DUTY/VAT from DHL

Frank Bullitt

I got an order from iHerb last week, iv been getting them for well over a year now and have never had any issues with getting it in or anything.

Today i got a letter from DHL saying i owe 23.79 VAT, I thought that it was because the order was a bit heavy from some of the stuff i bought, but it says that i owe it to them the money for this product http://www.iherb.com/Now-Foods-Biotin-5-000-mcg-120-Vcaps/3319?at=0 Which doesnt really make sense to me as it only cost 8.93???

Anyone have an advice or experienced the same thing?

ttcomet

How mush was delivery out of interest? You should not have to pay VAT unless the total went over 22 Euro (I think it is).

If the total was over 22 then you would pay VAT on the item, the postage and a fee of up to 15 Euro to DHL for processing your VAT transaction for you. Oh and VAT on there tansaction fee possibly as well.

Frank Bullitt

ttcomet wrote: »

How mush was delivery out of interest? You should not have to pay VAT unless the total went over 22 Euro (I think it is).

If the total was over 22 then you would pay VAT on the item, the postage and a fee of up to 15 Euro to DHL for processing your VAT transaction for you. Oh and VAT on there tansaction fee possibly as well.

The total cost was 223.52 dollars, but that is not the largest fee iv ever paid for an order,but this is the first time iv received a letter asking for VAT.

jor el

$9.93 + $12 shipping is less than $22, which is certainly less than €22, which is the limit of what you can buy before VAT is added. What exactly does DHL's invoice say? They're having a laugh if they're trying to apply VAT to something which is exempt, and just how did they come up with such a large value?

deandean

I've been caught a few times too, with deliveries from the U.S. and Asia, it seems to be random.
I got thick with DHL the first time I was caught, I felt their collection/admin charge was exhorbitant and unfair. But the couriers pass on all overdue accounts to a debt collection agency. I ended up paying.

Frank Bullitt

It is weird that the invoice says.

1 piece, weight 6.80, description which is the NOW foods Biotin 5,000 MCG, 120 v.

Then the usual bull of customs duty and a 2% surcharge.

B00MSTICK

Order from outside the EU and you're liable to pay VAT on anything over €22 (€45 if its a gift iirc) so you were just lucky the other times

The order total was $223 right?

jor el

Gintonious wrote: »

Which doesnt really make sense to me as it only cost 8.93???

Gintonious wrote: »

The total cost was 223.52 dollars, but that is not the largest fee iv ever paid for an order,but this is the first time iv received a letter asking for VAT.

How many of these did you actually buy? You pay duty or VAT based on the total order, not on the price of one item. If you bought over $200 worth of product, then you can expect to pay VAT and the admin fee. There's nothing unusual about this.

If your order came to under €22 including shipping, then it should be VAT free.

Frank Bullitt

jor el wrote: »

How many of these did you actually buy? You pay duty or VAT based on the total order, not on the price of one item. If you bought over $200 worth of product, then you can expect to pay VAT and the admin fee. There's nothing unusual about this.

If your order came to under €22 including shipping, then it should be VAT free.

I only bought 1 of the items but in total i bought 15 different items, this was a relatively small order compared to the other ones iv gotten.

DYLF

jor el wrote: »

They're having a laugh if they're trying to apply VAT to something which is exempt, and just how did they come up with such a large value?

DHL dont apply the vat.. customs do

jor el wrote: »

$9.93 + $12 shipping is less than $22, which is certainly less than €22, which is the limit of what you can buy before VAT is added.

this is what most people would assume but because customs deal with so many courier companies they have made up their own freight ammounts on what the shipping should cost. ( the min they charge is 46ish and thats for up to 0.5kg comnig from the US/canada)

and there is a admin charge of 2%...
fedex charge a flat fee of €20 and UPS something similar

jor el

Gintonious wrote: »

I only bought 1 of the items but in total i bought 15 different items, this was a relatively small order compared to the other ones iv gotten.

Then this thread is moot. All the information is in the Duty/VAT thread.

DYLF wrote: »

DHL dont apply the vat.. customs do

The couriers collect on behalf of revenue, using their rates. Customs don't get involved directly unless they want to inspect a shipment, which is rare and random.

DYLF wrote: »

this is what most people would assume but because customs deal with so many courier companies they have made up their own freight ammounts on what the shipping should cost. ( the min they charge is 46ish and thats for up to 0.5kg comnig from the US/canada)

The amount your billed should be based on your invoice, which includes the amount you paid for delivery. The delivery agent will have all this information when they apply VAT, and if they don't, they can request an invoice. You can always query the billed amount, and provide the invoice to show how much you paid for the order.