You’re correct of course. This is the HST (Harmonized Sales Tax, since I’m also in Ontario) which is basically what we call it instead of VAT.
I didn’t really realize I’d have to pay this when I originally ordered, but on reflection I should have known this. Most of my online purchasing lately is unfortunately Amazon, which through their Canadian site forces the sellers to register and collect and remit the taxes at time of sale. It’s been ages since I bought something where I had to pay the tax on delivery.
I know you’ve since revised your opinion, but I’d like to point out the following since that hasn’t been brought up yet: whether you pay import duties and how much is not based on whether the item was a purchase/gift/reward/…, nor what the invoice says. It’s based solely on the value of the object. If someone from the US sends me a $1000 phone for my birthday, I’m still presented with the invoice for the import duties.
Now, most of the time, the invoice is the number it’s based on, but if I receive a brand new iMac from the States, and the invoice lists an unrealistical value of “$150”, customs will dismiss that and assess the value themselves. What they tax you will then be based on the more reasonable number they come up with.
Which renders this document moot, although it’s nice to see them spell it out explicitly.
Probably not, because the price is reasonable for a smartphone. Customs doesn’t look up the price of every item entering the country, and prices can vary from shop to shop anyway. It’s only when the price is suspiciously low that they’ll start to investigage.
Remember, Customs is just people like you and me. It’s not staffed by folks who have an intimate knowledge of every product manufactured by every company on this planet. They’re also employed by the government, so odds of them going above and beyond the call of duty, when they already can’t handle the current amount of items entering the country, I’d estimate as pretty slim.
Even if there has been no change to the advertised price, due to the long lead time, there has been significant currency movement. So that is an additional wildcard.
I think it boils down to @jrial 's comment above … if the price looks suspiciously low, the government (agency / employee) will look into it in more detail. Otherwise they will calculate based on the declared value and move on to the next item.
