So in this I am not asking for names of places or countries because I don't want it to be locked from receiving replies.
This is an observation as people have said they have been scammed by not receiving something by mail, but I have yet to order something that would come across a border as I already know they get either sent back or confiscated, so that could easily be where the problem lies and not with the shipper, as mostly it would be stopped by the receiving country border authorities.
Also, there is something called insurance that the sender can put on a package and I do not know whether it would apply to a prescription drug, but I was told the prescription can be included in the package as verification that is was obtained with medical approval already. So does this clarify why some people could be not receiving what they ordered and paid for as it very well might have been sent.
So I know we are not to mention sources etc but could we ask whether people have more or less been able to succeed with mail orders....just in terms of numbers who succeeded or failed to succeed?
Written by
JaninaWalker
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
Succeeded on multiple occasions. Never had a problem. Yes, the parcels usually get spotted at Customs when they get to the UK and I have to pay duty and VAT when I collect them from the Post Office but that’s normal and what’s supposed to happen. Never even considered paying insurance.
JaninaWalker, Your profile shows you are in Canada. Purchase and receiving of prescription medications will likely be a different issue in your country than here in the UK.
I am not aware of any issue with anyone in the UK receiving medicines purchased with valid prescriptions from legitimate sources. Of course, there could be the odd failure to deliver, but I suspect it is at the same sort of level as the major, reputable online retail outlets.
Some suppliers who do not require prescriptions have also been very reliable; others not. But by the very nature of their business it is unlikely that insurance could be provided that would actually provide the required cover. After all, in general these companies cannot even allow payment by credit card and many online payment services.
Of course it would not be the receiver who pays the insurance, but the shipper, so they don't lose out.
I was just asking to see how many people have had either success or failure as I know for a fact that in Canada we are not allowed to import even prescription drugs, so that is why I have so far not bought any T3 from outside Canada.
So in the UK are the British allowed to import a prescription filling from another country as the supplier I contacted said they could put the prescription in the packet. I do have one of those as my endocrinologist doctor has given me a 6 repeat prescription as what I did in 2017 did work well. But the problem is I know that Canada does not allow the importing of even prescription drugs, so that is why I have not tried it yet. But I can’t afford to repeat what I did in 2017 when it cost me Cdn $350 for 200 tablets of T3. From that I know now I only need to get 100 tablets per year as I will not need to take it continually, but only about one month every three months as my three trials in 2017 showed me that, at a cost I cannot afford.
What I did in 2017 worked very well, but was just way too expensive
. So it has been about a year since I had any T3
There is a petition on change.org for a Nova Scotian university student who started it to take it to our national government, so it would benefit all Canadians. I was number 479 and it requires just 500 signatures and it can receive signatures from anywhere in the world I found out and only needs 500 as our country is smaller. I looked all this up. So I would say if any companies wanted to sell more to Canadians they could help by signing it too. The border does not inspect packages with a lower than Cdn $20 limit and so the Americans are getting a better deal as their limit is US$800.
The petition is now at 489 signatures so it just needs another 11 signatures and they can be from anywhere in the world according to my google searching about how the Cdn government handles this in terms of petitions.
I found out in the USA they allow US $800 to be imported by mail and in Australia it is Aus$900, but here in Canada we have a limit set in 1985 that is Cdn $20 which is so small it causes us problems. which is about US$15.60 the last I calculated it and naturally it changes based on the exchange rate which is influenced by interest rates and the political situation which we all know is not good now.
So what is the level allowed in the UK?
Is the filling of prescriptions from other countries allowed?
You see in Canada our drug costs are lower than in the USA and so US residents do buy from Canada and get less of a problem because the limit is higher for them.
My sister was a British citizen for 77 years until she died at 82 years a few months ago and my father was born there, so we Canadians have links to Britain as you know. So maybe you can help we poor Canadians get our limit higher so we can get some better access to things from other countries.
That figure, for Australia, isn't the only restriction - I believe that is the duty free limit. There are more restrictions: tga.gov.au/personal-importa....
• in reply to
Also, the filling of prescriptions may be more of an issue in the filling country - for example, if you had a Canadian prescription for T3 - which is readily (though not commonly) available here in Australia - it would be illegal for an Australian pharmacy to supply it to you. You'd need an Australian prescription.
(With regard to the T3 - that looks confusing. T3 is available, at different prices (ie subsidised or not - $65/100 pills, $35/100 pills - something like that) depending on the reason for prescription. When I tried it, my local pharmacy had it on hand - it didn't need to be specifically ordered in, from memory. However, it is not common, and certainly the most "standard" treatment here is straight T4.)
This is what i am looking for as more information helps.
So are those prices you quote common for Australia as that proves it is a lot cheaper there than here.
In Canada each province is different. In Alberta they are allowed to get the T3 all around, even covered by the provincial health plan and I can get it here too, but it isn't covered as easily in Ontario as there is a list of drugs that are covered and it is not on it. I didn't look into the case for other provinces.
So as the Aus$ to Cdn$ is 1.05 to 1, so that means my having to pay $175 per 100 is like Aus$184 and I know lots could be said about how much people earn in each country, but the point is I think we in Canada in Ontario are expected to pay way too much for T3 which is why I cannot do more than what I did in 2017.
I looked it up in an online pharmacy to get those prices. I haven't investigated it myself. I took it for a few months several years ago and just got it from my closest pharmacy.
Many of our meds are subsidized initially by government before we consumers see any prices. I'm not sure what the Australian government actually pays for the meds (and by extension, we as taxpayers all pay) - it may be much more, but I have now way to know that. I believe the cheaper price I mentioned is an extra subsidy for people who are documented to need specifically T3 rather than T4 etc. I pay a similar (the $65 price) for 100 NDT capsules to be compounded.
• in reply to
This is the Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme page: pbs.gov.au/pbs/home
There is no specific value limit in the UK - just that the usual customs limits imply that costs can go up due to VAT, etc.
Further, importation is restricted to members of our own household - not friends, neighbours, even relatives. Importing amounts which trigger questions is probably unwise and might end up requiring some sort of proof that we are not intending to sell them on or supply outside our household.
Within the European Union, there is no customs limit though it appears to me that the "household" limitation still applies if no prescription.
I tried to explain that I doubt it feasible for the shipper to obtain insurance. For many companies, insurance would be much more expensive than simply self-insuring and re-sending product proved not to have been delivered. That, in turn, requires tracked delivery and not all vendors offer that. Further, the extra cost of that can be pretty significant.
Hey Janina I wish you luck with your petition to get things changed in Canada.
Here in the uk we are subject to additional tax, VAT, for any item that costs more than £18 coming from abroad and in addition we are charged an additional postage charge ontop of the countries postage.....the latter depends on who you order from. In the uk you can get prescriptions/meds for natural dessicated thyroid extract or T3 though this is far rarer, mainly not on the NHS, but private scripts, though some of us do get them on the nhs. If on the nhs and you are a resident of the uk, certain conditions like hypothyroidism are exempt from precription charges so they are free. The NHS is making every effort to reduce t3 and ndt prescribing down to an absolute minimum and as a result many people have had their meds withdrawn or have been referred to endocrinologists for a further review. This has forced many into having to buy their meds privately. In the uk we are charged a very high premium for such meds which is not the same case in other EU countries.
Yes, this does help, as it proves even with your £15 level that is equal to Cdn$24.91 so we are still worse off, which is why I am praying for more signatures.
Never had a problem personally although, for business (cleaning products), I had to fill in customs forms. Was contacted by post and phone and given guidance on how to complete forms and pay excise and VAT. Sometimes (but rarely) have had to pay VAT and handling charge.
UK: I've been "caught" every time by UK customs (ie 3 times) - now I purchase in smallest quantities possible (1 bottle currently). Losing the multiple purchase discount is far less expensive than the tax plus exorbitant UK mail handling (?customs clearance) charge of £8. But I suspect I'll get caught again if the single bottle comes to, now, over £15!
I simply get a postcard saying turn up at post office and pay the charges, then the product arrives in my postbox.
NDT - does it count as 'prescription'? I buy it from the US, who source the stuff from a compounding chemist organisation in New Zealand using glands from their animals (I researched it carefully). I think, only think, its a natural product (ie the equivalent of a 'herbal medicine') when its actually desiccated thyroid as opposed to a constructed medication.
regards, hope this helps: its only offered as a bit of extra information - most people on this site are way more informed than me, and offer very useful advice.
Apparently, according to Accountingweb, if we leave the EU without a deal, VAT will be applied to ALL foreign purchases - no £15 exemption any more. So we all need to budget for that.
The limit is £15. (It used to be £18 and was reduced several years ago.)
Once the £15 is exceeded, the VAT calculation is based on the full order cost including P&P.
For example:
Order £14.99 + £5.00 P&P - no VAT will be charged, there will be no customs clearance charge.
Order £15.01 + £5.00 P&P, VAT will be calculated on £20.01 and there will be a customs clearance charge (£8.00 via Royal Mail, possibly more if other carriers are used).
That link says "other goods worth more than £15" are liable to VAT.
And: You’ll be charged at the VAT rate that applies to your goods. VAT is charged on the total value, including:
the price paid for the goods
postage, packaging and insurance
any duty you owe
But it is open to interpretation how the "other goods worth more than £15" is assessed - does it or does it not include P&P? I agree that it could include P&P, but the fact is they specifically say "postage, packaging and insurance" on how the amount of VAT is assessed - not on whether it is liable to be assessed in the first place!
This exemption will go if we leave EU without a deal - so no more confusion - just an increase in cost for all foreign imports. See taxjournal.com/articles/hmr...
I thought you had Universal health care in Canada? I lived in Vancouver for 7-years, on a visa and work permit with the carpenter's union, and got free health & dental through my union dues and everyone else I knew got free health care. Get a lawyer and sue the doctor or government; you don't have to plead for the proper diagnosis of your disease or to get your needed medication.
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
T3 Lost in the Post?
Ordering Synthroid from New Zealand
Medichecks Thinking of Offering Consultations And Treatment!
My Gp has rejected my repeat for liothyronine although they had already added it to my repeats list.
T3 problem
