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Posts: 1608
Joined: Dec. 24 2007
From: Siegburg, Alemania
Ordering in the USA from Europe
Hi fellow Europeans (Brits included ), a lot of good accessories can be ordered from the States (e. g. StewMac, Strings by Mail etc). From previous posts I gather that Anders for one orders a lot from Spain, whereas I find customs paperwork a real hassle here in Germany (not to mention taxes). What are the differences in the various European countries?
RE: Ordering in the USA from Europe (in reply to edguerin)
Hi Ed, My experience has been that if the sender ships the package via one of the International Carrier companies, the contents and value are declared and in the UK you must pay Import Duty + VAT + a customs handling charge (made by the Carrier).
If the item is small and can be dropped into a regular US maibox, then the chances are it will just pop through your letterbox unless the package is intercepted in a random inspection in which case it will be held at Customs and you will receive a letter stating their valuation and duty etc to be paid.
The reason the first way is beneficial to HM Customs here is that it is in the Carrier's interest to make sure that all the additional charges are applied as they receive payment for this and Customs don't have to use their own people.
I stopped ordering stuff from the States because of this.
Although the price seems very attractive, (often the same item costing $100 in the States will sell in the UK for 100 UK Pounds), by the time you've paid all the extras, there is no saving from just buying it in the UK in the first place.
RE: Ordering in the USA from Europe (in reply to edguerin)
If the value is low you dont have to pay any taxes i think. At least im guessing, because i ordered 3 times, without paying anything. I think the limit is 70 Euros or something. If the value is below that you dont have to pay anything, at least that would be my speculation.
Posts: 1608
Joined: Dec. 24 2007
From: Siegburg, Alemania
RE: Ordering in the USA from Europe (in reply to XXX)
quote:
the limit is 70 Euros or something
Yeah, the import duty limit is somethin like that plus there's a tax limit wich is somethin like 100 euros (i. e. you pay duties if it's over 70 euros + taxes if it's more than 100 euros). It's not so much the cost that bothers me, it's the paper work. Last time I ordered something from StewMac I had to drive 25km to pick it up, wait about half an hour, while the clerk filled out the 4 forms I then had to sign, pay something like 2,35 euros, wait for the receipt ... drive home another 25km.
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