Whats the max amount you can buy before you are hit with any UK taxes etc, been thinking of ordering some stuff for the car from the states.

all help is welcome

RR

I think it's about £150 squid me thinks, i have imported shed loads of stuff from the states, the last lot was some strobe lights at about £300 cost about £21 in taxes

I have also brought in goods that cost over a grand and only paid about £110 in import duty and tax :) it also goes the other way i have brought some stuff in which hasn't cost to much a paid shed loads in tax [img]images/smilies/mad.gif[/img]

Hope this helps

Huxley

The maximum amount you can bring in without paying anything is £18. I think this is a written rule followed by Customs - certainly I've never had to pay duty or VAT on anything that small.

Above that, you're liable for duty (at a rate depending on exactly what you're importing, usually between 0 and 10%), plus VAT at the usual 17.5%. I think this is on top of the full price including shipping, but the calculation can be a bit more complicated than that.

Often these extra taxes conspire to make it not worthwhile importing stuff from the US unless you're already actually travelling there, and can bring it back with you. Then the duty-free limit is something like £150.

It is sometimes still worthwhile, though - most of my DVD collection is from the US and Australia, and I'm still particularly pleased with the camera lens I bought last year. UK price £600, US price (admittedly used, but in 'as new' condition): $250. Yes, the currency symbols are correct :D

A.

Take a look at www.hmce.gov.uk particularly Notice 143.

Sometimes you get away with it but it's better to be aware that you may have to pay customs duty (depending on item), excise duty (depending on item) and VAT. The carrier is also entitled to charge you a fee for collecting the various tax/duty on behalf of HMCE.

i know all about this now!

just think what ever you buy will get 17.5% VAT then (depending on the typre of goods, depends the %) import duty...then Post Office £13 handlin charge!
VAT get put onto the carriage costs too!
sometimes a parcel will slip through the net...most of the time they get you!

i currently hav goods being 'Tariff Cl;asified' at Custom&Excise Sounthend on Sea...this will give me a written % rate for importing the goods i'm buying...then i know i'm not payin over the old on the Import Duty.

Phil

Phil

Thanks for your replys kids :D

RR

[Edited by Rice Rocket - 6/30/2002 6:18:58 PM]

Recently i bought about £30 worth of cd's from the states.Got caught by customs and had to pay VAT plus a handling charge:(.

So the answer is,not very much,unless you dont get caught.

What happens if you know someone in the States who can then source goods and send it direct?

No costs will be incurred then.

Uncle Jeff's bringing me a Oddessey White Hot #1 from the Ohio for $50. Approx. £130 over here!!!!!

Bear in mind that computers and computer accessories incur no import duty (yes, that's right - zero, nada, zilch, a big fat nothing). Which means that since most products are priced $-for-£, it's much cheaper than buying in the UK, even if you do still have to account for VAT... :D

No costs? Of course there will be. Unless your contact physically comes over to the UK and brings your stuff in his luggage, the parcel will go through Customs in the usual way, and you'll get a bill. It doesn't make any difference who posts the package, because it's not the supplier that sends you the bill. Usually it's the shipping company, who pay the duties and taxes on your behalf, then charge you for those plus their handling fee.

A.

Depends also how they clasify it, i.e. a gift.......
I bought a second hand xbox and games no charge.....(when they first came out)
A phoenix gold amp got hammered for tax :(
most odds and ends though you probably wont get charged, bought a broadband adapter for my dreamcast from Japan and got taxed :(

I have ordered car bits from Japan and USA and never beeen charged import tax regardless of cost - smallish packages though and they've just come through straight to my house. A mate ordered a bonnet from USA though and they kept it at Heathrow and he had to go to the airport to collect it in person and it cost a fortune.

My experiences over the last few years have been as follows :-

for reasons not known some items come through without import or vat and others get caught size or cost does not seem to have mattered, on items i thought i was going to get hit for i didnt and vice versa.

Having it done as a 'gift' helps, just received a load of parcels marked this way and paid for no duty or vat.

Some places don't like doing this though.

Another option if they won't send as a gift is to ask them VERY politely to mark on the invoice outside the box that the item is cheaper than it actually was (as this is what is used to charge you). Again care has to be taken as some places get the right hump when you ask the do this as its not strictly er cricket.

Another one to avoid totally is letting the post office or (i think) and ups as couriers as they pay import and vat for you and then charge you a handling fee for the pleasure, rather annoying if its a small item and you get a standard admin fee for them paying the tax and vat and they charge you £10-£15 admin fee!

I once ordered a brand new graphics card from the states, was sent ups, they charged me £20 admin fee for paying the vat and import (which i also had to pay) but the shipping place had not put the item cost on the outside, instead they had put the insured total which was covered for up to $500 so i was charged import and vat on that instead of the $300 cost!!

on the opposite side i used to order lots of cds from the states (before mp3 days) and ordered one at a time and never had to pay anything, i then got greedy and ordered 12 at once and got stung large style.

Confusing this, but I have to contradict the above re: handling charges. The stuff that has come straight through to my door with no extra charge has been delivered by Post Office and UPS type courriers :confused:

Have stuff delivered to a home address, too. Anything that goes to a business adress seems more likely to attract attention, particularly when it comes to handling charges.

You can tell this is experience talking, can't you ;) ?

ok
i have the CHARGE lable in front of me....as i'm importing NEON from the states now!!!

HM Customs & Excise (Charges Helpline) 02476 212810/811
open from 8:30am - 4:30pm
you'll be ringing for ages b4 you get answered.

they will tell you all the details you wanna know.

having a package maked GIFT will still incure 17.5% VAT!!!

having it marked 'SAMPLES' you might just get away with it!!

i've had a few SAMPLES sent....fine, but one package had the INVOICES stuck over the lettering theat SAID SAMPLE ON IT...so it was stoped and i got STUNG!

RING THE ABOVE NUMBER!!!!
all will be made clear then.

Phil