New Import Duty/VAT Thread. Read Post #1 for Rules Updated 10/9/2024

RUDOLF289 · 10-06-2010 11:17am

YourName wrote: »

Hi,

I am buying a roof bag for the car (a material alternative to a roof box) form California because it is much cheaper than normal. Overall it works out to be about E80, so through my calculations that is 16.80 in VAT. Do I need to pay duty??? Also I presume this doesn't qualify for a lower band of VAT no???

Is there any way of declaring it and paying the VAT up front so you don;t end up with the handling charge from the delivery company, it will be delivered by FedEx, if that makes any difference.

Thanks

Hello YourName,

If the duty amounts to less than 10 Euro, the duty will be waived (see my previous post). VAT will be calculated at 21%.

Unless you come to an arrangement with the supplier whereby you pay them the VAT due on the consignment and they instruct the courier to bill the VAT due to them, I don't see how you can avoid paying the handling fee levied by FEDEX.

Cheers,
Rudolf289

RUDOLF289 · 10-06-2010 11:21am

rh5555 wrote: »

Also if I were to buy vitamins from the u.s. that counts as food supplements and are VAT free in Ireland (as far as I know) does the E22 limit for VAT still apply? I mean can they charge VAT on something imported into Ireland that is VAT exempt here?

Thanks

Hello rh5555,

in relation to the VAT exemption. If the same goods are available in Ireland and are VAT free, then no VAT should be levied at the time of import, regardless of the value.

If you are being charged VAT, you should appeal that and request a refund.

Regards,
Rudolf289

Gaspode · 10-06-2010 11:47am

jor el wrote: »

There is a handling fee, and it can be up to €15. If the duty and vat come to €14, then €4 would seem rather low for a courier's fee (they normally charge the full €15).

If the duty and VAT are €18, then you could be looking at another €15 on top. You'll need to wait until you see the actual bill and amount.

Thanks for replies all.
As it turned out, the bill for €18.91 was from the customs, DHL didnt add anything.
DHL have explained that the customs guys couldnt find the delivery costs on the invoice (there weren't any, delivery was free!) so they estimated it.
The value of the goods was put down as Y6000 by the company sending the parcel, which is about €31, half the actual value. They didnt mention delivery so it looks like customs estimated it at around €45-50.

I've paid a few quid more than I should have, but not enough to be arsed chasing it back from customs.

rh5555 · 11-06-2010 9:43pm

Wait, so now if you get something with free shipping they just put a value on shipping anyways so they can charge you some VAT/duty. Now that is really messed up.

Whats next? If they think the company that sent you an item should have charged more, they just add a few Euros?

dillo2k10 · 24-06-2010 3:12pm

Hi,
I just wanted to make sure that I was correct in saying that there is no customs charges from anywhere in the EU.
I want to order an iphone from the apple online store france and use a mail forwarding service to have it forwarded to me. Does apple ship their items from france or the US.

jor el · 24-06-2010 5:21pm

If you order from Apple Europe, it will be posted from within the EU. VAT and duty paid.

freeze4real · 25-06-2010 7:02pm

hi all

i am buying an iphone 3g 16gb for 220usd including shipping.
im a little bit worried about import tax.

i told the seller to ship it with the standard posting service of the united states which is like anpost in the USA.

is ther a possibility that i will be charged for import duties.

if so by how much.

thanks

jor el · 25-06-2010 10:24pm

Read post #1

Princess Fiona · 26-06-2010 11:16am

Hi everyone,
Many moons ago, it was possible to order goods from the USA and if shipped by USPS they'd normally slip through the net re. extra charges.
Anyone know the current situation? Have heard there's been a clampdown.
Thinking of ordering a $198 bag with free shipping but don't want to get stung with a host of extra charges.
Thanks in advance!

jor el · 26-06-2010 4:58pm

No one can answer that, as there's no way to know what will happen. Do not buy anything from outside the EU if you're not prepared to pay the VAT and handling fee.

Princess Fiona · 27-06-2010 12:16pm

Thanks for the reply, I realise there's no way to know for definite, just wondering what people's recent experiences of this have been.

The Lovely Muffin · 10-07-2010 6:05pm

If I bought something online from the USA and it cost's $31.99 USD (including shipping), roughly how much tax/duty/vat would I have to pay if customs opened my package?

I'm talking about cosmetics/skincare.

Thanks.

jor el · 11-07-2010 12:00pm

Have you read post #1, because the answer is there.

The Lovely Muffin · 11-07-2010 3:33pm

jor el wrote: »

Have you read post #1, because the answer is there.

Yeah, but I'm confused.

Do I add 21% onto $31.99 USD or whatever $31.99 is in Euros?

jor el · 12-07-2010 12:16am

It doesn't matter what currency you choose, you'll pay in € anyway. 21% is always 21%.

The Lovely Muffin · 13-07-2010 1:48pm

jor el wrote: »

It doesn't matter what currency you choose, you'll pay in € anyway. 21% is always 21%.

Thank you.

So I'll add the VAT/Tax/Duty onto the USD price and hopefully it'll be right anyway.

jor el · 13-07-2010 1:55pm

It doesn't matter what currency you add the tax to, it'll be the same when you convert it to euro.

Duty won't apply.

nlgbbbblth · 18-07-2010 3:43pm

Last month I had to pay duty on two CD box sets from Rhino.com. Sent via regular USPS. Seems to be tighter than before.

cork-spotters · 20-07-2010 1:53pm

I'm looking to import a musical instrument from the US.
The instrument is about 50-60 years old and was originally manufactured in Germany, then at some point (either immediately after manufacture, or at a later date) was imported TO the US.

As it originally came from Europe, would TAX/DUTY still be payable on it?

If I collected the instrument in person and brought it back with my by air, what are the chances of getting pulled going through customs?

jor el · 20-07-2010 9:14pm

You're buying it in, and importing it from, the US, so the fact that it originates in Germany is irrelevant.

jocko4 · 21-07-2010 1:42am

If you have sold an item to a person outside the EU & they are sending it back for repair, how can this be handled so as VAT & duty are not applicable - it will be exported again after repair?

r-i-tect · 29-07-2010 9:14pm

Just been asked to send in my Paypal receipt, how did they know I used paypal

RUDOLF289 · 30-07-2010 11:12am

r-i-tect wrote: »

Just been asked to send in my Paypal receipt, how did they know I used paypal

They (I presume customs ?) would have gone on the law of average that items bought over the Internet have been bought using paypall. Nothing more sinister than that.

Cheers,
Rudolf289

jor el · 30-07-2010 1:13pm

RUDOLF289 wrote: »

They (I presume customs ?) would have gone on the law of average that items bought over the Internet have been bought using paypall. Nothing more sinister than that.

No, they wouldn't do that. There must be some form of invoice with the package, and Paypal must be printed on it.

freeze4real · 30-07-2010 3:06pm

last month i bought an iphone from the usa.
it cost 150euro along with postage.
it was shipped via usps priority mail international.

it wasnt labelled as gifts but for some reason i didnt get taxed.

Any idea why?

DYLF · 04-08-2010 5:55pm

jocko4 wrote: »

If you have sold an item to a person outside the EU & they are sending it back for repair, how can this be handled so as VAT & duty are not applicable - it will be exported again after repair?

when they send it they will need to mark it for "repair and return".. you may also need to get an import SAD from when you sent it to prove it was shipped from you originally

jocko4 · 04-08-2010 6:24pm

DYLF wrote: »

when they send it they will need to mark it for "repair and return".. you may also need to get an import SAD from when you sent it to prove it was shipped from you originally

Thanks DYLF,
What's an import SAD. Most of the customs stuff leaves me sad but not as bad as the €600 charge that a girl down the road was being charged for a wedding dress from the US (The post guy who called to me looking for import duty was telling me that this was his next call)

He also told me about the powers of these guys - they can walk into your home without a warrant & take ownership of anything. He told me of a case (this might be urban legend stuff) that a politician's wife grabbed the package (cosmetics) off the postman & slammed the door on him - didn't pay the duty. After ignoring numerous payment request letters, they nabbed her driving her BMW out of the driveway, put it immediately to auction & the first bid got it - a €40,000 car bought for €4,000 - they took their cut (& you can imagine the handling charges were high

& gave her the loose change left!

DYLF · 05-08-2010 10:51am

jocko4 wrote: »

He also told me about the powers of these guys - they can walk into your home without a warrant & take ownership of anything. He told me of a case (this might be urban legend stuff) that a politician's wife grabbed the package (cosmetics) off the postman & slammed the door on him - didn't pay the duty. After ignoring numerous payment request letters, they nabbed her driving her BMW out of the driveway, put it immediately to auction & the first bid got it - a €40,000 car bought for €4,000 - they took their cut (& you can imagine the handling charges were high & gave her the loose change left!

wouldnt believe that for a second.. if it is not paid it would usually be passed on to a debt collection agency to recover the debt...

SAD - Single Administrive Document
every shipment coming into or going out of the country has one of these done up for it. so if you need proff of import or export you just neeed to contact the courier you sent it with / recieved it from and they should be able to provide this for you

jocko4 · 05-08-2010 11:18am

DYLF wrote: »

wouldnt believe that for a second.. if it is not paid it would usually be passed on to a debt collection agency to recover the debt...

Yea, a bit of an urban legend about the whole story, I thought

SAD - Single Administrive Document
every shipment coming into or going out of the country has one of these done up for it. so if you need proff of import or export you just neeed to contact the courier you sent it with / recieved it from and they should be able to provide this for you

What if it's being posted - do the post office have such a document?

allthedoyles · 05-08-2010 1:39pm

Hi
Just checked tracking ona parcel from China , and it says that my item ( cosmetics ) has been sent to Customs from the Dublin Mail Centre .

What happens next and can I ring the Customs for an update ?

jor el · 05-08-2010 1:49pm

You wait for it to be delivered, at which time you'll be asked to pay.

Grumpypants · 05-08-2010 2:06pm

You will either get a letter saying you owe X amount for vat or you will get a letter saying it is fake and is being destroyed.

allthedoyles · 05-08-2010 2:26pm

Grumpypants wrote: »

You will either get a letter saying you owe X amount for vat or you will get a letter saying it is fake and is being destroyed.

Just what we thought would happen - Wonder will they value the goods at Irish prices for VAT purposes

Could it be cash on delivery or will we have 30 days to pay vat

jor el · 05-08-2010 3:13pm

allthedoyles wrote: »

Just what we thought would happen - Wonder will they value the goods at Irish prices for VAT purposes

If there is no invoice with the delivery, they could value it themselves, or ask you to show your receipt.

allthedoyles wrote: »

Could it be cash on delivery or will we have 30 days to pay vat

It could be either.

boardsiebob · 08-08-2010 10:05pm

Hi,
why is Revenue sometimes asking for Paypal receipts? Is it that they don't believe the declared value? Do they run the package through a x-ray machine or something?
Some Ebay sellers advertise that they will declare value below $30 to avoid vat and duty but this isn't going to work, or is it?

jor el · 09-08-2010 1:31am

As well as declaring a value on the outside of any parcel, there should also be a description of the contents. This is how customs know whether the value sounds too low. They can also open and inspect it if they want to.

DYLF · 09-08-2010 3:57pm

boardsiebob wrote: »

Hi,
Is it that they don't believe the declared value?

this is exactly it. if you cant provide something to prove what you paid for it they will put their own value on it.. which of course is usually way more than you've paid for it

boardsiebob · 09-08-2010 8:48pm

I want to buy an electronic inverter of Ebay from China, valued around 250euro.
I am VAT registered. The parcel is send with DHL.
Can I expect to pay import charges? I read that if you are VAT registered and import duty is 10 euro or less Revenue may not charge you import or VAT on the item. This is for a once off item not for continuous supply.
Has anyone any experience with this situation?
thanks

quinnd6 · 10-08-2010 10:59pm

They're ripping me off by 16 euros for a media player I bought from Hong Kong on ebay that should have been 50 euro bringing it to 66 euros.
So that was like 21% vat and 6 euros for handling it, though I didn't want the mean buggers to get their grubby hands on it in the first place.:mad:

I'm afraid to buy games or anything outside Europe in future now incase I get stung again.
The rule of thumb seems to be if you buy something from outside Europe and the value is over 22 Euros you can get screwed by customs, correct me if I'm wrong.

jor el · 11-08-2010 12:08am

quinnd6 wrote: »

The rule of thumb seems to be if you buy something from outside Europe and the value is over 22 Euros you can get screwed by customs, correct me if I'm wrong.

You are wrong. You don't get ripped off or screwed, you imported goods and you pay the tax. Simple as that.

allthedoyles · 11-08-2010 9:40am

jor el wrote: »

If there is no invoice with the delivery, they could value it themselves, or ask you to show your receipt.
.

OK - so Revenue are looking for a receipt for the 57 USD which is value of packet they have confiscated .

However the Paypal receipt is for a total of 350 USD as we purchased multiple items , but Revenue only held onto one item.

If we produce receipt for the 300 USD , will revenue now go looking for infromation on the other items received ?

jor el · 11-08-2010 10:05am

allthedoyles wrote: »

If we produce receipt for the 300 USD , will revenue now go looking for infromation on the other items received ?

Possibly. You're only alternative would be to ignore then and they will not release the confiscated item. Ignoring customs officials is not usually a very good idea either.

quinnd6 · 11-08-2010 11:57am

jor el wrote: »

You are wrong. You don't get ripped off or screwed, you imported goods and you pay the tax. Simple as that.

Ok.
When did they bring in this rule?
Is it relatively new or has it been around a good while?

jor el · 11-08-2010 12:10pm

quinnd6 wrote: »

Ok.
When did they bring in this rule?
Is it relatively new or has it been around a good while?

Since we joined the EEC in 1973.

allthedoyles · 11-08-2010 12:28pm

A quick google of www.revenue.ie tells me this :

– VAT on imports for intra-EU trade was abolished with effect from 1/1/93, However, Import VAT still exists for goods imported from outside the EU.

and ...............

Where goods are being imported from outside the EU by VAT registered traders VAT and Duty at the appropriate rates will be charged at the point of entry

But I am not a VAT registered trader /?

rubadub · 11-08-2010 12:42pm

quinnd6 wrote: »

I'm afraid to buy games or anything outside Europe in future now incase I get stung again.

If you buy a game online from an irish retailer like www.gamesnash.ie then you are being "stung" for VAT too, only the postman does not collect it. So if you buy a game from play.com for €25 and gamesnash charge €30 then really gamesnash are making less profit as the 21% of VAT on the play.com game will bring it to €30.25 -also you do not have to pay the handling fees.

I think there is some way you can avoid the handling fee by informing them about the "import" in advance.

I find you are more likely to be charged when ordering from big boys like play.com, I imagine the stuff comes in consignments and an post can have a dedicated team picking out play.com items as they are so similar it would be easier to process them.

quinnd6 · 11-08-2010 1:16pm

I bought games from play.com a few times before and never got stopped by customs. They've usually got great deals on games so that's a real shame.

So then if a game is reduced to 25 euros on play.com you could end up paying 35 euros or more thanks to handling and VAT.

Though I guess if you buy from one of the sellers selling the item who is registered with play.com and is based in the UK you could avoid the problem assuming they're selling at a decent price.
Do play.com mark their items as gifts though?
Cos in that case would you be ok buying an item as long as it wasn't over 45 Euros?

jor el · 11-08-2010 1:30pm

allthedoyles wrote: »

But I am not a VAT registered trader /?

Then the bits on VAT registered traders don't apply to you. Anything and everything you import from outside of the EU is subject to duty (if valued over €150) and VAT (if valued over €22). There's no way around that.

jor el · 11-08-2010 1:36pm

quinnd6 wrote: »

I bought games from play.com a few times before and never got stopped by customs. They've usually got great deals on games so that's a real shame.

They can't assess every piece of mail, so a lot of stuff gets through. They just do what they can with the limited number of people looking at them.

quinnd6 wrote: »

Though I guess if you buy from one of the sellers selling the item who is registered with play.com and is based in the UK you could avoid the problem assuming they're selling at a decent price.

Yes, if the seller posts from within the EU, then VAT and duty have already been paid.

quinnd6 wrote: »

Do play.com mark their items as gifts though?

Doesn't matter if they do, the customs people are not stupid enough to believe that Play.com are sending you gifts. Gift marking on packages is a waste of time, and only something people do to make it look like they can do something. There will be an invoice in the package showing that you paid money for it, therefore it's not a gift.

quinnd6 wrote: »

Cos in that case would you be ok buying an item as long as it wasn't over 45 Euros?

If it's obvious that it's a retail purchase, then the gift declaration is void.

quinnd6 · 11-08-2010 1:49pm

Great thanks for answering all the questions.
It is good to know this.

New Import Duty/VAT Thread. Read Post #1 for Rules Updated 10/9/2024

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