mackiain Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 I live in Ontario, Canada and all of the sites I have found online to order hookahs can only be shipped to the States, does anybody know where you can order one in Canada? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geiseric Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 (edited) Lots of places will ship out of country, and most of them will be happy to be tricky with they package desc. as to avoid customs screwing you over. If I recall correctly Canada's import tax on tobacco is a real bitch. MNH definitely does it, and I think HS does it, but don't quote me on that.BTW, if you are unfamiliar with the vernacular, that would be MNHookah.com and Hookah-Shisha.comMNH has some pretty good deals, rare products, and are very open to doing whatever they can to facilitate your purchase. HS has a bit more variety, INCREDIBLY good customer service and are almost always available for questions. In my humble opinion, the best Hookah distributors in the biz. Edited January 18, 2008 by Geiseric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mackiain Posted January 18, 2008 Author Share Posted January 18, 2008 Thanks alot, you have been a huge help, I love this forum already Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfaltous Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 I live in Calgary and I've dealt with MNH, H-S, and TDP (worldhookah.com), all of which ship to Canada and all of which are reliable Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaia.plateau Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 H-S will declare your package tobacco if it exceeds 100g... but if you talk to your customs agent beforehand there shouldn't be a problem, there is no federal law taxing shisha. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erufiku Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 H-S all the way. That's where I got mine from: came in fast by canadian standards. On a side note my uni is having to wait 6 weeks for a shipment of textbooks that are arriving from Toronto (4 hrs. away by train). Way to go... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaia.plateau Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 H-S packages usually takes about 3 to 3 1/2 weeks to arrive here in SK... MNHookahs usually in 2 to 2 1/2. Other vendors I've tried have taken as long as 6 weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geiseric Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 I don't know if I could take that. I get angry when my packages take longer than 4 days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaia.plateau Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 You just have to be proactive in ordering.The upshot is that you don't get tasered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfaltous Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 QUOTE (gaia.plateau @ Jan 18 2008, 10:18 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>H-S will declare your package tobacco if it exceeds 100g... but if you talk to your customs agent beforehand there shouldn't be a problem, there is no federal law taxing shisha.That's not true at all Look it up with Canadian Customs, basically its considered "manufactured tobacco". If you are physically bringing it over the border yourself you're allowed 200g maximum, however in postage you will be charged duties and tax on it which is calculated by the gram. The values are not easy to find, the only way I got it was talking to a customs official after he did some digging around, but its roughly $0.20 +/- per gram, which comes to $50 per 250g package. If you have it shipped with UPS or FedEx, they use their own customs brokers and will almost always open the package and charge the full amount for the duties, however with USPS apparently there are international laws that for the most part prevent this from happening. Oh, and you should also keep in mind that if the customs form is filled out incorrectly for tobacco products, they will "destroy" the shipment.I've ordered some large tobacco shipments with MNH, and Tarik is great with the customs forms, he knows exactly how to list them If you ask me, thats the way to go. I've never had a shipment held by customs, its usually in and out of there within 2 hours. Typically online sites will ship to Canada using Priority shipping with USPS, which is 6-10 business days (and it actually arrives in about that much time). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaia.plateau Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 (edited) It's completely true. I've spoken personally with customs agents at the federal and provincial levels, and have received a guarantee against taxation on shisha which I had to use on my last order to waive taxes which were applied in error.Because tobacco constitutes only a part of shisha, because packages containing shisha are usually mostly equipment, and because of the multicultural imperative, Canada's stance federally on shisha is that it just isn't worth the effort. You might get nailed by provincial agents but that's easily trumpable. There are several members on the board who have had similar success, via the use of a personal liaison.MNH is always willing to ship discretely if you don't want to go to the trouble, but their selection is lacking and their shipping is more expensive. Edited January 18, 2008 by gaia.plateau Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfaltous Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 Did you get it in writing? If not, do it now! And if you did, post a copy up so we other Canadians can take advantage! Or at least give us the contact name/number that gave you that info...I've talked to people at both border services (when I was taking shisha across the border myself) and at Canada Customs (when I first ordered online) and they basically told me it was fair game as "manufactured tobacco". On paper, the rules are clear that shisha is taxed at that rate. Whether or not they'll make exceptions I have yet to see, but I don't particularly trust government workers.MNH's selection I find to be quite sufficient, and although I've yet to receive an order from him, Neal at worldhookah seems to take care of things discretely too. As far as shipping is concerned, MNH I find to be quite reasonable. In my last shipment he sent it Express (3-5 business day) instead of Priority (6-10 day) at no extra cost, and on my next one he's agreed to send it GXG (3 business day guaranteed). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaia.plateau Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 (edited) I'll meet you half-way by giving you more details on how I convinced them, rather than screwing my own pooch (though there is no firm federal policy, provincially it's still murky water and I don't want to get my guy into shit. I know at least one person that did this was also in Calgary though, do a search for more details).I sent 4 invoices for shisha orders, choosing ones which were mainly gear (like hookahs, hoses, etc.), and one that included only Soex tobacco. I also scanned several shisha labels which did not say "tobacco" on them, and actually sent a soex package and an Al-Waha package to him.Also, you can stress that the tobacco isn't manufactured to be smoked, but rather as a base for glycerin and natural flavours to be cooked on.Additionally you can try the multicultural card, and expound that shisha is a cultural touchstone between the Christian West and Islam which is important in such turbulent times (I got a "hmmm" at this, haha).Goodluck.Edit: go ahead and do that search... I remember one dude saying that he used me as an example when talking to the customs dude and this changed his mind. Edited January 18, 2008 by gaia.plateau Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfaltous Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 Haha, can't you just build off the work you've already done and get them to write you a letter saying that its exempt, and then scan and post that letter? And as for the Calgarian, got a nickname I can check out at least? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaia.plateau Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 (edited) Well it isn't official policy even at the federal level, it's more of an exemption from an existing policy at this point. That gives you the wriggle room but it doesn't make it conducive to getting it in legal scrip.I can't recall any nicknames, try searching "canadian customs" "canada + tax" or anything else you can think of. Or go back 7 pages or so in Discussion Group and look for the thread about it. Edited January 18, 2008 by gaia.plateau Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geiseric Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 (edited) The tax is insane in the first place. I remember when I was working on the border at the Peace Garden that a pack of cigs was like 10 bucks in Canada (at least close to the border). F*cking crazy. Edited January 18, 2008 by Geiseric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfaltous Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 I'd gladly pay 100% tax. That would still be cheap compared to what we're getting here I think I'm content with my smuggling process now, going through legitimate means seems far too complicated. Given that it reaches the same end whichever way you do it, I don't have any ethical concerns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaia.plateau Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 QUOTE (Geiseric @ Jan 18 2008, 01:26 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>The tax is insane in the first place. I remember when I was working on the border at the Peace Garden that a pack of cigs was like 10 bucks in Canada (at least close to the border). F*cking crazy.The cheapest I ever see them is $7.50, so I'm glad I stopped 6 years ago when they were still like $3.50/pack. Also my brand (Winstons) isn't carried in my city anymore, which makes relapsing into the habit much, much easier.I DJ up on reserves every now and then, and trade the aboriginals weed for cartons of smokes which they can get for what works out to about $0.50/pack. When I have em I sell them back in the city for $5/pack and make a pretty respectable profit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mackiain Posted January 18, 2008 Author Share Posted January 18, 2008 So I should order from H-S? is that Hookah Shisha? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfaltous Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 If you're just getting the hookah, then Hookah-Shisha works fine. If you're getting tobacco as well, I'd definitely go with MN Hookah or the Devil's Playground. I suppose it will come down to which hookah you want to get. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mackiain Posted January 18, 2008 Author Share Posted January 18, 2008 Alright thanks, I just need the hookah, you can buy the tobacco and coals here in town. I just need a new pipe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfaltous Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 One last tip... whoever you buy it from, ask them to mark it as a "gift" on the customs form... it'll help you avoid paying GST and such on it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaia.plateau Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 In regard to quality, reputability, customer service, shipping price/speed, and selection, I would recommend H-S for buying a pipe, although I have had problems with them in the past.All things considered, they're still one of my favourite vendors... mostly because they seriously put the customer first, and hold themselves accountable for their mistakes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mackiain Posted January 18, 2008 Author Share Posted January 18, 2008 Alright awesome, now I just need to decide what kind of hookah to get. I am gonna stick with a one pipe hookah, I don't wanna mess with multiple hoses. Any suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfaltous Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 ...and how much do you want to spend? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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