complicated and expensive because a broker can
be required to transfer the shipment and arrange for fish&wildlife inspection.
This is especially true if different air carriers are involved since Airlines are not obliged to move your cargo, especially into the hands of a competitive Airline. So if you need to hire a broker this can mean that
your animals are being put into the hands of a middle man who might
very well hate herps(or love them and steal your shipment). It's a bit scary to have someone opening your
animals in the middle of their journey to your customer.

If the animals are CITES listed and are Appendix 2 you need to apply
To the US department of the interior/F&W for a CITES
export permit. This must then be stamped by a wildlife
agent at the time of the inspection otherwise the permit
is not valid... There is a charge for this inspection.
You will also now need (since I think bout 97) a US fish and wildlife
IMPORT EXPORT license... you need to apply for it and complete an application. It takes a few weeks.
It is $50.00 and is good for only one year. If you are not
getting your inspection at a Designated port you may also
be required to apply for what's called an "Exception from Designated Port"permit
It's about $25US bucks and is good for 2 years, and permits inspections at border ports.

For Canadians taking animals into or out of the USA
If you are taking animals across the border in a car, you need to apply for and obtain this US fish and wildlife IMPORT EXPORT license... and yes
also the exception from designated port permit if you have more than just a few animals.
You must phone US F&W in advance and arrange for an inspection 48 hrs before you cross. An agent will be dispatched to the crossing of your choice(Niagara in Ont.). You will be charged for the inspection..$55US standard, more if its CITES or outside of business hours. A 3-177 declaration will need to be completed at the time of the inspection… I recommend pre ordering this form from US F&W and filling them out ahead of time. It makes the wildlife agents happy and you are more likely to know the Scientific names, which must be shown on the declaration.
It's also helpful to take a book with pictures to help verify the species.
If you are taking a lot of stuff into the US for personal delivery
or to fly out of an American airport it may be considered a commercial shipment
and this will also require a Customs Broker...I use PBB. (Peace Bridge Brokers)
Also, if you are taking CITES listed animals out of Canada you must first apply for and obtain a Canadian CITES Export permit. You will be required to prove legal origin to be granted this permit.
Before crossing the border, you must first stop on the Canadian side and get Customs to validate it, otherwise it is not a legal CITES permit.
When you talk to US customs at the entry port, you should immediately tell them you have a wildlife shipment and have made an appointment with US fish & wildlife.
They'll take your license and guide you to the side to wait for the inspector.

Hope this all helps

[K1LOS]

Keep in mind, they likely have absolutely no idea the value of that snake... i would declare it as a $40 snake my self. Even if they know its rediculously cheap, It's up to the seller to set the price, and he can sell for whatever he wants, how would they prove what you paid for it?

Geoff