Canada Postal DDP

Few services ship Delivered Duty Paid (DDP) for postal shipments to Canada, such as the chargeback program or standard commercial clearance, which may limit enrollment to large retailers. Zonos' Canada Postal DDP program does not have a size limitation.

Postal to Canada 

Cross-border shipments to Canada sent via a postal method may be cleared by a customs broker (commercial clearance) or by Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) (postal clearance). When a customs broker clears a shipment, it is their responsibility to assess duties and taxes on every eligible shipment. On the other hand, a government agency, such as CBSA (Canada Border Services Agency), may or may not assess duties or taxes.

Many Canadian shoppers know that postal shipments often don't have duties and taxes assessed; however, there is still the risk of these fees being charged. While Canadian shoppers are willing to choose this option when buying online in the hopes of avoiding any additional costs, the risk can be avoided altogether with Zonos' Canada Postal DDP program.

How it works 

Using Zonos, customers can be assured that their cross-border shipments to Canada will have the duties and taxes prepaid, regardless of whether CBSA chooses to assess and collect them or not.

Many postal imports are not assessed for duties or taxes, especially for shipments of low-value goods. In fact, over 40% of postal imports, on average, do not have duties or taxes assessed. Zonos' Canada Postal DDP program provides a solution for retailers to guarantee that Canadian shoppers will not have to pay any duties or taxes, or retailers can offer the option for the fees to be paid upfront. Retailers can provide their Canadian customers with a seamless, stress-free shopping experience while avoiding any potential issues with customs clearance.

Similar to a standard Delivered Duty Paid (DDP) service, Zonos pays any applicable duties and taxes directly to Canada Post on behalf of the importer, ensuring that the customer does not have to pay any additional costs.

Example: No tax or duty assessed

When Zonos predicts that no taxes or duties will be assessed by CBSA, the postal clearance calculation will show a total of 0 CAD. In contrast, the commercial clearance calculation will show the correct amount of duties and taxes.

Example: Tax assessed but no duty

When Zonos predicts CBSA will only assess tax but not duty, the postal clearance calculation will only include tax. In contrast, the commercial clearance calculation will have both tax and duty.

Enable postal DDP to Canada 

Enabling postal DDP to Canada can vary depending on your integration with Zonos. Follow the steps below to enable postal DDP to Canada.

Supported carriers 

Zonos supports postal clearance imports to Canada when CBSA clears the shipment, and Canada Post collects the duties and taxes. Additionally, Zonos supports exporting from multiple countries when shipping via post and partners with postal carriers such as USPS, Royal Mail, and Australia Post.

Retailers 

Canada Postal DDP is only available to retailers enrolled in Zonos Landed Cost guarantee.

When using Zonos to calculate shipping costs, you can connect to USPS rates or create a custom rate sheet. Once the supported postal carrier and service levels to Canada are enabled on your account, Zonos will calculate and collect duties and taxes when our algorithm predicts they are due.

When it is determined no duties and taxes will be assessed by CBSA, Zonos guarantees a zero-dollar calculation even if CBSA determines duties and taxes are owed. In cases where Zonos predicts no duties and taxes would be owed, but CBSA determines them to be due, Zonos will cover the cost on the importer's behalf.

Customer messaging 

To increase order conversion, when Zonos assesses that no duty and tax is due on the order, we recommend you inform the Canadian buyer they will not be charged duties or taxes at the time of checkout or delivery. The peace of mind for the shopper will result in higher checkout conversion on orders going into Canada and fewer upset customers that are currently surprised when they have to pay duties and taxes upon import.

Example message

You can say something like Duties and taxes are included, No duties or taxes due, or something similar. Below is an example message.

Partners 

Partner with Zonos to create a DDP service with your current postal shipments to Canada. Zonos will invoice you for shipments where duties and taxes are assessed. You can white-label the Zonos Canada Postal DDP program, and your customers do not need to sign up with Zonos. Learn how to submit tracking numbers to Zonos.

If your customer wants guaranteed calculations for their shoppers at the time of checkout, for Canada or any other country, Zonos can help.

To learn more about the Canada Postal DDP program and pricing, contact the Zonos partner team.