Brokerage fees in Canada: UPS vs FedEx vs DHL vs Canada Post

The fee comes from the carrier, not from CBSA

When a parcel from China owes duty or GST, the carrier pays the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) first and then bills you for the tax plus its own fee. CBSA calls couriers' and brokers' fees a private transaction it does not control, and it does not require consumers to use a broker. Each carrier publishes its fee, and on a small order the four below differ by C$8.05.

Sources, read 2026-10-20: Canada Post: Customs duty, taxes, and exemptions; CBSA Memorandum D5-1-1; UPS 2026 Canada Rate and Service Guide, Daily Rates, p. 115; FedEx Canada: Rate changes 2026; FedEx Canada: Customs services; DHL Express Canada: Customs services. Purolator: Its import brokerage page explains the process but publishes no fee figures, so it is not compared here.

A C$100 order, four bills

A C$100 box of cotton T-shirts (6109.10.00, 18% duty) owes C$18.00 in duty and C$5.90 in GST, C$23.90 in tax. At the door, Canada Post asks C$33.85, UPS and FedEx C$35.90 each and DHL C$41.90. Every fee on this order is the carrier's minimum charge, worth 55% to 100% of the duty.

The percentages take over on larger shipments. A C$5,000 shipment of the same T-shirts owes C$1,195 in duty and GST; the courier fee becomes C$44.22 at UPS, C$37.05 at FedEx and C$32.86 at DHL. The duty calculator adds the carrier you pick to the duty and GST and shows the total paid at the door. Parcels to Ontario and the Atlantic provinces pay HST instead of the 5% GST.

Parcels of C$20 or less owe nothing

Mail and courier shipments from China valued at C$20 or less enter free of duty and tax, so no carrier fee applies. By mail, alcohol and tobacco are excluded, and an order split into several parcels does not qualify. The C$40 and C$150 courier thresholds apply only to goods from the United States and Mexico. UPS charges C$7.00 to prepare an entry for regulated goods under C$20, because those need a formal entry.

How to self-clear a courier parcel

1. Tell the courier before delivery that you will clear the parcel yourself, and refuse delivery if it arrives with a bill.
2. Take the tracking number, the seller's invoice and photo ID to a CBSA office that offers public accounting. Someone acting for you brings a letter of authorization.
3. Pay the duty and tax there and keep the official receipt.
4. Give the receipt to the courier, which then releases the parcel.

Self-clearing replaces the carrier's brokerage. It pays off when the fee is large and a CBSA office is near; a C$12 minimum rarely justifies the trip. Canada Post mail is assessed by CBSA itself, so there is no broker to replace: the C$9.95 handling fee stays.

Small savings on the same bill

UPS adds C$6.00 when you pay duty and tax at the door; paying online through UPS My Choice before delivery avoids it. FedEx adds C$5.60 and UPS C$6.00 for each tariff line beyond the third, so an invoice with three tariff lines or fewer avoids it. Using your own broker with DHL costs C$15.00 when DHL passes the paperwork to the broker and still delivers, or C$60.00 when the broker takes over clearance and delivery.

A wrong charge goes to CBSA, the fee to the carrier

CBSA refunds duty and tax, not carrier fees. If the value or the tariff code on the bill is wrong, refuse the item or pay it and file Form B2G; the steps and deadlines are in duty on Temu, AliExpress and Shein orders. Canada Post's C$9.95 is refunded only when the item should have owed nothing at all. A disputed brokerage fee is settled with the carrier.

For commercial shipments, compare these fees with a licensed broker in customs broker cost in Canada.