eBay

remus.grrrl · ‎07-01-2025

Sellers in the US need to allow using USPS for Canadian shipments. It's cheaper and honestly, it gets to us faster than using eBay's idiotic international shipping. I understand why you use EBay's option, but for buyers, it's ridiculous.

john_koenig99 · ‎07-01-2025

They are allowed. but they don't want the hassle to deal with border/customs issues, which may arise and come back to bite them in the rear. That's the big selling point for Ebay Shipping service. It's all about sellers.

As for the buyers, as you mention...well. We get hung to dry.

Anonymous · ‎07-01-2025

Firstly, is it the US seller who is bugged by customs, or the Canadian buyer who has to clear the item and possibly pay graft, er, duty? In my experience, it's usually the buyer who has to jump thru their hoops.

wrt to US sellers charging high shipping, I hear ya. Got an incredible offer for a DVD but tye seller needed (wanted) almost $26.00 to mail it across the border. Not gonna' happen. It appears my marketplace will stay 'Canada Only'.

Sorry my American friends ...

easoss · ‎07-01-2025

This is the reason I haven't bought anything from a US seller in over 5 years. The shipping programs are expensive for buyers. I'm also convinced many US sellers don't really want to sell outside the country and find it a bother.

marnotom! · ‎07-01-2025

If you’ve got a few minutes to kill, you should breeze through this .com site’s archived thread from 15 years ago:

https://community.ebay.com/t5/A-Part-time-eBay-Sellers-Group/How-To-Prevent-International-Sales/td-p...

This is from the days when US sellers had to choose between shipping directly to international destinations or not shipping internationally at all. It’s an interesting glimpse into the concerns and attitudes held by some US sellers when it comes to non-US buyers. Also interesting is that the person making the most noise about preventing international sales has the name of a Japanese company in his username. 🤪

Happy Canada Day!

lotzofuniquegoodies · ‎07-01-2025

@remus.grrrl wrote:
Sellers in the US need to allow using USPS for Canadian shipments. It's cheaper and honestly, it gets to us faster than using eBay's idiotic international shipping. I understand why you use EBay's option, but for buyers, it's ridiculous.

@remus.grrrl

@easoss

@Anonymous

@john_koenig99

You can try posting similar on the dot com forum. It is very unlikely any US sellers would ever see your post here on the subject.

I have suggested in the past (several times) and due to the fact that ebay is so big on filters to include a filter to turn on or off filtering out eIS, but to date it has fallen on deaf ears. I tested GSP and eIS in the past. I was not impressed so I have stopped all of my US purchasing. In speaking to MANY Canadian users they feel similar. I do know an OFF filter would be a major improvement but due to the fact it saves US sellers a lot of money in fees it is not likely to happen. Pretty sure eBay still has not resolved the challenges of combined shipping with eIS but not positive.

As a side US sellers using USPS and ebay labels only get a very small discount for international shipping. Between 2 and 5%. If they have access to other discounts it does not appear they are utilizing/passing on to buers as an alernate shipping choice.

devon@ebay Any chance Canadian buers getting a filter to turn off eIS sellers? It would be extremely appreciated....by a country!!! It would definitely make eBay searches less challenging.

A few posts on the distain by Canadian buyers towards eIS. I have done searches it the past regarding the former GSP but it tends to overwhelm my Commodore 64.😆

https://community.ebay.ca/t5/forums/searchpage/tab/message?advanced=false&allow_punctuation=false&q=turning%20off%20eis

reallynicestamps · ‎07-01-2025

The GSP and eIS are Seller Protection policies.

Once the shipment reaches the US plant, the seller's responsibility for delivery ends.

The program also prevents the "customs hold" scam.

And if the buyer opens a Not As Described claim, the seller only has to provide return shipping to the eIS plant address not the overseas buyer.

The only advantage to the buyer is that they may be able to find something in the USA that is not available at any price anywhere else in the world.

Anonymous · ‎07-01-2025

It just confirms that something has happened to our southern friends .. they've all gone nuts!

The decision to use the system by eBay should be a no-brainer for people that really want to sell - avoid it!

The lazy ones who use it may as well kiss any Canadian business away as the costs to us makes everything too expensive to buy. I have turned down two great offers in the last couple of days, simply because of the shipping costs.

How I long for the old days when cross border trading was easy and cheap - I traded VHS tapes and DVDs all over the world for many years (way before eBay was even a gleam in someone's eye), and we never heard complaints about mailing costs.

lotzofuniquegoodies · ‎07-01-2025

@reallynicestamps wrote:
The GSP and eIS are Seller Protection policies.
Once the shipment reaches the US plant, the seller's responsibility for delivery ends.
The program also prevents the "customs hold" scam.
And if the buyer opens a Not As Described claim, the seller only has to provide return shipping to the eIS plant address not the overseas buyer.

The only advantage to the buyer is that they may be able to find something in the USA that is not available at any price anywhere else in the world.

There is a bit of a disclaimer regarding customs delays and the guarantee. Not sure if you could call it cut and dry or a bit wishy washy. As follows.

No, customs delays are generally not covered by the eBay Money Back Guarantee. While the guarantee covers issues like items not arriving or not matching the listing, it doesn't apply to situations where an item is delayed due to customs processing or if the buyer declines to pay customs fees.

Here's a more detailed explanation:

eBay's Money Back Guarantee:
This guarantee protects buyers when an item is not received or is not as described.
Customs Delays:
Customs delays are often outside of the seller's and eBay's control, and are generally the responsibility of the buyer to manage.
Buyer's Responsibility:
Buyers are usually responsible for paying any applicable customs fees, import duties, and taxes when purchasing items from international sellers.
When the Guarantee Applies:
The Money Back Guarantee "may" apply if an item is delayed due to customs processing and the buyer has fulfilled their customs obligations. However, if the delay is due to the buyer's failure to pay customs fees or complete necessary forms, the guarantee may not cover the issue.

mrdutch1001 · ‎07-01-2025

Consider this: ...If there was a similar shipping program available to Canadian sellers, just what percentage do you think would jump at the chance!...I would wager that the percentage would be higher than you think!...and then how much would those Canadian sellers care about how the costs ot buyers in the USA or elsewhere???!!! .....Just think about that ....and all that seller protection for shipping Internationally through a program like that!

Walk a mile in the shoes of the USA sellers!!!

lotzofuniquegoodies · ‎07-01-2025

@mrdutch1001 wrote:
Consider this: ...If there was a similar shipping program available to Canadian sellers, just what percentage do you think would jump at the chance!...I would wager that the percentage would be higher than you think!...and then how much would those Canadian sellers care about how the costs ot buyers in the USA or elsewhere???!!! .....Just think about that ....and all that seller protection for shipping Internationally through a program like that!
Walk a mile in the shoes of the USA sellers!!!

@mrdutch1001

As a long time user - seller and buyer on eBay and knowing the perils with the past GSP service and eIS currently (there are just too many gall darned bad experiences posted) I would run for the hills prior to eBay opting me in to anything like that. I would never do anything to try to jeopardize customer service with any of my customers. Who knows where the one point would be for forwarding, how much more it would cost my buyers, slow delivery and the exceptions of what is or isn't included. Won't even get into the concept regarding combined shipping. Bad enough already. Why would I want to make it even more challenging. NIMBY all the way!!!!

As for the US sellers who use, many were opted in without knowing the nightmare and the frustrations it causes buyers that use. Or the alternative....they just don't care!!! There are a number of longstanding issues on eBay Canada. That is not one of them on my checklist.

According to a recent survey I got from eBay they are looking into a program like it for Canadian sellers. Be afraid!!! Be very afraid!!!

Want to make an improvement for Canadian sellers? Remove seller fees when sellers use eBay labels to purchase shipping. They take a cut on fees when US sellers use eIS in the states.

mrdutch1001 · ‎07-01-2025

eBay is no longer my main selling site so TBH, whatever eBay.CA decides to do/not do in the near future and/or going forward, most likely won't concern me...I don't sell enough on eBay to warrant worrying about such things...

marnotom! · ‎07-01-2025

@Anonymous wrote:

How I long for the old days when cross border trading was easy and cheap - I traded VHS tapes and DVDs all over the world for many years (way before eBay was even a gleam in someone's eye), and we never heard complaints about mailing costs.

Online sales have been a victim of their own success, I think. Once governments realized how much tax revenue they were losing out on because many of these sales on eBay and similar sites were "under the table," they took measures to ensure they got their share of the action. Part of this involved nixing letter post as an option for the mailing of merchandise internationally, even if the taxes on the item were collected at point of sale.

The cheapest USPS counter rate for mailing a lightweight item such as a CD or DVD to Canada from the US is now just shy of US$18. There are less expensive options out there for sellers willing to do the legwork to get them set up, mind you. eIS's rates tend to be a little lower than the USPS counter rate, but once you add on the seller's own shipping charge for getting the item to Glendale Heights, the total shipping charge doesn't look terribly appealing.

flipistics · ‎07-01-2025

The main issue for me is that there's so many regulations being brought in around the world that it's hard if not impossible to keep track. An international shipping program allows you to not worry about (most) of it, including returns. The program HAS to be optional though. I currently wouldn't use the program for the USA, but that could change if the deminimis is eventually removed for all countries (and it very well could be).

cottagewoman · ‎07-01-2025

@flipistics-
In the bill the Senate just passed in the US, de minimis for ALL COUNTRIES ends in 2027. It is ending, guaranteed. As well the EU is ending it as well, on top of adopting a Digital Passport system with block chain for all goods imported into the country. Casual online selling will be a thing of the past in 2 years. Barrier to selling will be high with all the new regulations coming, costs and complexity will shut out millions of micro and small businesses world wide.

byto253 · ‎07-01-2025

Wow, I did not know that. An $800 deminimis is very generous IMHO, but zero makes no sense either. Customs will not be interested in dealing with under $50 transactions.

brettjet38 · ‎07-01-2025

I would use it to ship to any country eBay suggests, I would be protected as a Seller.

reallynicestamps · ‎07-01-2025

I would run for the hills prior to eBay opting me in to anything like that.

It's not a default.

It is a seller option.

And US sellers are xenophobic and paranoid enough to want the protection against us scary foreigners.

EBay allows US sellers to block sales to Hawai'i, Puerto Rico,and Alaska for that matter. And for all their "thank you for your service" they can also block sales to APO (military) addresses.

It's not about the buyer experience.

It's about encouraging those paranoid and xenophobic MAGAts to sell internationally.

reallynicestamps · ‎07-01-2025

That was certainly the situation with our $20 duty free allowance.

There are threads thousands of posts long complaining that couriers charged the (required legal) duty and taxes plus a $25 minimum "handling fee"(customs brokerage fee) which CBSA and Canada Post officers had decided cost the taxpayer too much to process.

Many complaining about the eIS/GSP are remembering those days when most sellers were shipping by cheap lettermail, and forgetting that others were using the couriers they were using domestically.

lotzofuniquegoodies · ‎07-01-2025

@reallynicestamps wrote:
I would run for the hills prior to eBay opting me in to anything like that.
It's not a default.
It is a seller option.
And US sellers are xenophobic and paranoid enough to want the protection against us scary foreigners.
EBay allows US sellers to block sales to Hawai'i, Puerto Rico,and Alaska for that matter. And for all their "thank you for your service" they can also block sales to APO (military) addresses.

It's not about the buyer experience.
It's about encouraging those paranoid and xenophobic MAGAts to sell internationally.

@reallynicestamps

When it was rolled out in the USA there were sellers that were opted in. There was little in the way of fanfare. They had to figure out on their own. eBay has been gung ho about opting users in for ages on lots of what they consider the latest and the greatest. There have been features that there was no way to opt out of.

eBay is constantly releasing new tools for US sellers. The when or if is the question as to when they will arrive for Canadians and will they be fully functional with all the same bells and whistles? From past recent history...not likely.

Regarding not about buyer experience, that's interesting when many of the current methodology makes it easy for buyers to back out of sales even when the buyer is in the wrong. Consider the changes that have been made to feedback.