• Welcome to Photrio!
    Registration is fast and free. Join today to unlock search, see fewer ads, and access all forum features.
    Click here to sign up

I'm Choked! OverPaying for Duty + taxes + broker fees on Lens Shipped From Japan

ivan35mm

Subscriber
Joined
Mar 25, 2025
Messages
101
Location
Madrid, Spain
Format
Analog
My experience with Japanese sellers has always been positive. I find that they tend to underrate items.

exactly... when ordering from a Japanese proxy site like Buyee (Mercari / Yahoo Auctions), I've purchase items that were sold as "poor" / "for parts" / "damaged", only to arrive to me in functional / near mint condition lol

When it comes to eBay sellers located in Japan, I would only buy from 100% feedback sellers.
 

Andrew O'Neill

Moderator
Moderator
Allowing Ads
Joined
Jan 16, 2004
Messages
12,871
Location
Coquitlam,BC Canada
Format
Multi Format

xya

Member
Joined
Jun 13, 2010
Messages
1,062
Location
Calais, Köln
Format
Multi Format
How many of these do you have now
During the last 5 years I had none. Cameras rated excellent and many ++++ being crap and junk. So I stopped buying from Japan completely. And yes, fungus was often another problem.

In my opinion there has been a change indeed. I have bought quite some stuff years ago and those items were better than described. But these days are over and gone....
 

GregY

Member
Allowing Ads
Joined
Apr 12, 2005
Messages
3,980
Location
Alberta
Format
Large Format

I haven't had that experience. Quite a number of purchases in the last several years.....Plaubel, Nikon, Pentax, Leica, .....and lenses and hard-to-find filters (40mm for Canon LTM) & Perkeo.....no issues
 

Sirius Glass

Subscriber
Joined
Jan 18, 2007
Messages
50,814
Location
Southern California
Format
Multi Format

Very painful at best. I think that tariffs are most if not all of the added cost.
 

MattKing

Moderator
Moderator
Joined
Apr 24, 2005
Messages
55,062
Location
Delta, BC Canada
Format
Medium Format

Andrew O'Neill

Moderator
Moderator
Allowing Ads
Joined
Jan 16, 2004
Messages
12,871
Location
Coquitlam,BC Canada
Format
Multi Format
Gorgeous! I saw this listing. Are you in USA and were you charged extra tariff or processing fee? Thanks

No such tariffs here. Greg is from Alberta (noted under his avatar), which is a province in Canada.
 

loccdor

Member
Joined
Jan 12, 2024
Messages
2,548
Location
USA
Format
Multi Format
I have another lens from Japan arriving today. This time, they charged $150 for shipping, but it's all-inclusive of tariffs/fees. Tariffs/fees would have been almost $100 of that, so shipping price was not bad for a big 6 pound box halfway around the world.
 

David R Williams

Subscriber
Joined
Dec 6, 2017
Messages
128
Location
Calgary, Alberta
Format
Multi Format
I've never had anything but stellar experiences with sellers from Japan.

I'm quite selective about the products that I've purchased, but with most such sellers providing:
  • excellent photographs of the actual item up for sale,
  • very good descriptions of the mechanical/optical/cosmetic characteristics,
  • free returns by many,
  • really great packaging,
  • fast dispatch,
  • faster delivery to Canada from Japan than I can ever get for anything from elsewhere (including within Canada!),
  • never having received any product that I consider to not have fully met the condition of the item as described, and
  • receiving the occasional origami and almost always, a personal note of thanks within the package...
...my default location settings for used equipment search is Japan.
 

loccdor

Member
Joined
Jan 12, 2024
Messages
2,548
Location
USA
Format
Multi Format
I'm absolutely astonished by how quickly mail can get delivered these days. 28 hour delivery from Japan.

 
OP
OP

braxus

Member
Allowing Ads
Joined
Oct 19, 2005
Messages
1,830
Location
Fraser Valley B.C. Canada
Format
Hybrid
Granted that one time I had a bad duty charge was this thread. I just bought a $100 dollar lens from Japan, and the customs charge on it was $32. 32 Canadian for a $100 US dollar item. I wish couriers werent the only option from Japan, as they charge at least 20 dollars just to import an item.