How long does it take for Canada Post to deliver to India?

How long does it take for Canada Post to deliver to India?

When using Canada Post for parcel deliveries to India, you have two main options: surface delivery (sea freight) or air delivery. Not surprisingly, sending a parcel by ship from Canada to India could take from 1 - 3 months whereas air delivery is in the range of 4 - 12 business days. And of course, the sooner the package arrives in India the more it costs for shipment.

However, international shipping involves more than deciding when the parcel needs to arrive. Correct completion of paperwork is required for the parcel to enter India, or any foreign country. Also important is proper packaging of the parcel to ensure the shipment’s safe arrival at its destination. And there will be other unseen fees and charges.

So, this blog will help teach you some of the basics of international shipping, and introduce you to Secureship, and how we help you navigate those time-consuming tasks, and save you money in the process.

Table of Contents

• Paperwork and Packaging
• Other Potential Fees
• Using Secureship
• Conclusion

Paperwork and Packaging

Paperwork is part of shipping parcels. And when a parcel enters India or any foreign country, a number of prescribed pieces of paper must accompany the parcel otherwise it may be returned to Canada.

The key documents for your Indian-bound parcel include:

• Commercial Invoice (CI): Without a commercial invoice, entry of the parcel to a foreign country is not possible. The CI describes the contents and states its value, and this enables customs officers to apply the correct fees, taxes (for e.g. the value added tax), and duties.

• Air Waybill: States the name and address of the recipient and sender of the parcel. As well, the waybill identifies the courier (Canada Post, UPS, etc.) responsible for transporting the parcel.

• Customs Declaration Forms: A Single Administrative Document (SAD) may be demanded by Indian customs, which is a specific declaration form for the incoming goods.

• Importer Exporter Code (IEC): The IEC is a 10-digit code applied to all sold goods entering India. It is issued by India’s Directorate General of Foreign Trade.

• Packing List: While a packing list is not always required, it does not hurt to include it. It is simply a list of all goods in a shipment with their description and quantities.

International travel can be a bruising affair for a package. A parcel may be dropped, jostled, or have five other boxes piled on top of it.

So, if you follow the three main tips below, it will go a long way to ensure that your parcel and its contents make it to India with no damage.

1. Use a new box even if a previously used one looks fine. A used box may have lost 50% of its strength just from one trip alone.
2. Fragile and particularly valuable items should be wrapped separately in either bubble wrap or by using packaging peanuts. Items should be a minimum of 5 cm from each other and from any of the box’s 6 sides.
3. Avoid wrapping the box with masking tape, duct tape, string, or rope. Only use specialty packing tape.

Finally, if you have insured the parcel against loss or damage, then be sure the packaging conforms to ISTA 3A packaging standards or any insurance will be invalidated.

Other Potential Fees

It should be no surprise that a larger and heavier parcel will cost you more to ship to India than a smaller and lighter one. As well, we all understand that countries impose duties and taxes like VAT (value added tax) on incoming goods. And India is no different. However, unbeknownst to novice shippers, other value added service fees can run-up your shipping costs.

One of those is residential delivery. To eliminate this charge, you may consider having the parcel delivered to the recipient’s office, or arrange for them to pick it up at the courier’s outlet.

Saturday delivery or pickup also incurs a fee. While this may be very convenient for you or your business, if it’s not absolutely necessary, then simply avoid shipping on a Saturday.

Couriers apply oversize fees to very heavy or very large containers – more than 68 kilograms and longer than 2.74 metres. For example, the fee UPS charges for an oversized container is $1,100, and could be as high as $1,550 during peak shipping periods, say the Christmas season.

Using Secureship

Whether this is your first time shipping to India or elsewhere abroad, or you’ve done it dozens of times before, Secureship can help you save money and time.

By taking advantage of our bulk buying power, a shipment from Canada to India could be half the price compared to walking into Canada Post or UPS.

And with only a few computer clicks, you select the courier and arrival time of the parcel that best suits your budget, arrange for its pickup, then they come to your door to whisk the parcel away. Meanwhile, you can carry on with the important work of building your business, or having a well deserved break.

Conclusion

Canada Post offers surface delivery of parcels to India that could take 1 - 3 months to arrive; or you could pay more for by selecting its air delivery service for a much sooner arrival (4 - 12 business days). But international shipping is a bit more complex than that. It requires the completion of paperwork – commercial invoice, air waybill, customs declaration forms, and a packing list.

Then there are other potential fees such as residential delivery, Saturday shipping, and oversized container charges. However, there is no need to tackle these tasks alone. Secureship’s user-friendly platform allows you to prepare your shipment’s paperwork in less time and then send it off for less money whether your parcel is destined for India or across town.