Ordering from Digital Rev

Ghostx

Well lads,

Looking at cameras there on DigitalRev.com, and I'm just wondering has anybody ordered from them before? They have good prices, but what I'm worried about is the import tax Just wondering if you got charged the tax, and was it expensive?

oshead

Yes you pay duty and vat on the cost of the item and shipping too from hongkong. If the item is located in the UK it costs a bit more but no duty or vat.

Ghostx

oshead wrote: »

Yes you pay duty and vat on the cost of the item and shipping too from hongkong. If the item is located in the UK it costs a bit more but no duty or vat.

Is there a certain percent of duty? Like, is it based on the price of the item? and If so, what % is it?

kfish2oo2

Ghostx wrote: »

Is there a certain percent of duty? Like, is it based on the price of the item? and If so, what % is it?

When I bought from Digital Rev, tax was included on the sites price lists and import duty was added at the checkout. Import duty tends to be based on weight and not on the value of the item.

You will probably have to e-mail a copy of your receipt from Digital Rev to the Customs office (they'll send you a letter), but they won't charge you anything as Digital Rev have already taken import duty into account.

Ghostx

kfish2oo2 wrote: »

When I bought from Digital Rev, tax was included on the sites price lists and import duty was added at the checkout. Import duty tends to be based on weight and not on the value of the item.

You will probably have to e-mail a copy of your receipt from Digital Rev to the Customs office (they'll send you a letter), but they won't charge you anything as Digital Rev have already taken import duty into account.

The import handling charge? Thats the import duty right?

Thanks very much for that reply, never really noticed until you said it to me

jpb1974

When I bought from Digital Rev, tax was included on the sites price lists and import duty was added at the checkout. Import duty tends to be based on weight and not on the value of the item.

You will probably have to e-mail a copy of your receipt from Digital Rev to the Customs office (they'll send you a letter), but they won't charge you anything as Digital Rev have already taken import duty into account.

I don't believe that this advice is correct (but it has been a long time since I bought outside the EU).

Sellers in Hong Kong do not collect taxes on behalf of the Irish Revenue.
Customs Import tax and VAT are collected by the Irish Revenue often via the carrier agent who is transporting the goods into Ireland e.g. An Post, DHL UPS etc.


Typically the charges you pay include:

Import Duty
VAT
Handling Charge - imposed by the logistics company

The Import Duty is not based on the weight of the goods, it is based on the type of goods.

Import Duty and VAT are charged on the cost of the goods + shipping costs.

The Handling Charge is usually a flat rate fee and can vary based on the carrier agent.

When the goods arrive in Ireland they are typically inspected by the revenue, the value and type of goods are ascertained (assuming there is a valid invoice supplied with the goods) and then the duties, taxes and charges are calculated accordingly. Depending on the carrier either the revenue will then send you a letter requesting that the charges are paid in advance or the courier will request payment upon delivery.

Ghostx

jpb1974 wrote: »

I don't believe that this advice is correct (but it has been a long time since I bought outside the EU).

Sellers in Hong Kong do not collect taxes on behalf of the Irish Revenue.
Customs Import tax and VAT are collected by the Irish Revenue often via the carrier agent who is transporting the goods into Ireland e.g. An Post, DHL UPS etc.


Typically the charges you pay include:

Import Duty
VAT
Handling Charge - imposed by the logistics company

The Import Duty is not based on the weight of the goods, it is based on the type of goods.

Import Duty and VAT are charged on the cost of the goods + shipping costs.

The Handling Charge is usually a flat rate fee and can vary based on the carrier agent.

When the goods arrive in Ireland they are typically inspected by the revenue, the value and type of goods are ascertained (assuming there is a valid invoice supplied with the goods) and then the duties, taxes and charges are calculated accordingly. Depending on the carrier either the revenue will then send you a letter requesting that the charges are paid in advance or the courier will request payment upon delivery.

When I add them to my basket I get this message where the price is.

An import handling charge has already been included in the above price. There is no further import tax/duty to pay.

So, I'm extremely confused now.. Does that mean that I won't have to pay additional costs when it arrives in this country? Maybe they have something set up with the Irish revenue?

jpb1974

It's either the case that -

1. The goods will ship from the UK, in which case there is no customs/VAT to pay

2. The instruct their carrier to charge any taxes back to them

or

3. They pull a fast one on the invoice declaration

Ghostx

jpb1974 wrote: »

It's either the case that -

1. The goods will ship from the UK, in which case there is no customs/VAT to pay

2. The instruct their carrier to charge any taxes back to them

or

3. They pull a fast one on the invoice declaration

As far as I know they're shipped from Hong Kong, and Digital Rev seem like a pretty reputable company so I guess they must be instructing their carrier to charge the taxes back to them.

The item is €772.49 without any taxes or duties, and then they said the Import Handling Charge is €162.22 bringing the total to €934.71 without shipping. Shipping is an extra €66 so everything sounds about right to me.

jpb1974

There are Hong Kong based sellers that will ensure that what you pay at checkout is all you pay... so in this regard I would say DigitalRev are legit.

Let us know how it goes.

Ghostx

jpb1974 wrote: »

There are Hong Kong based sellers that will ensure that what you pay at checkout is all you pay... so in this regard I would say DigitalRev are legit.

Let us know how it goes.

I just sent them an email there, just asking for a solid confirmation.

kfish2oo2

jpb1974 wrote: »

I don't believe that this advice is correct (but it has been a long time since I bought outside the EU).

Sellers in Hong Kong do not collect taxes on behalf of the Irish Revenue.
Customs Import tax and VAT are collected by the Irish Revenue often via the carrier agent who is transporting the goods into Ireland e.g. An Post, DHL UPS etc.


Typically the charges you pay include:

Import Duty
VAT
Handling Charge - imposed by the logistics company

The Import Duty is not based on the weight of the goods, it is based on the type of goods.

Import Duty and VAT are charged on the cost of the goods + shipping costs.

The Handling Charge is usually a flat rate fee and can vary based on the carrier agent.

When the goods arrive in Ireland they are typically inspected by the revenue, the value and type of goods are ascertained (assuming there is a valid invoice supplied with the goods) and then the duties, taxes and charges are calculated accordingly. Depending on the carrier either the revenue will then send you a letter requesting that the charges are paid in advance or the courier will request payment upon delivery.

You haven't had personal, first hand experience with Digital Rev, and therefore I don't know why you're talking like an authority on this issue.

I bought from Digital Rev directly. The receipt I received from them clearly showed the (Irish) tax and import duty. The goods were shipped from Hong Kong and arrived about a week after I ordered. I e-mail a copy of the receipt to the Revenue Commission of Ireland, as per their request in their letter, and they immediately released the package and sent it on to me. I had no issues with the Revenue Commission and I had no extra fee's or taxes to pay. This was in April of this year.

From what I understand of international e-tailers, the chances are that Digital Rev passed the tax and import duty on to the delivery company (DHL in this case) who then paid the Revenue Commission on arrival in Ireland. Whatever the case, the Revenue Commission had no issues with the receipt I sent them, and did not request any further payments whatsoever.

Just because the company is located in Hong Kong does not make them disreputable or shady - a visit to their website will show that they are a professional business specializing in photography equipment. They make numerous videos around the subject of photography (an expensive process) and clearly invest plenty of time and energy into providing a good all round experience for their customers and site visitors. Does this really sound like the kind of thing a shady, borderline illegal company would do? To be honest, I've had a hell of a lot more hassle with Irish companies that operate here than I ever have with Digital Rev.

Myself and several of my friends have bought from Digital Rev in the past and none of us have had issues with unexpected costs, warranty issues or returns.

jpb1974

You haven't had personal, first hand experience with Digital Rev

Where did I state that?

I don't know why you're talking like an authority on this issue.

I didn't realize that I was... but thanks for letting me know

Does this really sound like the kind of thing a shady, borderline illegal company would do?

Are you asking me?

Good luck with the purchase OP

Ghostx

kfish2oo2 wrote: »

You haven't had personal, first hand experience with Digital Rev, and therefore I don't know why you're talking like an authority on this issue.

I bought from Digital Rev directly. The receipt I received from them clearly showed the (Irish) tax and import duty. The goods were shipped from Hong Kong and arrived about a week after I ordered. I e-mail a copy of the receipt to the Revenue Commission of Ireland, as per their request in their letter, and they immediately released the package and sent it on to me. I had no issues with the Revenue Commission and I had no extra fee's or taxes to pay. This was in April of this year.

From what I understand of international e-tailers, the chances are that Digital Rev passed the tax and import duty on to the delivery company (DHL in this case) who then paid the Revenue Commission on arrival in Ireland. Whatever the case, the Revenue Commission had no issues with the receipt I sent them, and did not request any further payments whatsoever.

Just because the company is located in Hong Kong does not make them disreputable or shady - a visit to their website will show that they are a professional business specializing in photography equipment. They make numerous videos around the subject of photography (an expensive process) and clearly invest plenty of time and energy into providing a good all round experience for their customers and site visitors. Does this really sound like the kind of thing a shady, borderline illegal company would do? To be honest, I've had a hell of a lot more hassle with Irish companies that operate here than I ever have with Digital Rev.

Myself and several of my friends have bought from Digital Rev in the past and none of us have had issues with unexpected costs, warranty issues or returns.

Yeah i'm a big fan of Digital Rev on youtube, and because of them videos I trust them very much..
I'll most likely order from them, and hopefully I don't encounter any problems.
Thank you for your reply on the matter

jpb1974

From what I can see they have charged you 21% VAT (Irish rate) on the cost of your purchase (€772.49) which equates to €162.22.

They have assumed that there is no import duty and I believe that this is correct as photographic products such as cameras and lenses are exempt.

They have charged you no VAT on the cost of shipping (which really the should have... but who's complaining).

They probably have an arrangement whereby pass this money onto their carrier who will pay the revenue on the Irish side when it arrives.

Hope this helps and sorry if there was any confusion