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tariff code for offcut aluminum

PeterT

Ultra Member
Premium Member
I'm having a chuck of aluminum coming in from States through DYK, so they will ask me for a duty code. It is an offcut. I'm not clear what defines a scrap. Does anyone know what tariff code would be applicable.
I get different results depending on where I search & another factor might be the tit-for-tat USA/CAN tariff headaches which could either be old news or still in play FAIK
Strangely my eye is drawn to classifications that suggest zero

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TorontoBuilder

Ultra Member
I'm having a chuck of aluminum coming in from States through DYK, so they will ask me for a duty code. It is an offcut. I'm not clear what defines a scrap. Does anyone know what tariff code would be applicable.
I get different results depending on where I search & another factor might be the tit-for-tat USA/CAN tariff headaches which could either be old news or still in play FAIK
Strangely my eye is drawn to classifications that suggest zero

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View attachment 32252
Two things work in your favour. You legitimately do not know, so you can suggest the one that requires the least payment.

If you are wrong the border service will adjust it. They can't argue fraud on your case because you legit don't know.

Secondly, they really can't be bothered to revise it in most cases.

I used to have pipe tobacco and the odd cigar mailed to me from the US and I almost never got dinged for duties
 

DPittman

Ultra Member
Premium Member
I haven't ordered any in the past 3 years... but as far as I know they're still available
Oh 3 years is still sort of recent (at least in my world) I just sort of figured mail order cigars were a thing of the past. I guess maybe I'm just thinking of the old ads in the back of magazines where you could get a box of cigars for dirt cheap. I never did do any of those but I suspect they were like other garbage available only by magaIne ad mail order.
 
Download the most recent Canadian version of the Harm codes. You can do a PDF search and see what comes up.

The second and sometimes faster method of getting you close is google. You may get several numbers thats ok because it puts you in the ball park to do some brut force reading to get the final number. Typically when I have to go this second route it takes me 10-30mins to find what I need.

Be aware that the numbers change from time to time as they are reclassified. Second item is the numbers while they are supposed to be the same world wide, they are not.
 

TorontoBuilder

Ultra Member
Oh 3 years is still sort of recent (at least in my world) I just sort of figured mail order cigars were a thing of the past. I guess maybe I'm just thinking of the old ads in the back of magazines where you could get a box of cigars for dirt cheap. I never did do any of those but I suspect they were like other garbage available only by magaIne ad mail order.
here is the trustworthy company I used to purchase from.

4 Noggins

if anyone uses them they need to note, once the order is shipped 4 noggins is not responsible for any fees (ie duties) imposed on int shipments etc
 

PeterT

Ultra Member
Premium Member
Download the most recent Canadian version of the Harm codes. You can do a PDF search and see what comes up.
If we are talking aluminum, yes, I believe that is the first link included in post-1. But saving as PDF is a good idea to search more efficiently & also forward to re-shipper so its well documented.
So from what I can tell, pretty much every variation of a raw stock like what hobby machinists would but is duty free. The odd category that pays a tariff is like aluminum wire or containers...
We'll see how this plays out, might be a better way for me to get specific alloys. As always, weight based shipping an be a killer.
 

phaxtris

(Ryan)
Premium Member
Premium Member
Is it already on its way ? If not just have the seller send it as a "sample", that usually skirts duty
 

PeterT

Ultra Member
Premium Member
I've actually used that in the past, but it was quite some time ago. It was some kind of product related to composites (cloth, resin, mold release) which had an associated tariff code.
But I'm trying to find the updated information. I want to say it subsequently became tougher as to how they define it. Or maybe it was a new form & that attracts more attention. If you have any links, I'd like to read it, would come in handy.

Yes its on the way. I guess I'm pretty confident the actual tariff is 0% so it computes to the same 0$ duty owing by calling it what it is. Still have to pay tax on the declared value either way.
 
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PeterT

Ultra Member
Premium Member
Maybe its more about declaring a token value of X$ for a sample vs 0$ & brings on the heat. Again, I assume value has to have corroboration from the seller. Customs can hold up your package & say prove to us what you paid. If its an Ebay transaction or any kind of arms distance invoice, that becomes the cost basis for any subsequent dinger fees.

 

phaxtris

(Ryan)
Premium Member
Premium Member
I don't know how your sending it, but when they do the declaration have them put sample and some small arbitrary value

Normally having it marked as a sample let's it slide through in my experience, that or as a gift
 

phaxtris

(Ryan)
Premium Member
Premium Member
You're at the mercy of customs either way, if they don't like what you put they will just assign a value and charge you accordingly...nothing you can really do but pay

Unless it's a high dollar item, you will never hear from customs, even if they don't like how you declared it, they will just slap whattever duty they feel like it and move on

Weather or not something gets stuck at customs is a crap shoot, there doesn't seem to be a rhyme or reason to it, and there is literally 0 you can do if it gets held up
 

Tom Kitta

Ultra Member
I would not worry about it - unless you "scrap" cut off is rather... large. Or in some way does not look like scrap. A lot of items from the US are zero duty. You still need to pay GST or in some cases PST.

There is also the non duty threshold of something like 150 CAD - so AFAIK there should be no duty on any items under $150.
 

PeterT

Ultra Member
Premium Member
Reporting for customs has changed in the last few years and has gone electronic. The shipper for international shipments must provide a commercial invoice which is generally approved before the product leaves the shipping country. I do enough of these for export and submit enough when I do my own brokerage in import. Last year I did approx 30-40 total import/export forms.

The big difference between business and consumer is the tax rate and how its collected. The second is how well your broker understands on what is being listed determines what you may pay.
 

PeterT

Ultra Member
Premium Member
I'm using DYK so might be a bit different than normal personal/business procedure. Basically this USA seller does not ship to Canada period, but item cost & shipping to USA border is reasonable. DYK facilitates customs clearance & then trucks from border to city where I pick up. But basically you need to submit the proper docs, invoice/content/suggested duty code if its ambiguous. The interesting thing I learned today is that if you order multiple 'Ebay' items for example, its treated as a combined bill despite originating from different sellers which saves some cost. They are not a solution for everything but certainly have come in handy quite often.
 
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