Small businesses that have relied on American rights shipments wonder if they can survive without it

Friday, small businesses in Canada can no longer send small plans to the United States in franchise – and some online sellers fear that their companies will survive.

The exemption from Minmis, almost centenary, which has enabled goods in recent years of less than $ 800 in the United States at no additional cost, ends as an executive decree of July by President Donald Trump takes effect.

This means that these shipments will now be subject to rights of up to 200 American $ 200, depending on the country of origin, and small Canadian businesses with American customers will be hit with additional costs that eat in their profits.

“We have cut all our shipments in the United States because, at the moment – with the amount of risks and the lack of information on shipping to the United States – we cannot justify it,” said Jess Sternberg, owner of Vancouver Free Label Clothing.

For years, the US government had expressed its concern that minimis expeditions were used to pass fatal opioids in the country because they are not so closely inspected by American customs. He first suspended the exemption for the expeditions of China earlier this year, a change in politics that struck large traders like Shein and Temu.

Canada has its own minimis exemption for goods from the United States and Mexico up to $ 150 for customs duties.

But the end of the United States of minimis for the rest of the world, including Canada, will have an impact on Maman-et-Pop stores “in a disproportionate manner,” according to John Boscariol, commercial expert and partner at McCarthy Tetrault in Toronto.

“Many of them who have relied on these low-value expeditions in the United States as part of their bread and their butter for survival are affected by this, and perhaps should be bankrupt.”

A story of two Canadian companies

Canadians can always send letters of mail and $ 100 gifts to the United States in the United States at no additional cost, and companies that respect the Origin Rules of Canada-UX-MEXICO (CUSMA) will be, in theory, still in rights franchise. To qualify, a product must meet specific criteria, such as having at least a certain percentage carried out in North America.

However, even in these cases, small and medium -sized enterprises are not completely won, said Boscariol, pointing to additional administrative costs for the release of customs – such as brokerage costs for companies that must prove that their shipments are in accordance with.

Sternberg is concerned about these costs. His business, which specializes in slow fashion for women, manufactures its clothes in Canada from a mixture of domestic and imported materials.

However, her Canadian sales have in fact decreased in the past year, which she attributes to economic uncertainty. Meanwhile, its American customers increases, representing almost 45% of all sales since the start of this year.

“Not only is the growth potential is in a way the potential to maintain for us, which is important for small businesses, because it has been a few years,” she said.

With recent changes, there is “certainly a chance” that the company does not survive this period, said Sternberg.

“We are going to move forward by focusing only on our Canadian customers and our international customers, and we hope that things are changing and that we can ship to the United States in the future.”

Meanwhile, another small Canadian business says that it will absorb the cost of additional tasks – because a wave of sales of the Canadian movement Buy gave it the room for maneuver to do so.

“We have made the decision to eat the cost, that is to say-it’s great, it’s huge,” said Jenn Harper, founder of Cheekbone Beauty Cosmetics, an Aboriginal Cosmetics Company based in St. Catharines, Ontario.

According to Harper, around 30 to 35% of its sales come from the United States. But the company has seen an increase in Canadian orders at the top of the year in response to Trump’s commercial escalation and annexation threats.

Additional costs represent an increase of 25 to 30% of shipping costs, known as Harper, and the company may not be able to maintain the long -term absorb.

“We do it on a temporary basis to see how it will really have an impact on our results,” she said. “But we have made this decision because we do not want to scare any of our American customers.”

‘Double -edged sword’

The Minmimis program is a “double -edged sword” for small businesses that will be injured by its loss, according to Bob Kirke, Executive Director of the Canadian Clothing Federation.

“On the one hand, it has enabled many small businesses to strengthen sales, directly to the consumer, in the United States. No paperwork, no functions. It is fantastic,” he said.

“But off we go. And we find ourselves with many companies that should better know these rules of origin, but they have not had it for a few years. And therefore it will be adjustment.”

Look | Why online sellers are worried about losing minimis:

Online sellers fear losing American customers as rights deductible ends

Packages worth less than $ 800 have not been submitted to American rights under a long -standing commercial policy, known as minimis exemption. But President Donald Trump signed a decree indicating that on August 29, he would be eliminated, leaving many companies to find out how to sail in change.

Some shipping companies have told CBC News how they would adapt to the end of Minmis. Fedex still accepts shipments related to the United States, while Canada Post says it works with a third party to perceive and put tasks to American customs.

However, cats of the Chit Shipping Company will only accept packages linked to the United States which have paid rights. And Etsy and Ebay electronic commerce companies say they will not accept shipping label purchases in Canada Post for plans going to the United States

Kirke admitted that some small businesses could stop at the end of the exemption. The other challenge, he added, is that Canadian entrepreneurs will not be able to innovate as much without easy access to the American market.

“This will limit part of this innovation, part of this growth, and it is the vital element (from industry). This is the challenge,” he said.

“It has removed a truly precious tool for emerging companies.”