Hi all,

I want to buy a digital camera and have pretty much settled on either the Canon S30 or S45 depending on how rich I'm feeling when I place the order.

For the S45, the best price I can find in Europe is around 700 euros (US$750) but the price is so much cheaper in the States, around $500 seems achievable. That's a big saving.

I have a few options on how to get it:
1. Find a dealer who will send it to me here in France - I will have to pay duty to import it, and many of the cheaper dealers won't do it so I'd have to pay more in the first place.
2. Get a friend in the USA to buy it for me and ship it - if she declares value for insurance I'll get stung for duty. If not it's risky and I may get stung anyway.
3. Get friend in Canada to buy it, she is coming to London in a few weeks so she could bring it (probably going to meet her anyway). I'd have to buy her a few beers and cover her losses if she gets searched at customs entering the UK but the risk of that is small.
4. Use it as an excuse for a weekend in New York and buy a laptop at the same time to cover the cost of the flight

So for option 3, the question is, can you transport stuff across the USA/Canada border without incurring taxes or duties, rather like you can do in Europe between community member countries, or would there be tax to pay there?

Of course, if anyone can recommend places I can get it cheaper then please feel free to do so!

Thanks for any advice...
Cheers
potfish

 

As a Canadian, she will have to declare what was purchased in the us and pay duty (if any) and taxes (goods and services tax 7%, provincial tax 0-8% depending on where she lives).

If she tries to smuggle it in and is caught, and it is her first offence she will pay the above. If she has been caught in the past they might, fine her, confiscate the goods and take legal action...

Did you check prices in Canada?

 

First, make sure the place you are buying it from online is legit. There are quite a few places that advertise special prices, then hit you with a package plan. If you decline the package plan they tell you that it's not in stock and you have to wait. If the place is legit and you know the camera you want. You can try to find someone in the states to act as a middleman. Candians please correct me if I am wrong. I beleive, the middleman can send it to your friend in Canada and declare it as a gift. Which would negate the taxes and import duties.

 

Thanks for the answers guys, looks like option 4 is getting more and more attractive.