phil
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Posts: 132
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Post by phil on Jul 13, 2012 10:54:36 GMT 2
anybody got an idea on what customs base for the extra charges,just received a game ,paid 300 US$ for the game but mailman just stood at my door with an extra cost for 110US$ custom fees,only the second time that happens and i already got a few items send from the US,anybody knows how that system works?
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Post by ash888 on Jul 13, 2012 22:09:18 GMT 2
anybody got an idea on what customs base for the extra charges,just received a game ,paid 300 US$ for the game but mailman just stood at my door with an extra cost for 110US$ custom fees,only the second time that happens and i already got a few items send from the US,anybody knows how that system works? From my experience sending things to Europe etc. from the US, if a low estimated value of $40 or so is on the package, and it is classified as a "gift", you won't have to pay any customs charges. Was the estimated value higher than that on your package?
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phil
Full Member
Posts: 132
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Post by phil on Jul 18, 2012 16:59:47 GMT 2
the paper says 320 US$ and send as merchandise,but if you put 40 $ on it isn't the shipping then only insured for the 40 $?if so its not worth to pay extra to insure the package. there is an extra paper that explains the cost,80$ taxes and 30$ formalities? but what those formalities are i don't know
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Post by ash888 on Jul 18, 2012 20:02:51 GMT 2
the paper says 320 US$ and send as merchandise,but if you put 40 $ on it isn't the shipping then only insured for the 40 $?if so its not worth to pay extra to insure the package. there is an extra paper that explains the cost,80$ taxes and 30$ formalities? but what those formalities are i don't know That's right, Phil. If the estimated value is $40, then the item is only insured for $40. So it all depends on if you're willing to take that risk to avoid the crazy fees. I'm not sure what the $80 tax and $30 formalities are all about. Those are decided by your government I suppose.
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Post by Aris on Jul 23, 2012 19:13:52 GMT 2
anybody got an idea on what customs base for the extra charges,just received a game ,paid 300 US$ for the game but mailman just stood at my door with an extra cost for 110US$ custom fees,only the second time that happens and i already got a few items send from the US,anybody knows how that system works? Hi Phil, Ouch!!! That's a pretty hefty cost for $300 game! My understanding with Customs is that they take the price that's declared on the Duty/Declaration slip, convert it to the currency of the country the package is being delivered to, and then they add the tax that you pay in your country. So, here in Canada, for example, we're practically on par with the USA, so, they would take the $300 USD, convert it to about $300 CDN, and then they would multiply that by our tax rate of 13%. So, about $39. But, then they had on some sort o handling fee for doing the job they're already probably overpaid to do, so, you may get another fee added to that, that might be anywhere from $5 to $25. Still, even at the high end, sound like you got dinged pretty good! Maybe there's something else they figure into the calculation that I've omitted, but, that's basically my understanding of how it is supposed to work. AC PS In your case, it looks like you got dinged with about 25% tax, and the "formalities" is their way of robbing you. It's probably the equivalent of a "handling" fee, which has irked me to no end the couple of times I got hit with that load of crap! What do they think? That they're paid to sit there and not do anything, and if they have to get off their arses to open a package and inspect it, they all of a sudden have to add on an additional fee for making them do some work???
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phil
Full Member
Posts: 132
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Post by phil on Jul 24, 2012 13:51:04 GMT 2
thanks eric and aris,indeed we have to pay 21% taxes on everything and yes i had to pay 25 euro's handling fees,a shame,i did not ask to 'inspect 'my package ,no wonder it takes so long to receive a package,if they 'inspect' every package i think it's a nice bonus on the so much money we already pay on taxes i think it's a dirty shame but what can we do the end
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Post by andycole on Jul 24, 2012 14:25:52 GMT 2
In the UK we have to pay import duty (about 6%) then VAT on top of that (20%) and then at least one handling charge, possibly two. My worst experience was when I purchased a loose Flagman for $450 (yeah, I know!) and the guy insured it for $500, so the customs fees were based on that. At the time, I think it was about 80-100 pounds on top. Ouch.
Andy
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Post by Aris on Jul 24, 2012 18:48:43 GMT 2
thanks eric and aris,indeed we have to pay 21% taxes on everything and yes i had to pay 25 euro's handling fees,a shame,i did not ask to 'inspect 'my package ,no wonder it takes so long to receive a package,if they 'inspect' every package i think it's a nice bonus on the so much money we already pay on taxes i think it's a dirty shame but what can we do the end Phil, The only thing you can do, is request that the seller declare a low value on the Customs/Duty slip. Most don't seem to have a problem with doing that, especially if they trust you. I've sent packages with more than 10K worth of games in them, and declared less than $100 on it. Most packages, I just declare $20 to $40. The caveat of course, is that I have to use Xpresspost, (which has online tracking, and is guaranteed to arrive in, usually, about 4 days) which has cost me anywhere from $60 to $90, for packages that normall would cost $10 to $30. The only time I declared actual value was when I had my first encounter with Paschalis winning one of my auctions. I didn't like the way our conversations went after the sale, so, I didn't trust him. I've since (not in a while now though) sent stuff to him without declaring actual value. LOL! You will always have your sticklers though, and they'll tell you they will not falsify Customs documents. Fortunately, in all my dealings, I've only come across 2 or 3 people like that. But yeah, I always, always, always ask that they declare a lower value like $20 to $30, when I buy overseas. Marking it as a gift and declaring $300 wont help either. They look at the value declared, whether it's a gift or commercial goods. AC
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Post by Aris on Jul 24, 2012 18:50:37 GMT 2
In the UK we have to pay import duty (about 6%) then VAT on top of that (20%) and then at least one handling charge, possibly two. My worst experience was when I purchased a loose Flagman for $450 (yeah, I know!) and the guy insured it for $500, so the customs fees were based on that. At the time, I think it was about 80-100 pounds on top. Ouch. Andy LOL! And do you still have this Flagman??? AC
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Post by mpanayiotakis on Aug 12, 2012 21:51:52 GMT 2
Marking anything as gift doesn't work in your favor any more.. Everything is checked and customs fees are applied based on the declared value on the packet or the insurance value. Customs fees come as a percentage on that total value plus handling fees (which are higher when a courier service is used). The percentage changes depending on the type of item included in the package - it's not just VAT. Every country has a different policy about the charges so I'm not sure how the total was calculated in your case.
All in all customs is just a way for countries to make money so absurd charges are to be expected..
Michael
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Post by Aris on Aug 13, 2012 2:26:19 GMT 2
Marking anything as gift doesn't work in your favor any more.. Everything is checked and customs fees are applied based on the declared value on the packet or the insurance value. Customs fees come as a percentage on that total value plus handling fees (which are higher when a courier service is used). The percentage changes depending on the type of item included in the package - it's not just VAT. Every country has a different policy about the charges so I'm not sure how the total was calculated in your case. All in all customs is just a way for countries to make money so absurd charges are to be expected.. Michael Everything sounds about right to me. Especially the last sentence! Good to see you posting here Mike! AC
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Post by flagman02 on Aug 24, 2012 21:53:14 GMT 2
I paid £800 for a boxed famicon from Japan.Got the bloke to write £40 on it and was then shitting myself that it turned up!
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Post by pheldge on Oct 1, 2012 13:52:51 GMT 2
Beside this, have you ever thought about the growing amount of international transactions since the coming of ebay and other such sites ?
That should have significantly increased the incomes of all our governments...
In my country, the simple fact that my incoming package is noticed by the customs, but not even controlled, will cost me 10€, regardless the declared value.
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Post by sAner on Oct 14, 2012 10:33:21 GMT 2
Marking the parcel with a low amount (let's say 40 euros, when in fact the real value is 500) is a real risk. A month ago I had to return a 498 euro costing watch to the inet shop in the UK ( I live in the NL) because it was faulty. I sent it in a arcel, got a track and trace number and it still got lost. I am glad I insured it upto 500 euros!
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Post by Aris on Oct 15, 2012 21:01:46 GMT 2
Marking the parcel with a low amount (let's say 40 euros, when in fact the real value is 500) is a real risk. A month ago I had to return a 498 euro costing watch to the inet shop in the UK ( I live in the NL) because it was faulty. I sent it in a arcel, got a track and trace number and it still got lost. I am glad I insured it upto 500 euros! Good point Pieter! It's a tough call when dealing with fellow collectors though, and for me, even people I don't know. This Customs/Duty thing just doesn't sit well with me, so, I've been forever declaring ridiculously low amounts on anything that I've sold via ebay or privately, including packages of games costing thousands of dollars, and declaring only $80 or so. But, now that I've been burned twice, I'm definitely declaring full amount when shipping to Spain, or anywhere else I anticipate potential problems. For fellow collectors though, I always declare a low value, especially since we're practically one big family in a way. AC
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