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Calling all canadian PS'ers!

R

rsmals

Rough_Rock
Joined
Nov 19, 2013
Messages
14
Hi All!

I'm in very northern Canada and having a slew of issues e-ring shopping (see here!....https://www.pricescope.com/communit...-looking-for-honest-objective-opinion.195478/)

The boyfriend issue aside, I'm looking for a Canadian bench that specializes in antique replicas and has antique stones avaliable (Old mine, Old european cuts - cushion or round - sort of thing.) I have tiny fingers and prefer something dainty and petite with a low setting?

Any recommendations for a bench that fits this criteria? I'm looking for a stone in the 0.8- 0.9 range, cut is obviously the most important, I prefer warmer colors so j,k,l,m all work for me!

Will appreciate and check any an all suggestions! :)
 
I don't have recommendations for Northern Canada but if you are looking at all of Canada ... why not try the US as well? Lots more options and better pricing. eBay is also a fantastic option for what you are looking for at a great price.

This is the biggest antique jewelry store in Toronto - http://www.cynthiafindlay.com.. You can also try http://vanrijk.com..

The above two are not benches but sell true antique pieces. Not a lot of people can do great antique replicas but the most popular option on Pricescope is SingleStone. Old World Diamonds also does fantastic work and have a LARGE selection of old cut stones.
 
I'm in Canada and ordered my e-ring from the States earlier this year. The benefits are much better choice in diamonds and significant savings in both diamonds and settings compared to Canadian prices, even considering exchange rates. Shipping is virtually always free when you spend over $500.00. You will have to pay taxes (but only one time) whether you import or buy locally. You can't avoid it! I'm not sure of Yukon tax rate but here in Ontario I paid 13% HST. Diamonds and settings produced in USA are part of Free Trade Agreement and are duty free. The only exception is if you by a product from USA that was manufactured elsewhere, which rarely happens. I think I'm the only CDN poster I've seen on PS who ever had to pay duty on a band I purchased from US but it's because the paperwork showed it was imported to US from another country originally, and the Duty wasn't a lot. So don't worry, it wouldn't happen for an engagement ring . Hope this helps you. There are wonderful people who would love to help you find the perfect diamond and setting once you tell them you're budget and specs. I wish you the best of luck!!!
 
Thanks for all your replies.

I found a ring I would love out of the states and do agree that the selection, value and quality are by far superior than much of what I've found on this side of the border, but worry about a few things. There seems to be alot of confusion about what qualifies for duty when crossing the border, and although the setting (if truly cast and made in the US) won't qualify for duty, the diamond MAY or MAY NOT. NAFTA states that the product must be made in Canada, the United States or Mexico, and while the setting likely is, the diamond provides the grey area.. ugh.

I found a beautiful .90 solitaire that I was looking to purchace from the US for roughly 6000.00 USD, with exchange rates, border "handling fees", insured shipping and taxes (not including the possibility of duty) the total ended up being closer to 8300.00CAD.

I cant be alone in thinking that for .90 carat (albeit a excellent stone) in a fairly simple setting, this is a lot, plus a lot of hastle. So I was hoping for something similar in Canada, without the additional cost/handling associated.. It's proven tricky!

In my area the chance of finding this is nil.. so I am more than willing to work with Canadian Jewelers elsewhere, and have no worries purchasing a stone sight unseen (as long as appropriate pictures/videos are provided!)

Thanks in Advance!
 
I called the border and asked them about both loose diamonds and rings made in the US and you don't pay duty on either. I have also spoken with a few people who have purchased from the US. You only pay taxes. If you need clarification or don't believe me, just call them! It's easy and only took a few minutes, when I called.
 
Thanks for clearing it up Sidius! I had called the border and the officer I spoke with was confident about the setting, but unclear about the diamond, so that helps A LOT! :D
 
You only pay GST/PST to import diamonds and jewelery, I have done it more time than I want to admit :oops: There is a form the retailers completes to attest the goods are from the US.

Even if you pay duty it is not much compared to the savings you make buying from the US.
 
rsmals|1385055222|3560672 said:
Thanks for clearing it up Sidius! I had called the border and the officer I spoke with was confident about the setting, but unclear about the diamond, so that helps A LOT! :D
Click to expand...

If you buy the diamond from a US vendor it should not be a problem.
 
I had the same issue, the first person I talked to at CBSA told me that it doesn't matter where the ring was made if the parts aren't from the States. But she was wrong.

After doing some reading I phoned them again and the agent was very confidence that there is no duty, just GST and depending on where you live, provincial sales tax.
 
I had the same issue, the first person I talked to at CBSA told me that it doesn't matter where the ring was made if the parts aren't from the States. But she was wrong.

After doing some reading I phoned them again and the agent was very confidence that there is no duty, just GST and depending on where you live, provincial sales tax.
 
kmarla|1385041279|3560453 said:
I'm in Canada and ordered my e-ring from the States earlier this year. The benefits are much better choice in diamonds and significant savings in both diamonds and settings compared to Canadian prices, even considering exchange rates. Shipping is virtually always free when you spend over $500.00. You will have to pay taxes (but only one time) whether you import or buy locally. You can't avoid it! I'm not sure of Yukon tax rate but here in Ontario I paid 13% HST. Diamonds and settings produced in USA are part of Free Trade Agreement and are duty free. The only exception is if you by a product from USA that was manufactured elsewhere, which rarely happens. I think I'm the only CDN poster I've seen on PS who ever had to pay duty on a band I purchased from US but it's because the paperwork showed it was imported to US from another country originally, and the Duty wasn't a lot. So don't worry, it wouldn't happen for an engagement ring . Hope this helps you. There are wonderful people who would love to help you find the perfect diamond and setting once you tell them you're budget and specs. I wish you the best of luck!!!
Click to expand...

Sidius- there are rare exceptions where you might pay duty as I posted above, but this was a separate wedding band and the vendor went way overboard stating the provenance of the ring on the forms :(sad
OP- I'm not sure which vendor you're referring to, but I've imported several jewelry items this year and never paid shipping/handling fees, insurance etc. If you need to return the ring though, you may need to pay those costs, but that could happen with a Canadian retailer as well. Original shipping costs are usually covered by the vendor if the value is over $500.00. Many of the more well known vendors will provide you all costs prior to shipping, including taxes and any duty (highly highly unlikely!!!) so you wouldn't have any surprises. So your $6000.00 ring should only be adjusted for exchange rate and then tax added.....no other costs. Hope this helps :)
 
If it helps ease your mind, I wasn't charged any duties shipping a completed ring from WF (in Texas) to Canada 3 months ago. It was actually a lot simpler than I thought it would be, I didn't even have to complete any forms with Fedex.

When it arrived at the border, Fedex called me saying it was at customs, I gave a CC number to pay my provincial taxes (something I would've had to pay if bought locally anyways) on the value converted to Canadian currency, send them an email saying I authorize them to clear the package on my behalf, and then it arrived a day later.
 
hawk25|1385063195|3560765 said:
If it helps ease your mind, I wasn't charged any duties shipping a completed ring from WF (in Texas) to Canada 3 months ago. It was actually a lot simpler than I thought it would be, I didn't even have to complete any forms with Fedex.

When it arrived at the border, Fedex called me saying it was at customs, I gave a CC number to pay my provincial taxes (something I would've had to pay if bought locally anyways) on the value converted to Canadian currency, send them an email saying I authorize them to clear the package on my behalf, and then it arrived a day later.
Click to expand...
Just a question - did you have to pay brokerage fees to Fedex to handle the customs?
 
canadagirl|1385221937|3561676 said:
Just a question - did you have to pay brokerage fees to Fedex to handle the customs?
Click to expand...

I can't recall the exact amount, but they charged a flat fee of around $10, so not much at all.
 
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