Ordering from USA to other countries.

[ChaoticYeti]

Hey, guys. Getting things shipped from here to there is a big part of this hobby. Shipping from USPS has been going up a steady tick, seemingly every month, and I am curious for those of you who live outside of the USA when you order toys/collectibles/items from USA how do you get it shipped? Does it seem overly expensive?

[eggy99]

The aussie dollar is so pathetic right now that I have to seriously think about what I am purchasing from overseas now a days. Shipping really adds considerably to the item, which is sometimes already much more expensive than getting from Japan for example.

I've ordered 2 ways. Via Amazon, and take advantage of their quite low shipping rates (if shipped by Amazon and not a 3rd party), or ship via a shipping forwarding company (like MyUS for example) for items that can only be shipped within US and Canada - stopped doing that once my premium account ended (it granted 20% discount on shipping rates).

[Universe1010]

I don't buy from the US until shipping is cheap. The USD is killing us canadians. I order from japan directly with the better exchange rate and quick EMS shipping.

Edited July 9, 2017 by monishb

[Graham]

Luckily here in Hong Kong we don't have any Customs charges to contend with for importing goods, but buying goods from the US and shipping them to Hong Kong is often very expensive.

I buy all sorts of items from the US through Amazon and Ebay and some US sellers charge very highly for shipping. I've been charged US$40 to US$50 before for shipping an item from the US that only ways a few ounces and that was shipping by standard USPS international service .

I'm wondering if postal service shipping fees are in any way reciprocal, as the HK postal service is also not cheap to ship overseas.

Graham

[Mr Bomber]

I bought a lot around the world, especially asia,and shipping is quite expensive. I bought many stuff from usa, and shipping can be as high as 20-25% of the goods. Good thing is well packed small box and low weight can make a reasonable shipping cost. Customs are free of charges if the package is lower than 4 kgs in Ecuador.

[Jefuemon]

Never got hit with Customs charges. Sometimes the Amazon stuff can be insanely high-priced on shipping (for those that feel like shipping to Japan). Luckily,I've still got family in America, so they can ship on anything to me that's either too expensive or won't be shipped overseas.

[Scyla]

I usually don't order form the states. Especially no Japanese toys since I get hit with double import duty since the us based retailers have to ship it to them and than to me where I have to pay a customs fee. The only exception are Hasbro and 3rd party Transformers that I can't get otherwise and stuff that is sold out elsewhere. Shipping prices are comparable to importing form Japan or Hong Kong but I can't tell you exactly since 95% of the stuff from the states are BBTS PoL orders where it is hard to tell how much exactly you payed for shipping.

[Garfinkel]

Shipping to the UK from the US has got increasingly expensive lately. Add to that 20% VAT and admin fee from Parcel Force and it starts to get ridiculous. Then compound that with their terrible service, i have a Valkyrie which has been sat for a week with no movement. Makes ordering from people who underdeclare the value so useful, NY i am looking at you here, even if your shipping is expensive.

[VF-19]

I buy all sorts of items from the US through Amazon and Ebay and some US sellers charge very highly for shipping. I've been charged US$40 to US$50 before for shipping an item from the US that only ways a few ounces and that was shipping by standard USPS international service .

Graham

That has more to due with the fact that eBay takes a cut out of every sale. Sellers mark up the shipping to make more money. Lots of them don't even try to be subtle about it.

I've pretty much stopped all my ordering from the USA, and cut back on my overseas orders, due to the low value of the Canadian Dollar.

[ArchieNov]

The shipping I choose depends on how fast I want it. If I choose FedEx it only takes around 3 days or so to arrive here in the Philippines. If I use standard shipping it can take anywhere from 2-4 weeks on average.

In terms of cost, I don't really know if it's expensive or not. I've never ordered anything from any other country that is as far away from here as the US (e.g. South America, Canada). Comparing shipping prices from the US with Japan or HK is not feasible since those countries are relatively close to mine.

[CF18]

Shipping from 1st world countries are generally quite expensive, with Japan being an exception with more reasonable pricing and have many options to choose. Even before the Canadian dollar drop I normally don't order anything from USA due to high shipping cost.

[Lorindor]

I avoid ordering from the US if I have the choice. It's just silly expensive compared to a lot of other countries. The problem is that there's no real low-price alternative, everything is just express, fully insured and trackable. Insurence and trackability is good when you buy something of value (but otherwise a bit unnecessary), but I'm almost never in such a hurry that I need to have the product in less than a week. I can easily wait for 4-5 weeks if needed.

[Moosey]

I rarely get stuff shipped from the 'states.

I haven't had much luck with this route in the past, suffering many broken items supposedly in the care of the USPS.

The hobby is bad enough as it is suffering the shipping and import duties from Japan.

As has already been mentioned, eBay is becoming beyond ridiculous.

Think I'll just have to up and move to Japan.......

[mickyg]

I used to get stuff from the US fairly regularly. Both from family over there, as well as the occasional item from a few hobby shops (SprueBrothers being the main one) but about 2 years ago there was a stupid crazy price hike and now nothing is cheap to ship anymore, including gifts from family. So they've basically stopped shipping anything unless it's a letter.

About the only game in town that's still somewhat affordable, is Amazon. Not sure how they manage to do it but they've obviously got some means of shipping on the cheap and it's still fairly reliable.

As a contrast, UK to Australia shipping is reasonable. So is China, for that matter. Japan isn't as cheap as it used to be but it's still far better than the US to Aus rates.

[SaitouSad]

Amazon thankfully has free shipping to Singapore now (though there are certain conditions and criteria, such as min. $125 spending, no bulky items and Amazon direct sales only etc.), so that's where I get most of my US imports.

For other stuff (namely toys), I have to go through a forwarder. They charge a pretty steep fee as it is calculated by every 500grams or so, on top of whatever insurance, fuel surcharge and their own fees, but is always cheaper than directly shipping from the US to Singapore.

The downside to that though, is that there is pretty much nothing you can do if the items or packaging gets damaged.

Also our country imposes tax for shipments totaling over about $284 USD including shipping.

[no3Ljm]

Hey guys. Just a heads up. I got an email from Buyee today that according to them Japan Post has made an announcement that there will be an increase in fees for shipping by International Courier (EMS) and Sea Mail International Parcel to East Asia.

Here's the additional price increases for International Courier (EMS)

• First Zone (Asia): Y300
• Second Zone (North America, Middle and Near East, Oceania): Y500
• Second Zone (Europe): Y400
• Third Zone (South America, Africa): Y300

Here's the additional price increase for Sea Mail International Parcel

• First Zone (East Asia): Y100 - Y1550 (Depends on package weight)

This is just a notice so that we won't be alarm the moment we are charge more for the shipping in the upcoming weeks or months. Happy Collecting!

[Sandman]

I live in Canada. Between the our pathetically weak dollar and heavy customs/import fees, it's not worth ordering from the US anymore. This is pretty much why i haven't got a yeti stand even though i want them bad. Even with a stronger dollar the shipping is way too expensive. I've abandoned ebay shopping from the US completely as they've instituted a pay upfront for import charges. So on an auction you will see auction price, shipping charge and import charges which by the time adds up you are paying over half the price of the item in charges if you're lucky.

[Alberich]

For me is not a problem as I live in a city in the border Mexico-USA, so normally I just put the shipping address of a friend or family member who lives in El Paso, TX. I just cross the border and go for my things and in the return I normally don't any problem thanks to the free trade agreement which give any person the possibility to cross with an X amount of merchandise if is within a certain value limit (don't remember the value). Only some goods can give you problems so you need to pay a fee but normally that is really pricey stuff.

[hachi]

I order stuff from Amazon and I use a forwarder. I don't trust and don't want to deal with the local post office and customs.

[no3Ljm]

I order stuff from Amazon and I use a forwarder. I don't trust and don't want to deal with the local post office and customs.

Do you mind telling us what country you shipped the item to and which Amazon (US/JP/CA, etc.) site you bought it from since there's no location on your member name area. And care to share what kind of forwarder you're using to so others can benefit as well just in case they live in the same country as yours. Thanks.

[hachi]

I use Johnny Air Cargo and MyShoppingBox to forward stuff (mostly books) to the Philippines. I don't like to wait months so I just bear with the extra cost.

[no3Ljm]

I use Johnny Air Cargo and MyShoppingBox to forward stuff (mostly books) to the Philippines. I don't like to wait months so I just bear with the extra cost.

Ah! Kabayan!

Customs in the Philippines... is putting money to government people's deep pockets.

[hachi]

Ah! Kabayan!

Customs in the Philippines... is putting money to government people's deep pockets.

Yeah, a huge chunk of taxes are wasted due to corruption.

Unfortunately for me I have found these forwarders convenient and I haven't been able to keep track of my expenses properly.

[ArchieNov]

I had a bad experience with Johnny Air Cargo a few years ago so I've sworn off them. I ordered the Hasbro Cloverfield monster for $150. But since the shop only shipped within the US, I had to use a forwarder like JAC. The package was not that heavy, but it was big (around 12" on all sides). JAC's policy stated that they would either charge based on weight or size, depending on what costs more. In the end, I had to pay around $200 alone to JAC just to claim my package. That's the first and last time I used JAC and the only time I had to pay more than the item price just for shipping.

Edited May 6, 2016 by ArchieNov

[no3Ljm]

I had a bad experience with Johnny Air Cargo a few years ago so I've sworn off them. I ordered the Hasbro Cloverfield monster for $150. But since the shop only shipped within the US, I had to use a forwarder like JAC. The package was not that heavy, but it was big (around 12" on all sides). JAC's policy stated that they would either charge based on weight or size, depending on what costs more. In the end, I had to pay around $200 alone to JAC just to claim my package. That's the first and last time I used JAC and the only time I had to pay more than the item price just for shipping.

So I assumed you paid it for the size and not the weight? How big the package itself when you got it? 14"x14" or 18"x18" box size?

[ArchieNov]

Like I said I think it was around 12". It was a cube.

[abbadon]

I've used both but I prefer MyShoppingBox for my US purchases. There are numerous new forwarders like LBC Shippingcart and Jinio, both with their own pros and cons, but I think I'll stick with MSB. I like that they have an option for Sea Freight which is cheaper for larger items.

[no3Ljm]

Like I said I think it was around 12". It was a cube.

Oh. I thought the toy box is 12"x12". So I assumed the package box is aound 14" or 18" including the paddings and styros.

[ArchieNov]

Oh. I thought the toy box is 12"x12". So I assumed the package box is aound 14" or 18" including the paddings and styros.

Okay I just got home. Checked the box, sorry it was 17"x18". No padding or packing material was used.

Edited May 6, 2016 by ArchieNov

[hachi]

That's why you have to be careful with the size of the item too. With MSB you can also use sea freight it costs much less. But then you'd have to wait for months...

[ArchieNov]

Not sure what shipping options you use outside of JAC, but normally I use either standard shipping (USPS) or priority (Fedex, UPS) when these options are available. Basically I need one that gives me a tracking number. I get my packages in 4-6 weeks for standard and a week or less for priority. It doesn't take months on average.

[hachi]

Not sure what shipping options you use outside of JAC, but normally I use either standard shipping (USPS) or priority (Fedex, UPS) when these options are available. Basically I need one that gives me a tracking number. I get my packages in 4-6 weeks for standard and a week or less for priority. It doesn't take months on average.

I'm talking about when packages are big, since volumetric computation pricing can be costlier than weight-based computation. For that sea freight is an option for those who want to save on costs (and of course delivery will take longer).