A little excessive?

NakedDex

Order was this.

Maruzen P99 GBB, Desert edition, Silencer, Tac light, extra mag
Maruzen P99 NBB, Fixed slide, Silencer, Tac light, extra mag

Total came to something like 320 dollars plus about 90 for shipping.


Arrived today, hit by customs again. This is the 6th time in a row I've been hit by customs. Normally I only order parts or battery cells etc, small things in other words with a total value of about 40 dollars. Customs on these was always about 10 euro. My two pistols have been hit with a bill for 95 euro! This can't possibly be right. Since when is cutoms duty 25-30% of the product value? Inclusive or exclusive of shipping this is silly. For that price I could have gone on holiday for a weekend to the UK and picked them up myself!

gandalf

Err its VAT as well, probably an "admin" fee also. I'd guesstimate based on exchange rates around €75 charge so €95 is well within possibilities.

Mark_Sc

My last order was €230, the invoice said €110 and i got charged €23 for VAT and €5 for handling charge or customs duty of sommit....hope that helps

you should ring them and ask them to break it down for you

NakedDex

Oh I know the bulk of it was VAT, I got the break down. Just seemed a little high to me. It's basically 50 euro VAT on pistols worth about 70 and 85. Is the import VAT rate different?

CrazyRabbit

NakedDex wrote:

Normally I only order parts or battery cells etc, small things in other words with a total value of about 40 dollars. Customs on these was always about 10 euro.

As far as I know, items under the value of €45 are considerd gifts and not liable to import tax/VAT. You should not have paid anything on those $40 orders (about 30 euro).

I don't have time right now to check up on this, but I'm 95% sure.

Shiva

CrazyRabbit wrote:

As far as I know, items under the value of €45 are considerd gifts and not liable to import tax/VAT. You should not have paid anything on those $40 orders (about 30 euro).

I don't have time right now to check up on this, but I'm 95% sure.

You're right...but I think they have to be declared as gifts on the packing slip - customs don't automatically assume they are.

kdouglas

dont forget that customs/vat is charged on the entire order, including p&p

and yes, it does have to be marked as a gift to avoid customs afaik

Voodoomelon

True, but the odd item does slip through.
My very large package arrived from Hong Kong with only half its value stamped; $245.75, and the package market as merchandise.

Slipped right through, delivered to the door in 3.5 days!

NakedDex

Everything I've had so far has been marked as gift? Maybe I'm just unlucky. I remember a few years ago anything that came from the states was opened and checked for customs reasons. Got nailed a lot there too. Maybe HK is the latest target

o1s1n

Be careful with what you say about import VAT. Don't want it to look like airsofters are a load of tax dodgers!

The labeling it as a gift/lowering the marked down price is a bit dubious. Some sites will do it, some sites won't. (Which would make me question the legality)

NakedDex, have you tried ringing up and asking them to break down the price? There could have been a currency confusion.

NakedDex

That is possible, I'll gove them a call tomorrow. It should be pointed out that I've never asked for anything to be marked as gift, it's always just been marked that way anyway. As O1s1n said, I'm not trying to dodge the tax, I'm more trying to understand why it's so high.

CrazyRabbit

o1s1n wrote:

Be careful with what you say about import VAT. Don't want it to look like airsofters are a load of tax dodgers!

The labeling it as a gift/lowering the marked down price is a bit dubious. Some sites will do it, some sites won't. (Which would make me question the legality)

NakedDex, have you tried ringing up and asking them to break down the price? There could have been a currency confusion.

Legally, you'd probably be ok, since it's the sender that declares the value of the item. Some sites appear to be willing to put themselves at risk by undervaluing the goods, but most sites won't.

The main problem would be if the order got lost. You could only make a claim against the Post Office for the declared value of the goods.

o1s1n

NakedDex wrote:

That is possible, I'll gove them a call tomorrow. It should be pointed out that I've never asked for anything to be marked as gift, it's always just been marked that way anyway. As O1s1n said, I'm not trying to dodge the tax, I'm more trying to understand why it's so high.

It wasn't anything to do with your query. Just didn't want the thread going that way. Import duty is a bit of a dodgy subject with people watching this forum. Especially as the things we import as so bloody expensive and (in certain cases) can add up to a lot of VAT.

CrazyRabbit wrote:

Legally, you'd probably be ok, since it's the sender that declares the value of the item. Some sites appear to be willing to put themselves at risk by undervaluing the goods, but most sites won't.

The main problem would be if the order got lost. You could only make a claim against the Post Office for the declared value of the goods.

Well, I wasn't so much concerned with the legal status of the recipient as I was was the transaction as a whole. I haven't a clue what the legalities are. It does come across as a bit shady though.

Anyway, back to the original conversation!

Yes, it could be a currency mix up. Long shot but I DO remember someone had that problem before. They charged the VAT on the dollar price and then some how it magically became Euro without doing a currency conversion.