taxes & duties in canada are a real pain. my lovely girlfriend knows i like this site and i told her about a polo blazer i quite liked being offered on b&s. she wanted to please me and set up a paypal account and arranged to purchase the blazer, and in order to get the blazer here on time for christmas (i think she ordered around the 15th), she chose 2-day airmail.
The blazer was about $320, shipping was $40. the buyer refused to mark the item at less than the value that was paid, including shipping for some odd reason. Item arrived in toronto after 2 days but was kept at customs (though canada post could not tell us where it was and could not rush it through). the item didn't arrive until the 29th of december, and they charges 13% sales tax (which i expected), 18% duties (as it was made in italy... i really wasn't expecting this), and a $10 customs handling fee, bringing the grand total of taxes to $122. great blazer, crap experience getting it.
In the future, I likely won't deal with sellers that won't mark the price down on the item, and will be sure to use ground shipping unless it's an emergency.
