Selling to Canada from abroad: GST/HST, low-value limits and when to register (2026)
If you sell on Etsy, eBay or Shopify from the US, UK, EU or elsewhere and post or courier orders to Canadian buyers, you usually do not charge Canadian GST/HST at checkout: it is collected at the border, often with a handling fee your buyer pays on delivery. That changes if you keep stock in Canada. Here is how it works, with an official source and date on every rule.
Shipping from outside Canada: tax is collected at the border
A non-resident seller who is not registered for GST/HST and does not carry on business in Canada does not charge GST/HST when it sends goods by mail or courier from outside Canada to a buyer in Canada. GST/HST is collected on the importation instead (CRA's example: a US$100 item couriered from abroad to Alberta pays 5% GST on import).
GST/HST is charged on imports at the buyer's province rate: 5% GST (AB, territories, and with provincial tax in BC, MB, SK, QC), HST 13% Ontario, 14% Nova Scotia (since 1 April 2025), 15% NB, NL, PEI. CBSA also collects PST on some imports.
Low-value limits: when nothing is charged
Canada's limits depend on how the parcel travels and, for couriers, where it is shipped from.
Mail into Canada worth CAD 20 or less pays no duty or tax. Books, periodicals, alcohol and tobacco are excluded. Person-to-person gifts up to CAD 60 are exempt. Customs gift allowances by country
Courier shipments from the US or Mexico: no duty or tax up to CAD 40; duty-free (but taxed) up to CAD 150; duty and taxes above CAD 150. These thresholds go by where the parcel is shipped from, not where it was made.
Courier shipments from other countries (UK, EU, Australia…) are only free of duty and tax up to CAD 20.
On dutiable or taxable mail, Canada Post charges the buyer a CAD 9.95 handling fee per item, on top of duty and taxes. UPS, FedEx and Canada Post fees in Canada
What your Canadian buyer pays on delivery
Estimates from our calculator for a silver jewellery order delivered to Ontario (13% HST), with the buyer paying on delivery and no shipping charge, to keep the numbers simple. We have no verified Canadian duty rate for this product, so when duty applies it is shown as "not included": look up your product's rate in the CBSA Customs Tariff and enter it in the calculator. Courier brokerage fees are not included either, because they are not published in a form we can cite.
| Seller and carrier | Order value | Duty | GST/HST | Canada Post fee | Buyer pays on delivery | Try it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US seller, courier | CA$35.00 | None | CA$0.00 | – | CA$0.00 | Open in calculator |
| US seller, courier | CA$100.00 | None | CA$13.00 | – | CA$13.00 | Open in calculator |
| UK seller, Royal Mail / post | CA$35.00 | Product rate (not included) | CA$4.55 | CA$9.95 | CA$14.50 + duty | Open in calculator |
| UK seller, courier | CA$35.00 | Product rate (not included) | CA$4.55 | – | CA$4.55 + duty | Open in calculator |
| EU seller, post | CA$100.00 | Product rate (not included) | CA$13.00 | CA$9.95 | CA$22.95 + duty | Open in calculator |
GST/HST is worked out on the value plus any duty, at the rate of the province the parcel is delivered to. UK and EU goods may enter at 0% duty under a trade agreement if you include an origin statement. Since 8 September 2026 some US-made goods also pay a Canadian counter-tariff; we have not confirmed whether the low-value limits also cover it.
UK- and EU-origin goods can get preferential (often 0%) Canadian duty under the Canada–UK Trade Continuity Agreement and CETA if you give an origin declaration. The rates for your product have not been checked here.
From 8 September 2026, Canada charges counter-tariffs of 15%, 25% or 50% on listed US-origin goods (50% includes clothing and apparel, furniture, steel and aluminium; 25% includes appliances and cheese). Earlier counter-tariffs on US autos remain.
If your stock is already in Canada
Different rules apply when goods are in Canada before you sell them, for example in a fulfilment warehouse or with a Canadian dropshipper.
Canada's 'supply of qualifying goods' rules cover goods delivered or made available in Canada, for example goods held in a Canadian fulfilment warehouse or shipped from a place in Canada. They do not cover goods the seller (or someone on its behalf) sends by mail or courier from an address outside Canada.
A non-resident seller of qualifying goods (goods already in Canada) must register for normal GST/HST once its revenue from these sales to Canadian consumers and other unregistered buyers exceeds CA$30,000 in any 12-month period. Sales made through a GST/HST-registered distribution platform (marketplace) are left out of the count, because the platform is treated as the seller.
If you are not registered and sell goods located in Canada through a distribution platform, the platform operator must charge and collect GST/HST on the final sale price. If you are registered for normal GST/HST, you charge and collect it yourself, including on sales made through a platform.
For goods sold from inside Canada, the GST/HST rate follows the province where the goods are delivered: for example, a parcel couriered to an address in Ontario is charged 13% HST, and one sent to British Columbia 5% GST.
Paying the duty and tax for your buyer (DDP)
If you want your buyer to pay nothing at the door, someone has to be the importer of record and pay the CBSA. That is usually your courier's or platform's DDP service, or a customs broker you appoint. Importing in your own name needs Canadian accounts:
To import commercial goods into Canada, every importer needs a CBSA CARM Client Portal account, a 9-digit business number (BN9) and an import program (RM) account. Non-resident importers must get their BN9 from the Canada Revenue Agency before registering in CARM.
The importer of record named at accounting is responsible for paying the duties and taxes owed. Customs brokers are licensed by the CBSA but do not work for the government, and the CBSA does not regulate their fees.
Commercial shipments valued at CA$3,300 or less can be released before the paperwork and payment are done, and are then accounted for by the 24th day of the following month. Proof of origin for a free-trade-agreement claim is waived up to CA$3,300, but records must still be kept.
DDP or buyer-pays? See DDP vs DAP for Etsy, eBay and Shopify.
Checklist before you ship to Canada
- Tell Canadian buyers in your listing or shop policy that GST/HST, any duty and a handling fee may be charged on delivery, unless you ship DDP.
- Know the limits: CA$20 by post or non-US courier, CA$40 (tax) and CA$150 (duty) by courier from the US or Mexico.
- Declare the real price paid and a specific description; never mark a sale as a gift (the CA$60 gift exemption is for gifts between individuals). See our customs forms guide.
- For UK or EU goods over the limit, add an origin statement so the buyer can get the trade-agreement duty rate.
- Thinking about a Canadian warehouse? Check the CA$30,000 GST/HST registration rule first.
- Estimate a real order in the calculator.
Route guides with full details: US → Canada · UK → Canada · EU → Canada. Also selling to the US? See US de minimis has ended. Selling to the UK? See the UK £135 VAT rule. We record every rule change in the change log.
This page is general information, not legal, tax or customs advice. It does not cover businesses that carry on business in Canada or have a permanent establishment there; check the CRA's pages for your situation. See the disclaimer.
Sources for this page
- Supply of qualifying goods in Canada: GST/HST for digital-economy businesses, Canada Revenue Agency. Accessed 27 Oct 2026. Verified
- GST/HST calculator (and rates), Canada Revenue Agency. Accessed 20 Oct 2026. Verified
- Customs duty, taxes, and exemptions, Canada Post. Accessed 10 Nov 2026. Verified
- Importing by mail or courier – Determining duty and taxes owed, Canada Border Services Agency. Accessed 27 Oct 2026. Verified
- Increase to low-value shipment thresholds (CUSMA courier de minimis), Canada Border Services Agency. Accessed 27 Oct 2026. Verified
- Supply of qualifying goods threshold amounts: GST/HST for digital-economy businesses, Canada Revenue Agency. Accessed 27 Oct 2026. Verified
- Set up your business to import (CARM, business number, non-resident importers, customs brokers), Canada Border Services Agency. Accessed 27 Oct 2026. Verified
- Canada announces targeted countermeasures … (25 Aug 2026), Department of Finance Canada. Accessed 20 Oct 2026. Verified
Rules change often: the latest change we tracked was on 10 Nov 2026 (US: the 178 China Section 301 product exclusions are extended to 9 January 2027). Alerts send one short email, with the source, only when a rule changes on a route you pick.