When choosing CSCL, what EMS DHL means? EMS is usually …

Comment on How To Buy Directly From Taobao:The Complete Guide

From what sources a North American buyer can replenish an Alipay account? From Paypal, Credit Cards, Debit Cards issued by a US Bank – possible? If not, can Alipay directly charge US CCs just like it does on Aliexpress?

This page (https://world.taobao.com/helper/knowledge.htm?spm=a312a.7762693.2015080302.5.VjtBv5&kid=6534306 ) seems to say, direct payment by a US credit card is also possible, but Taobao sellers may have daily limits on accepting CCs.

When paying by a US CC, is it still possible to select CSCL as a shipping method? Dos it require to register a separate account with suggested by Taobao Mail Forwarder?

How their shipping rates compare to AliExpress sellers offered China Post rates? What shipping carrier Taobao Forwarders use to ship to USA & Canada?

Comment on How To Register And Verify Your Alipay Without Chinese Bank Account

If you paid by a credit card, you can always Charge Back the payment by contacting your bank-issuer, if Alipay refuses to release your funds back to Visa account. They are obligated by contract with Visa and MasterCard International to return any refunds back to account holders. This means, you may not be able to pay for new purchases by using your previous refund on Alipay, but you arel entitled to get your money back without producing any passports etc, because the money will be refunded to the same account they were charged from, so it doesn’t matter whether it belongs to you or not.

If you paid by a debit card or through international payment system like Web Money etc, contact their CS for further instructions.

Comment on 4 Ways to Pay on Taobao

Hi Eric,

On AliExpress, you can read in Help that only credit cards are supported, and Visa or MasterCard debit cards are not. But CS will confirm that Visa Debit cards are also supported and widely used for payments. Basically, when a buyer uses such card linked to his bank account to make a purchase, Alipay can use Visa or MasterCard international transaction processing system to charge payment, so it doesn’t need to be a member of any other cash transaction systems. Since Taobao payments are also processed by Alipay, they likely have the same processing options for international transactions. Can you contact Alipay CS to clarify?

Comment on How to Contact Taobao Customer Service

Hi Eric,

Can you amend your above guide by explaining: “How to file a Claim on Taobao”? Is it the same as “Asking for Refund”? You mentioned in several articles that buyers can discuss return and refund with sellers. Is it usually done within a Claim Process, or informally? For example, on Ebay and AliExpress, when a buyer contacts a seller after the item is paid, many “contact reasons” would result in automatic opening a Case with portal. If the seller does not reply or resolve the issue, the buyer can escalate this Case to a Claim within the deadlines. Does Taobao use the same system, or seller-to-buyer communication is purely informal, voluntary, and not restricted by deadlines?

Comment on How to Request a Refund on Taobao

Hi Eric,

Can you add info to your Guide on “Refund for items shipped overseas”? I had several issues with returns & refunds, when using Taobao Consolidated Shipping program. The program allows for purchased items to wait in the warehouse 20 days free until you buy more items and consolidate international parcel. Than it takes several days to process and ship the parcel, so its often delivered to a buyer 30 days after payment for some of the goods. By that time, is it possible to a) request refund for certain items; b) place negative feedback; c) return items to the seller?

Also, where such items must be returned – to the Taobao warehouse or directly to the seller’s address? And if returned after Taobao deadlines, how the refund is processed?

In my practice, due to high return shipping cost its seldom makes sense to return defective goods back to China. When a seller ships the item to a local buyer, its delivered in 2 days, and the buyer is advised to inspect the package before accepting it from the local courier. If not accepted, return shipping is “free”. In contrast, when a package is shipped to Taobao Consolidation Warehouse, its never properly checked for defects and missing parts, unless visibly broken. When its delivered abroad, its often way too late and prohibitively expensive to return.

That’s why selecting a quality seller is very important. Overseas buyers should never buy from a seller with lowest price and low sale volume. Unless of course its a direct shop of the manufacturer, preferably on Tmall. Buy selected items in stores where most other people buy, and always read their feedback first. In addition, warn the seller upfront to ship only quality goods to avoid complaints. In my experience, almost half of the product categories, received via Taobao Consolidated Shipment, contained some incomplete or defective items, because sellers knew a foreign buyer will never ship it back, and would have difficult language and culture barriers to go through Taobao Claim process.

Comment on Taobao International Shipping: Everything You Need To Know

Hi Eric,

Why does your table say, orders to Canada are delivered from Zhongshan warehouse by USPS/DHL? Are they delivered to USA first, cleared by USPS at Canada border, and delivered to receivers in Canada by DHL? Otherwise, I doubt DHL won’t charge they usual Customs Clearance and Service fees, plus local Customs Tariffs and taxes to the receiver.