How much is shipping to Australia from Canada?

How much is shipping to Australia from Canada?

Shipping a small documents-only package to Australia from Canada is relatively inexpensive; however, a large assemblage of sold goods flown to Australia and arriving within 3 days from leaving Canada is another matter. Within those two extremes are a range of variables that have an impact on shipping costs. They include: parcel size, the courier, duties and taxes, and other lesser known fees.

Outlined below is a summary of the factors determining shipping costs internationally, whether to Australia or elsewhere. And they apply for both business and personal purposes. While arranging shipping is a bothersome and multi-step process, Secureship is here to help you. We have years of experience assisting people reduce their shipping costs and save them time while doing it.

Table of Contents

• Shipping Costs to Australia
• Lesser Known Shipping Costs
• Duties and Taxes
• Conclusion

Shipping Costs to Australia

Understandably, the greater the distance your parcel travels en route to its destination, the more expensive is the charge. And as we all know, Australia is very far from Canada. But, package size and weight also plays an important role in the total cost of shipping. For example, documents shipped in an envelope could arrive in Sydney after several days for $52 CAD; however, a parcel weighing 2.5 kilograms could cost $318 CAD to arrive within the same period.

The other significant variable is travel time. To save money, you could select sea freight, but your parcel may take up to 3 months to arrive at its destination. For a more expedient arrival, say 3 - 12 business days, air freight is the choice, but it costs much more the sooner the recipient receives it.

Lesser Known Shipping Fees

Your shipping costs may include some lesser known fees. Perhaps you require insurance or Saturday delivery. Then there are some fees over which you have no control – extra handling or a fuel surcharge.

Insurance

You may wish to take out insurance against loss and damage to your parcel. Be advised, however, not all goods are insurable, for instance, artwork, breakables, and hazardous materials will not be covered by insurance. But should you take out insurance, it will only be valid if the contents are packaged using the ISTA 3A packaging standard.

Saturday services

Saturday services – parcel pick-up or delivery – are an option, but they incur a fee. Simply foregoing this choice will help you save on shipping costs.

Extra handling

Using a wood, steel, or plastic shipping container instead of a traditional cardboard box will have an extra handling fee applied to it.

Fuel surcharge

The fuel surcharge is calculated as a fixed percentage of the shipping rate, and unfortunately there is little that you can do to avoid this fee.

Residential delivery

An extra charge may apply if the parcel is addressed to a private residence. Using the recipient’s workplace or asking for the parcel to be held at the courier’s outlet will eliminate this charge.

Duties and Taxes

Countries apply duties to many incoming goods for various reasons – to protect national industries or as a government revenue source, and this is true of Australia. So be advised that when shipping from Canada to Australia, most goods will incur a 0 - 5% duty with the exception of beer, wines, and spirits, which enter the country at a much higher rate.

Like Canada, Australia has a GST (a value added tax), which also applies to imports over and above duties. The Australian GST rate is 10%, and is charged regardless of the value of the goods being imported.

Conclusion

The cost of shipping goods from Canada to Australia can be surprisingly expensive even if they are small like a documents-only envelope. Choosing a longer delivery time is one way to lessen shipping expenses.

But as discussed, lesser known fees may add some surprises to your shipping bill. You can avoid some, like not taking out insurance, using Saturday services, and requesting residential delivery. But the fuel surcharge is one of those that cannot be evaded, much like duties and taxes though they are the recipient’s responsibility; nevertheless, they are a consideration when shipping overseas.

To help you with these issues and others, remember Secureship, who can help you reduce your shipping costs and simplify the hassles of preparing your parcel for export.