Exactly right. Unfortunately your packet is probably sitting in the huge backlog in Vancouver right now, waiting for Canada Post and CBSA to process it: http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/british-columbia/christmas-gifts-spend-weeks-in-limbo-awaiting-customs-clearance-in-richmond-b-c-1.4441136

ePackets to Canada seem to be taking 15-20 days for delivery lately, so your item should show up in Canada Post tracking soon. Unfortunately, though, it's not unusual for them to sometimes take 30-40 days or more.

ePackets do go by air, but a lot of a parcel's journey is spent waiting, regardless of how they're sent. Waiting for a flight, waiting for customs clearance, waiting to be sorted, ...

How does the international mail system work? How is mail routed from one country to another?

I can fly to China in 24 hours! Why does a package take weeks?

Quote from the_d0g on January 25, 2018, 18:50
Thank you for the clarfications! I finally had an update today.
It now says: "Item has arrived in Canada and was sent for further processing."

Does that mean it is still being held in customs?

Canada Post seems intentionally vague about everything they say, so I can never be 100% sure. That said, I think this scan is what other places would call "Arrival at Inbound office of exchange" -- your item has arrived and been unpacked, but hasn't been presented to Customs yet.

You should get an "Item processed" update within 1-3 days, which will mean that your item has cleared Customs and is moving onwards in the delivery process.

Quote from the_d0g on January 31, 2018, 20:07
Still no update since Jan 25th in Richmond sent for further processing.
Is the sticky post about the 4 weeks delay to clear customs in Richmond still effective?

You should call Canada Post. The parcel is in their hand and they should know detail about delivery schedule.

They can't, but again, it's not clear whether the item has actually cleared customs yet or not.

The Canada Post tracking page does say "Estimated delivery: 3-7 business days", which is usually a good sign.

Quote from the_d0g on February 9, 2018, 19:02
It's still stuck in Richmond after 2 weeks. It's a xiaomi robot vaccum new in box.

Should I be worried? Is the 4 weeks delay in Richmond in the sticky post from december still active?

you should call Canada Post. It is not normal.