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If you’re currently selling your products on Amazon in the U.S. Marketplace, and you’re looking to expand your customer-base, why not look just to the great white north? In an earlier post I wrote about the overall opportunity for Amazon Sellers in Canada, and it can be a relatively simple way to reach new customers.
If you are already as a professional seller in the U.S., you can automatically access the Canada marketplace through a North American Unified Account (NAUA). Let’s take a look at an NAUA account, address its value, a few limitations and learn about requirements for importing your products into Canada.
What is NAUA and what can it do for me?
With a North American Unified Account you can create and manage product offerings, tailor your listings, and manage pricing and inventory across the U.S. and Canada marketplaces from a single interface.
Related: planning to expand your business to international markets using Amazon? We have just the right thing for you. Click here to receive access to our dedicated country guides that will teach you how to start selling on Amazon Canada, Germany, UK and Mexico.
Will my existing product listings from Amazon.com show up automatically in the Canada Marketplace?
Unfortunately, no. You do have to create a new listing in the new marketplace. The benefit is that you can manage your accounts (inventory, listings, etc) all from one interface. All you need to do is select the marketplace (amazon.com, amazon.ca) from the drop-down choices in the top right corner of your Seller Central homepage.
On the plus side, this means you can tailor your product listings for each market. You can have unique listing pages in each marketplace for the same SKU.
Do I need a local bank account in each marketplace country?
The short answer to this question is, “No.” If you’re already an Amazon.com seller in the U.S. you can continue using your current bank account.
If you’re a new seller, looking to sell in any of the three North American marketplaces, you can use your local back and receive payment in your local currency. See our blog series on how to sell on Amazon as an International Seller for more info here.
Can I tailor my account information for each marketplace?
The information you include in your initial marketplace registration is your default information. However, you do have the ability to customize your account information to each marketplace within your NAUA.
Can I maintain inventory in the USA Fulfillment Centers and
fulfill orders in Canada?
No, even if you prefer to do FBA over Merchant-fulfilled. The way the NAUA is organized, sellers cannot sell across marketplaces. Instead, they must house inventory in fulfillment centers in each marketplace where they are selling. If you are expanding to the Amazon.ca marketplace, this would mean importing inventory to Canada. See below for details about importing your products into Canada.
How do I manage my FBA inventory in each the Canada marketplace?
Since the U.S. and Canada fulfillment centers are not connected, FBA sellers will manage their inventory in each marketplace, separate from the other.
Can I self-fulfill orders to Canada?
If you fulfill your own orders, you can choose one of two ways to manage your inventory:
- You can manage your inventory in a combined manner, using the same SKU across the marketplaces. This would mean your available inventory would be the combined amount between the two marketplaces.
- You can differentiate your marketplace inventories by using unique SKUs in each, enabling you to manage your inventories separate from each other.
What are the fees associated with the NAUA?
You will pay one monthly Professional Selling Plan fee. That fee amount will be determined by the marketplace where you initially registered as a seller.
Transaction fees and inventory storage fees are determined by the marketplace. Meaning, you will pay one set of FBA fees for selling products in the U.S. and a separate set of fees for selling in Canada. Read on for fees associated with the Canada marketplace.
What are the FBA fees in Canada?
Many of the FBA fee categories are the same as the U.S. FBA fee categories. The breakdown for standard sized, non-media products, is as follows:
- Pick & Pack: CDN$1.55
- Weight Handling: CDN$3.75 for the first 500g + $0.37 for each additional 500g
- Inventory Storage: January-September CDN$16, October-December CDN$23
*Note: this post was written in February 10, 2016, and a few things have changed since then! Find the updated fees right here.
What are some of the fees and taxes I have to pay in order
to import my products into Canada?
If you plan to participate in Amazon.ca, selling your products in Canada, and storing them in a fulfillment center, you are required to pay:
- Destination duties
- Taxes--There is a 5% tax on most imported products. If your product also requires a duty, the duty is added to your product value and then tax is applied. If you collect tax on your product sales on Amazon.ca, you must pay the amount over and above your original payment. Most Amazon.ca sellers report and pay the tax on imports annually.
- Customs clearance fees
- You or your designated agent must act as Importer of Record and be reported as such on customs declarations, not Amazon.
*Note: this post was written in February 10, 2016, and a few things have changed since then! Find the updated taxes right here.
How do I start importing products into Canada to sell on Amazon?
1. Become a Non-Resident Importer (NRI). An NRI is a foreign company importing their products and goods into Canada, using their name and business number (BN).
2. Obtain a BN. In order to obtain you can do any of the following:
- Call 1-800-959-5525
- Register online at http://www.businessregistration.gc.ca/
- Complete form RC1, which requests a BN. This form can then be mailed into a tax center and you will then obtain your BN once the form is received and reviewed. Form RC1 can be found at http://www.businessregistration.gc.ca/. A list of tax centers and their locations can be found at http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/taxcentre/
3. Provide your import/export account information on the customs documents for all shipments into Canada.
4. If you are collecting tax on product sales, you must also register for the Goods and Service Tax (GST) or Harmonized Sales Tax (HST).
5. This can happen once you receive your importer number and generally take 6-8 weeks to acquire once your form is submitted.
In Summary...
While there are a few steps required to get your paperwork in order and get started selling on Amazon FBA in Canada, it can be a worthwhile activity that can add 5% - 10% in revenue in a market with close proximity & consumer behavior as the USA.
We work with US-based and international brands to help them launch their products on Amazon.com as well as other international Amazon marketplaces such as Canada. If you want to get started selling your brand’s products on Amazon FBA but need some guidance, schedule a 20-minute consultation with our team to learn more about our 3-month Amazon Launch Program.
