Shipping Diamond into Canada

[breanne]

Has anyone purchased a stone online without a diamond broker in Canada? I'm just wondering when I'm ready to purchase my next stone if I should still use one as there may be expenses/troubles that I have not considered. I have read people using Ritani for example, then they have the stone sent to one of their stores for viewing, I don't think we have that option here from most of the diamond sites.

Also, how does the broker usually get paid? I was provided a total price, but I don't know if I paid for their services, or if it was the supplier of the stone that compensated them.

Thank you!
Breanne

 

[PowPow]

My understanding is broker source the diamond from diamond vendors at a slightly cheaper price (which may not even be that much cheaper these days due to high cost in everything), but charge more because of both the service they provide (consultation/diamond choosing etc.) and using the current market price of diamond. I personally would rather pick my own stone from an online retailer than giving it to someone else to do it, but in my case I understood what I was looking for and my stone is what I expected.

 

[breanne]

My understanding is broker source the diamond from diamond vendors at a slightly cheaper price (which may not even be that much cheaper these days due to high cost in everything), but charge more because of both the service they provide (consultation/diamond choosing etc.) and using the current market price of diamond. I personally would rather pick my own stone from an online retailer than giving it to someone else to do it, but in my case I understood what I was looking for and my stone is what I expected.

I hope to do the same thing, but being in Canada, there may be more hurtles that I’m not aware of when shipping and potentially returning the stone. I’m just wondering if anyone has gone through this process, and what that looks like from all angles/shipping/fees etc.

 

[PowPow]

I hope to do the same thing, but being in Canada, there may be more hurtles that I’m not aware of when shipping and potentially returning the stone. I’m just wondering if anyone has gone through this process, and what that looks like from all angles/shipping/fees etc.

Depends on each retailer so it differs a bit, but I bought mine from blue nile and they offer free-shipping and free 30-day return (for resizing vancouver has a location to do this so no cross-border shipping needed, and first year is free, I did not have to use this service so no comment on how well this is handled).

https://www.bluenile.com/ca/policies/returns

You kinda have to check each online store policy, no easy way around unfortunately as each store has their own ways of doing things. I talked to 5+ different retailers and decided blue nile is the right one for me, mostly due to the eye-clean check they perform at the vendor level and the free return policy.

 

[Wink]

When independent jewelers ship diamonds to other countries, many of us will use FedEx to do so.We carry supplemental insurance so your diamond is protected, and FedEx will act as a broker and collect any duties or taxes due at the time of import into the country.

If you return the diamond, you will need to contact your jeweler to determine what paperwork is necessary to allow for the return of your taxes. Canada is fairly easy to work with, but some countries are never going to turn loose of the monies collected without protracted effort on the part of the client returning the diamond.

If you are doing an upgrade, it is important to have the return of the diamond you are upgrading go through proper channels, as then you will only be charged the duties on the difference of the value between the old and the new diamond. (This is the same as Sales Taxes in most states.)

The real point here is, you need to discuss this with the jeweler you are working with. The jeweler will know, or can find out, the rules and the paperwork that need to be filed with each country. If you try to circumvent the taxes and get caught, the whole shipment will be confiscated in many countries, and you will NOT get it back.