Perhaps down the road a generation or two, 2025 will be known as the Year of the U.S. Tariff Wars. It is global and has been in everybody’s face since shortly after the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 47th president of the United States. It is a neverending horror story, one full of whiplash and misunderstanding.
It did not really impact Raven & Gryphon Fine Books until August 28, 2025. I went into the local Canada Post location to send off a book and one of the clerks came up to me with a print-out stating that as of the next day the rules have changed regarding how books are sent into the United States. The somewhat garbled message was that all packages sent into the U.S. were subject to 35% tariffs starting the next day. The news channels were full of Canada getting hammered again, and so on.
Shame on everyone really. This was not a surprise, and it wasn’t just a Canada thing. Months earlier the U.S. stated that on August 29, 2025, the U.S. would be eliminating its de minimis exemption for commercial shipments, meaning goods valued at $800 or less are no longer guaranteed to be duty and tax-free when entering the U.S.. There was no implementation of an across the board 35% tariff, rather that moving forward all goods would be charged at the prevailing tariff/duty rates.
BOOK TARIFFS
That was a big sigh of relief for book dealers, like us. I remember going on-line before the change and the regulations stated that books were exempt up to $800 and thereafter a 5% duty applied. Apparently not. I called a book dealer friend who regularly sends pricy books into the U.S., and he stated that to his knowledge, no duty has ever been charged on his shipments. So, to my knowledge as of right now, our used books attract no tariffs or duties when sent into the United States. But the disclosure requirements have changed. Now all goods being shipped into the U.S. must declare the appropriate H S Code. H S codes are a standardized, six-digit numerical system developed by the World Customs Organization (WCO) to classify traded products internationally. They are used by customs authorities worldwide to identify products for assessing duties, collecting statistics, and managing trade. I dutifully note that the contents of this package have the H S Code of 4910.10 – printed books. You must also declare the country of origin. This could get tricky for us, since the declaration relates to where manufactured. What do I say when I am shipping a book that was published and printed in the U.S. into the U.S. Or, which is very common, published in the U.S. but printed in China.
Shipping by FedEx is basically the same as it always was, just declare the H S Code and country of manufacture. But not the same at Canada Post. Nope, they contracted with a company called Zonos to handle the U.S. customs work. So, book dealers have to sign up with Zonos, send them the shipment detail and they will give you a verification number for Canada Post. A process that makes sense if duties are applicable. Zonos remits the duty to the U.S. Customs folks.
MYLAR FOR DUST JACKETS
Ever since I started seriously collecting books, I have put clear Mylar protective covers on all dust jackets. 99%+ of all dust jackets in our house have Mylar covers. I have always bought them from a library supply outfit in Ontario. They used to manufacture them but stopped well over a decade ago. Instead, they source them from a U.S. manufacturer. The good news is that the quality is much better. The bad news is that they are more expensive and a longer cycle time. The last time we ordered these in 2024; there was a variety of sizes in 8 packages. The total was over $750, before HST. As of this moment, I am not sure I can get them and if so, how much they will be. Starting last month, I started to choose what books got their dust jackets protected.
No one knows where this will end up, but let’s get the negotiating over with. Easy to say.
Uncertainty is a soul destroyer.