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Home > Guides > Shipping a package to Canada from the US
Plainly up front: LetterAgent shipping labels cannot cover a package sent from the US to Canada, since LetterAgent labels are Canada-only Canada Post Xpresspost. To ship from the US to Canada, use a US carrier with cross-border service, fill out a customs form honestly, and warn the recipient that duties and taxes may be due on delivery.
USPS, UPS, FedEx, and DHL all carry parcels into Canada, and the right choice depends on what matters most: cost, speed, or predictable fees. USPS hands the parcel to Canada Post at the border, which keeps the price lower and usually means simpler last-mile delivery, including to rural addresses. UPS and FedEx run their own cross-border networks with faster transit, but they add brokerage fees for clearing customs, and those fees can surprise a recipient who expected to pay only tax. Ask the carrier for the total landed cost, including brokerage, before you choose, and tell the recipient what to expect.
For a small, light parcel, a postal service is usually the cheapest route. For a heavy, urgent, or high-value parcel, a courier's tracking and handling may be worth the extra cost. Either way, buy tracking: a cross-border parcel passes through more hands than a domestic one, and tracking is how you find out where it stalled.
| Decision | What to weigh |
|---|---|
| Postal service (USPS to Canada Post) | Lower cost, simpler rural delivery, slower transit |
| Courier (UPS, FedEx, DHL) | Faster, stronger tracking, brokerage fees on top of duties and taxes |
| Brokerage | Couriers charge for customs clearance; postal clearance is usually cheaper |
| Delivery address | Canada Post delivers to PO boxes and rural routes; couriers may not |
Every parcel crossing the border needs a customs declaration: a description of the contents, the quantity, the value, and the country of origin. Describe items plainly and specifically, not as "gift" or "merchandise": "cotton T-shirt" beats "clothing", and "used paperback book" beats "book". The value must be the real value, even for a gift, since customs uses it to assess duties and taxes. A false low value can get the parcel seized, and it voids your insurance if the parcel is lost, because the claim is measured against the declared value.
For commercial shipments, you may also need a commercial invoice with the harmonized tariff code for each item. That code tells customs what duty rate applies, and the wrong code can mean the wrong charge or a hold. Small personal shipments usually travel on the carrier's short customs form, which asks for the same facts in simpler form.
Canada charges GST or HST on most imported goods, plus duty where it applies, and the recipient usually pays these on delivery unless you prepay them. Duty depends on what the item is and where it was made, not just where you bought it: a product made outside North America can attract duty even if you bought it in the US. Gifts have a small exemption, but it is narrow, and anything above it is taxed on the full value, not just the amount over the limit.
Tell the recipient before you ship. The most common cross-border frustration is a parcel held for payment the recipient never expected, which then gets returned after sitting unclaimed. A short message with the tracking number and a note that duties and taxes may be due prevents most of that.
Some items are restricted or banned outright: firearms without permits, certain foods, plants, and seeds, and some health products. Others, like alcohol or tobacco, face heavy duties and special rules. Check the carrier's restricted list and the Canada Border Services Agency guidance for your item before packing, since a prohibited item discovered at the border can be seized rather than returned.
Also note the address format. Canadian addresses use a six-character postal code in a letter-number-letter, number-letter-number pattern, and the province abbreviation matters for tax: the tax rate depends on the destination province. Get the postal code right, since a wrong code can send the parcel to the wrong sorting plant and add days.
Ready to ship it? Get a shipping label with LetterAgent: describe it to your AI assistant, approve the exact quoted price, and get your label.
LetterAgent is a working name. Prices include print, postage, and our service fee. US prices in USD, Canadian prices in CAD (Canadian prices exclude applicable sales tax, added at checkout). Currently in private testing.
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