Canada, our familiar neighbors to the north. When looking to grow globally, Canada is easily the first place to look for e-commerce merchants in the U.S. It’s only natural. We’re close to our Canadian neighbors in proximity, language and culture. Yet, exporting goods to Canada isn’t as easy as it may look.

U.S.-based retailers face a number of obstacles to selling in Canada. American retailers can’t collect Canadian sales tax at the time of purchase, only at the time of delivery. It can be a complicated process for Canadian buyers too. When Canadian customers buy from the U.S., they may be forced to go to their local customs office to pick up their purchase.

The result? A poor experience for the customer who may have to pay additional taxes or even visit a customs office just to pick up their online purchase. Luckily, there’s a way for U.S. online retailers to get around these issues in Canada: Become a non-resident importer.

What is a Non-Resident Importer?

A “non-resident importer” (or NRI) is defined as a business registered outside of Canada that assumes responsibility for customs clearance and other import-related requirements for bringing goods into Canada. Americans can register to become an NRI through the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).

As a non-resident importer, you can pay Canadian duties and taxes before delivery. Saving customers the hassle of paying taxes after you deliver to them makes you more competitive in the Canadian market.

Competitive Advantages of Becoming a Non-Resident Importer

Once you become a non-resident importer, the process of buying becomes much more simple for your Canadian customers. The advantages of becoming an NRI for you and your customers are clear:

• There’s no need for your Canadian customers to go all the way to a customs house to pick up a purchase, you can ship directly to their door
• Tracking shipments to Canada from the U.S. becomes an entirely visible process, a package goes from the USPS to Canada Post
• Your Canadian customers aren’t hit with additional taxes upon delivery
• Because you can pay taxes to the Canadian government, you can give your customers clear product prices that include Canadian taxes

Responsibilities of Non-Resident Importers

When you become a non-resident importer, you must fulfill certain responsibilities. You also open yourself up to regulations and fines for not complying with those regulations. Plus, you’ll be dealing with more than one level of taxation. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is charged throughout Canada, while Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) is charged in Quebec, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland/Labrador, New Brunswick, and Ontario.

Here are some of the issues you’ll need to navigate as a non-resident importer:

• Canadian regulations require you to meet additional rules, such as having a Business Number and an Importer Number (or RM)
• You’ll be responsible for collecting and paying both the Goods and Services Tax and Harmonized Sales Tax
• File GST/HST sales tax returns on time, or be charged penalties
• Provide customs documentation and pay customs duties to the correct Canadian government authorities
• Make sure labeling and marketing follows Canadian laws
• Once you get an income tax number, you’ll be subject to investigations of your books and records by Canadian tax authorities

Ready to Become a Non-Resident Importer?

Clearly, there are hurdles to becoming a non-resident importer. But the rewards are huge. You can be competitive with other Canada companies – without having a physical office, warehouse or retail location in Canada. Ready to get started? Learn more about the ins and outs of becoming a non-resident importer.

International e-commerce sellers that ship products to Australia should be aware of a new tax starting July 1, 2018. The Australia Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a 10% fee that the Australian government adds to all goods and services being imported into Australia. The GST is meant to help protect Australian businesses from cheaper overseas manufacturers, with the hope the tax will level out the retail product pricing.

Australia’s Goods and Services Tax – What is Changing?
Prior to July 1, 2018, consumers in Australia could purchase products from international sellers and have them imported duty and tax-free as long as the product value was less than A$1,000. (GST was already being applied to goods and services over A$1,000.) This created a perfect buying market for U.S. online retailers since most e-commerce orders were low-value items such as sporting equipment, clothing, jewelry, cosmetics and electronics.

Starting on July 1, 2018, Australia will now apply the 10% GST to all imports, including products valued under A$1,000.

International E-Commerce Sellers – Registering for GST
Retailers with OVER A$75,000 annually in revenue
In order to comply with the recent changes made to the GST, international e-commerce merchants who have over A$75,000 annually in sales (sales directly to Australia) will be required to register with the Australian Taxation Office. Once registered, online retailers will need to charge and collect the GST tax when selling goods to Australian buyers. Note: This GST tax collection by the online retailer will be indicated on the customs documents.

Retailers with UNDER A$75,000 annually in revenue
If your sales are under A$75,000 you are not required to register with the Australian Taxation Office. When you sell a product to an Australian buyer, the GST tax will be applied at the border when the product is imported.

Be Ready for the New GST Law Changes!
If you are an international e-commerce merchant selling to Australia with sales over A$75,000, you MUST comply with the new regulations.

There are severe penalties for not complying with the GST law, including:

• Imposing an additional 75% administrative penalty (legally payable)
• Intercepting funds from Australian buyers that are destined to seller account(s)
• Registering the debt in a court in the U.S.
• Requesting the Internal Revenue Service to recover the debt on behalf of Australia

Register your company as a GST business with the Australian Taxation Authority.

Stamps.com has you covered when it comes to shipping your goods overseas!  The shipping platform fully supports the new GST requirements. If you’re shipping items to Australia for your business, you will not need to add additional information to the labels on your packages to be in compliance with the new law.

Have you considered expanding your US-based ecommerce business to Canada? When shipping with the USPS, you will not be charged extra fees to deliver packages to Canadian destinations.

If you want to learn the ins and outs of shipping to Canada, check out Stamps.com’s new eBook, “How To Ship To Canada With The USPS.” This guide will walk you through your options for shipping to the great north.

This guide covers:

• How to evaluate shipping carrier cost to Canada
• What products cannot be imported into Canada
• Which duties, taxes and tariffs apply to your products
• Choosing a shipping carrier for Canadian shipments
• USPS Priority Mail International zones for Canada

Sometimes you don’t need to send a large shipment overseas, but simply want to send a postcard to a relative in Sweden or a letter to a friend in South Africa. Stamps.com makes it easy!

You may already be familiar with our Original NetStamps product. The great thing is that they can be used for both domestic mail and international mail! Keep in mind that Custom (Photo) and Themed NetStamps can only be used for domestic mail. If you need Original NetStamps, you can order them easily from our Online Store at different quantities.

To print postage for international postcards or letters:

1. Please log in to your Stamps.com software and click on “Stamps.”
2. Under “Postage Details,” please select “I want to specify the value for each stamp.”
3. No guesswork is needed: if you need the current international letter or postcard rate, please click on the icon bearing the image of a globe and the word “Intl.” to access our International Rate Calculator. Select the country, territory, or dependency to which you would like to send mail. Select the mailpiece type and enter the weight of your mailpiece. If your mailpiece is less than a pound, enter zero for its weight.
4. Click on “Check Rates.” You will be given a list of available mail classes and rates for the country you have selected. You would not generally need a customs form for international letters or postcards; you would only need one if your mailpiece is 16 ounces or greater or has a declared value of $400 or higher.
5. Click on the “Use This Rate” button.

Once you click on “Use This Rate,” you will be taken back to the NetStamps page. Now all you have to do is type in the serial number under “Print Details.” You’ll find the serial number on your actual Original NetStamps sheet. You can print a full sheet of international stamps by making sure that the “Print All” box is checked. You can also print just one by selecting the Print Quantity. Click “Print Postage” when your sheet is ready to be printed.

That’s it! Now all you have to do is affix your stamp to a postcard or letter. NetStamps do not include an address, so make sure you write the complete international address clearly on your mailpiece. No need to wait in line at the Post Office—you can drop your mailpiece off at a USPS blue collection mailbox or in a Post Office mail drop slot.

You have a package that needs to go to San Juan, Bayamón or Ponce. Not to worry: Stamps.com can offer you guidance on how to best format your addresses for mailpieces headed to Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rican addresses are considered domestic addresses with the state code of “PR.”  You can use the Domestic options within the Stamps.com platform (Packages, Stamps, and Envelopes).  You are not required to include a customs form.

Urbanizations

One of most important things to remember is that Puerto Rican addresses use a unique identifier called the urbanization. An urbanization (urbanización) is a specific sector of a city, town or residential development. Using the urbanization name reduces ambiguity and the chance that your mail will be incorrectly sent or returned to you. Sometimes the urbanization name will replace the street name entirely. Examples of urbanization names, which can vary considerably, include Urbanización Valencia, Urb. Las Delicias, Mansiones de Ponce, Jardines Paseo del Jobo, and Asociación Residentes El Plantio.

As you might have noticed above, urbanizations sometimes use the abbreviation of “URB.”  However, you may also run across terms like “EXTENSIÓN,” “BARRIADA,” “ALTURAS,” “PARQUE,”  “ESTANCIAS,” and “QUINTAS” to describe an urbanization. The good news is that the powerful Stamps.com software will recognize cases when the address needs an urbanization name and provide an option to you to select a more specific address.

Street Name Formatting

Keep in mind that the Spanish-language terminology as well as the formatting order will be different than what you see in English-language addresses. You’ll see terms like CALLE (“Street”) or AVENIDA (“Avenue”) placed before the street number. For example, instead of “123 Main Street,” you’ll see “CALLE PRINCIPAL 123.” In accordance with USPS guidelines, do not translate the Spanish street name terms – in other words, don’t change “Calle” to “Street.” As an exception to this rule on translating Spanish terms, please use the term “PO BOX” instead of the various Spanish-language equivalents (CALLER, CALL BOX, GPO BOX, PO BOX S–1190, APTDO, APARTADO, BOX or BUZÓN). 

If there is a house number, place it before the street name. For example, if the house number is B-31, write the address as “B-31 CALLE PRINCIPAL 123,” not as “CALLE PRINCIPAL 123 B-31.”

 The Value of Using Stamps.com

Shipping to Puerto Rico is easy with Stamps.com! Since Puerto Rico is considered a domestic destination, you can use the same Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express rates and packaging as normal. What’s more, with Stamps.com you’ll receive the discounted Commercial Base rate, so you’ll save when you print postage with us. We also allow you to easily order free USPS supplies like boxes and envelopes from the Stamps.com Store. With our Address Book feature, you can also save Puerto Rican mailing address for easy future use!

Additional Resources

• Postal Addressing Standards for Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands (PDF)
• How to Ship Packages to U.S. Territories
• USPS Postal Addressing Standards: Delivery Address Line