International Shipping Fees

[decadeslostvintage]

I recently was charged an international shipping fee for something that is being shipped to Delaware because the buyers address is in China. China is on my excluded shipping locations. I also use eBay International Shipping program to ship to locations that I have not excluded and don't get charged international fees. Why is that? And really what is the point of excluding shipping locations if ebay allows buyers from those location to use US shipping addresses? Seems redundant to me.

[mam98031 · Accepted solution]

That is how the fee works.  If the buyer's Registered address is in another country, then if you ship to that buyer, even to a US address, you will be charged a 1.65% international fee.  This fee has been around for decades.  it is NOT new.  PayPal charged it to us before Ebay became our money processor.

Now if you set your account to use EIS and if you have an international sale that is shipped internationally, the program forgives the international fee of 1.65%.  Along with some other great benefits.

But that doesn't help when you ship to a Freight Forwarder.

International fee

If your registered address is in the US and you offer eBay International Shipping for your eligible listings, you won't be charged an international fee when your eligible item sells.

If you're not using eBay International Shipping to ship your item, we charge an international fee if either:

• The delivery address for the item (entered by the buyer during checkout) is outside the US, or
• The buyer's registered address is outside the US (regardless of the delivery address for the item)

This fee is calculated as 1.65% of the total amount of the sale and is automatically deducted from your sales.

If your registered address is not in the US, please refer to the fee page for your country or region of residence for your international fee information.

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/fees-credits-invoices/selling-fees?id=4822

[luckythewinner]

I also use eBay International Shipping program to ship to locations that I have not excluded and don't get charged international fees.

You don't get charged international fees for shipments that go through the EIS. But your shipment to a US address is not going through the EIS, so obviously the EIS exclusion does not apply.

China is on my excluded shipping locations.

You shipment is going to a USA address, not to China, so your China exclusion does not apply.

I recently was charged an international shipping fee for something that is being shipped to Delaware because the buyers address is in China.

The international fee also applies to transactions where the buyer's registered location is outside the USA, regardless of the shipping destination.

And really what is the point of excluding shipping locations if ebay allows buyers from those location to use US shipping addresses?

Because many sellers do not want to put the cost of international shipping (and international return shipping) at risk. When a buyer overseas uses a re-shipper, the seller does not have to pay (or refund) the international shipping cost.

[ittybitnot]

@decadeslostvintage 

You are shipping to a Freight Forwarder.  Even though it is a US address, the buyer's payment source is not US based, thus the extra charge to you. 

[monroe67]

"Even though it is a US address, the buyer's payment source is not US based, thus the extra charge to you."

                                                                                                           FALSE.  

Please see Response 2 above, from mam98031, which includes the full text of eBay's International Fee policy.

There is nothing  in that policy that mentions the buyer's payment source.  

The word "address", however, appears five times.  

The buyer's payment source has no effect on the International Fee that eBay charges to sellers.  

[mam98031]

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@ittybitnot wrote:

@decadeslostvintage 

You are shipping to a Freight Forwarder.  Even though it is a US address, the buyer's payment source is not US based, thus the extra charge to you. 

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Where the buyer's payment source is based has nothing to do with this.  It is simply and ONLY the country in which the account was registered in.  Nothing else determines when this fee is charged.

As per the policy:

If you're not using eBay International Shipping to ship your item, we charge an international fee if either:

• The delivery address for the item (entered by the buyer during checkout) is outside the US, or
• The buyer's registered address is outside the US (regardless of the delivery address for the item)

[decadeslostvintage]

I'm sorry I really should have rephrased my original post because I do know what ebay's avaricious shipping policies are. I've been selling for a long time so I'm aware (side note- I forgot how click and paste happy people can get on here).

Ok here's the thing. I personally don't want to ship anything to China, ever. Just like I don't want to ship to Russia, N Korea or Iran. This is because these countries have terrible governments that have committed too many to count human rights violations. That's what the Excluded Shipping Location page is for, right? If not, what is it for and why even have it?  There is no explanation on that page to click and paste btw. Just the banner at top that basically says- Hey guys, we don't care what these countries do, we just want their money. We are still good guys though so we will waive those shipping fees so you don't have to feel guilty. But if you don't allow us to ship to countries that you have excluded then we will make you pay. 

 Also If someone can give me a reasonable answer, without clicking and pasting something, why I should pay an international shipping fee if it is being shipped to a US address? And saying that it's going to a freight forwarder is not a reasonable answer. The address I ship to is the final address. Where it goes after that is not my concern since I was not told or contacted by the buyer or anyone regarding any of this. And saying the buyer's address is in China also not good because again I'm not shipping outside of the US. 

For the record I'm not trying to avoid fees or get around the system, I just want to know why. Not likely to happen,I know, but if you don't ask then you don't get.

[mam98031]

@decadeslostvintage 

"...I do know what ebay's avaricious shipping policies are."  This is a silly statement for a couple reasons.  Ebay is a for profit corporation.  They did not create this site to provide services for free so that others could make money.  If you consider Ebay greedy or avaricious [which means greed], then every single seller on this site is the same as they too are all here to make a profit.  But for some reason, some sellers feel more entitled to get certain services for free.  I'm not sure why they feel a for profit company should donate their services to them.  To me it doesn't make sense, but to others I'm confident it does.

I'll get off my soapbox now.

You can block your account from shipping to whatever countries you want to.  Ebay even helps a bit with that as they are not allowing shipping to certain countries as well.  But you can't stop a buyer registered in another country purchasing something and having it shipped to a US address.  You have no way to block that from happening.  We have never had a way to do that.

"...can give me a reasonable answer, without clicking and pasting something, why I should pay an international shipping fee if it is being shipped to a US address?"  I gave you the answer to this, you just don't like the answer, there is a difference.  IDK if you don't like pasting info into a post, it saves me time and my time has value too.  I'm not going to simply retype all that info because it is how you prefer to get your information.  The info would be the same.  

" saying that it's going to a freight forwarder is not a reasonable answer."  IDK why?  It is the truth.  Would you prefer we lie to you or just tell you something you want to hear?  How would that help anything?

"The address I ship to is the final address."  For you yes.  For the package, maybe not.  You have no control over what happens to a package once it has been delivered to the address you shipped to.

I realize you just want to know why, but you also aren't accepting the explanation.  There really isn't much any of us can help you with on this one.  You have been given the information.  It is now up to you as to what you want to do with the info.  

After all these years, why is this now an issue for you.  It has been this way for a whole lot of years.  Even when PayPal was our money processor, they charged us the fee for processing the payment.

[decadeslostvintage]

Also can anyone tell me what this international fee covers? I mean there has to be a legitimate reason for them to charge a fee even though they have no part in the actual shipping of the item.

[mam98031]

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@decadeslostvintage wrote:

Also can anyone tell me what this international fee covers? I mean there has to be a legitimate reason for them to charge a fee even though they have no part in the actual shipping of the item.

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Ebay is the Money Processor.  Prior to Ebay being our money processor, Paypal was and they collected the SAME fee.  

You've been selling for a very long time.  Why is this suddenly an issue for you?  You've been paying it for 15+ years.

Oh and Ebay or any site like Ebay has the right to set their fees in whatever way they see fit.  They don't need to have a "legitimate reason" that meets your approval.

[decadeslostvintage]

Do not put words in my mouth. I said avaricious shipping policies and never said anything about Ebay as a whole. And I even stated that I was not trying to get around fees but wanted answers. So yeah, get off that soapbox. 

I understand copying someone else's words and not using your own saves you time. so you got me there.

As to why I didn't say anything before. I just recently started allowing international shipping so that's why I'm asking now. This is the 2nd time in a month that this situation has happened. Never had to deal with it before.

And furthermore you're not even answering any of the questions I asked. Just taking bits of what I said and making snide remarks. You are not being helpful and you've have not given me any real explanation, your just recycling the information that I had questions about.

[mam98031]

I didn't put "words in your mouth".  Avaricious means greed.  That is the definition of the word.

Avaricious = having or showing an extreme greed for wealth or material gain. Per the Oxford Dictionary.

Sellers have never been able to block International buyers with US ship to addresses.  So this has likely been an issue before, but you just didn't catch it.  This is NOT shipping internationally and has nothing to do with international shipping rules.

I admit I was a bit snarky with you and I should not have been.  For that I apologize.  I have answered  your questions, it is just you don't like the answers.  I have repeated information previously provided because that is the answer.

[monroe67]

"Also If someone can give me a reasonable answer, without clicking and pasting something, why I should pay an international shipping fee if it is being shipped to a US address? And saying that it's going to a freight forwarder is not a reasonable answer. The address I ship to is the final address. Where it goes after that is not my concern since I was not told or contacted by the buyer or anyone regarding any of this. And saying the buyer's address is in China also not good because again I'm not shipping outside of the US."

I'll take a stab at that question.  

eBay charges an International Fee.  You've added the word "shipping" erroneously.  As has been explained to you, it is based on the delivery address and eBay-registration address/nation of the buyer.  

Simply -- eBay has decided to charge what they have named an International Fee,

and they have published their explanation of when and how they (eBay) will charge that International Fee to sellers,

and that is based on the eBay-registration address (nation) and shipping address of the eBay buyer.  

"And saying that it's going to a freight forwarder is not a reasonable answer.

(Ooops, that was a cut-and-paste.  Forgive me?)

            The fact that you, a US-based eBay seller, are given the address of a freight forwarder, a business, for a non-US buyer has nothing to do with application of the International Fee.  The key is the address. 

            Non-US buyers could choose to have their purchases mailed to a friend or relative who lives in the US.  That friend/ relative might send the item on to the person in China, Australia, Italy, wherever.  Again, as you point out, the address you ship to is the final address and it is not your concern what happens after it arrives at that US shipping address.  

[mam98031]

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@monroe67 wrote:

"Also If someone can give me a reasonable answer, without clicking and pasting something, why I should pay an international shipping fee if it is being shipped to a US address? And saying that it's going to a freight forwarder is not a reasonable answer. The address I ship to is the final address. Where it goes after that is not my concern since I was not told or contacted by the buyer or anyone regarding any of this. And saying the buyer's address is in China also not good because again I'm not shipping outside of the US."

I'll take a stab at that question.  

eBay charges an International Fee.  You've added the word "shipping" erroneously.  As has been explained to you, it is based on the delivery address and eBay-registration address/nation of the buyer.  

Simply -- eBay has decided to charge what they have named an International Fee,

and they have published their explanation of when and how they (eBay) will charge that International Fee to sellers,

and that is based on the eBay-registration address (nation) and shipping address of the eBay buyer.  

"And saying that it's going to a freight forwarder is not a reasonable answer.

(Ooops, that was a cut-and-paste.  Forgive me?)

            The fact that you, a US-based eBay seller, are given the address of a freight forwarder, a business, for a non-US buyer has nothing to do with application of the International Fee.  The key is the address. 

            Non-US buyers could choose to have their purchases mailed to a friend or relative who lives in the US.  That friend/ relative might send the item on to the person in China, Australia, Italy, wherever.  Again, as you point out, the address you ship to is the final address and it is not your concern what happens after it arrives at that US shipping address.  

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We paid this fee, when PayPal was our money processor too.  This is NOT a new fee because Ebay is now our money processor.

The delivery address has nothing to do with IF this fee is charged.  It is solely based on the Registration address of the account.  I did post the Ebay policy in an earlier post.

[decadeslostvintage]

 So the fee is for processing the payment? Isn't that included in the final sale fee? And honestly I have shipped to freight forwarders in the past but I have never been charged an international fee. 

I really don't like the fact that no matter how strongly I feel about not selling/shipping to certain countries eBay is going to allow it to happen anyway...and then charge me a fee. What a one sided world we live in. Anyway thank you for input.