← Return to Blog
Posted on

AMA August 22: FAQs

Find answers to questions asked during our AMA held Friday, August 22.

Thanks to all that joined our AMA held on Friday, August 22. Find the link to recording and slides here.

Due to the overwhelming amount of questions received we’ll update this blog as we tackle them. For specific questions related to your HTS code or CUSMA requirements we recommend contacting additional professionals for guidance. You can find resources linked in the presentation slides and we’ll also add them in this blog for quick reference.

Key Highlights

  • DDU postage (duties unpaid where recipient pays for duties) currently not available on Chit Chats
    • Both Chit Chats International Tracked (to US via PostNL) and Canada Post Tracked Packet US & Expedited Parcel temporarily disabled
  • Starting August 29 – all shipments crossing into the US border will be required to have duties (if applicable) paid – so only way to ship to the US will be with DDP postage

Shipments received that don’t make the cut-off to ship under de minimis

If we receive shipments that don’t make the last de minimis crossing:

  • We will hold shipments and return back to you
  • Please don’t request postage refund until you physically have the package returned back
  • If you wish to still ship these packages – new DDP postage will need to be purchased

What can you do?

To ensure adherance to US Customs Border & Protection (US CBP) regulations and minimize potential disruptions it’s important to prepare, do your research and know your products. Fines and penalties can be imposed by US CBP for misdeclaration.

Our team is working diligently to keep you informed and up to date. However, due to industry-wide changes and new regulatory requirements, we anticipate potential delays. As shipping providers and carriers adjust to these changes, some disruptions in service may occur. We appreciate your patience and understanding during this transition.

Country of Origin & Manufacturer
Duties/Tariffs & HTS
Understanding CUSMA Certification with Chit Chats
Resources & Support Contacts
More FAQs – click to expand

Will the max USD value of the package be changing?

  • At this time no however we are looking into this and provide an update should this change. 

Amazon FBA – is this available to ship?

  • Currently FBA shipments are temporarily suspended and we will not ship these until further notice. We are looking into options to see if we can accommodate these shipments after August 29. We will update our clients and blog if this becomes available.

Am I to assume that the tracking links & stuff for Chit Chats Edge with DDP, it’ll still be through USPS? 

  • That is correct. The final delivery is still handled by USPS. 

What are the fees? Will postage costs change?

  • There are no current changes to postage costs. Typically USPS will have their annual carrier increases twice a year. Learn more
  • There will be applicable duties determined by 10 digit HTS code, shipment item and merchandise processing fees
    • Merchandise processing fee (MPF) is calculated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and may change at their discretion. It is a flat fee per shipment (1.35 USD flat fee*)
    • Shipment item fee is the individual item processing fee for broker to process the individual HTS coded items in the shipment (0.15 USD / line item*)
      • Example: You are shipping 1 tshirt, 2 mugs and 3 pins = 3 shipment items
        • Currently there is a maximum of 20 shipment line items per package
  • *These fees are subject to change – we have worked hard to keep these as low as possible as we understand sellers are grappling with having to now also duties on top of postage costs. 

Will you have a duties unpaid option where I don’t have to pay the duties upfront and my customer/recipient will be responsible to pay any duties?

  • We are exploring options as we understand that some sellers prefer to ship with DDU where any potential duties/tariffs are collected at time of delivery from your customer. As of Monday, August 25, DDU options will be unavailable – no timeline if they will be available just yet but we will update all clients if something changes.

if I have 5 products like shirt but each of it is different and has different price – but the producer is the same – do I need to list it separately or I can put 5 shirts and average the price?

  • When creating a shipment on our platform, yes you can create one line with a quantity of 5 and average out the item price, as long as the total declared amount is equal to the total value of the shirts.

If I ship through Canada Post on my own are they still duty free as of right now until the border is ready for them?

  • Canada Post has not given specific direction, it would be at your discretion to use their services outside of Chit Chats. As of right now, shipments through Canada Post are not necessarily duty free, but duties/tariffs would be charged to the recipient upon delivery.

Do you know of any DDP solution for Vancouver Island?

  • With Chit Chats you can access DDP solutions. Since we do not have a Chit Chats location on the island you just need to get your shipments to Chit Chats – you can use SmartDrop or mail in your shipments. Learn more