What are Duties and Taxes?
Import duty is a tax imposed by a government on specific commodity types from other countries. This increased price on imported goods is meant to make these products less "desirable" so buyers are encouraged to support the domestic market. A duty is charged differently depending on the item category or HS code.
For example: If you ship a phone to Canada there is a 0% duty, however, if you ship a t-shirt to Canada, there is an 18% duty.
Import tax is a flat tax charged by customs regardless of the commodity type upon the importation of goods. Import tax can be referred to as GST or VAT however there is a slight difference outlined in this article.
For example, regardless of whether you are shipping a phone or a t-shirt to Canada, there is a tax of 5%.