Import VAT Bill £59.54 on £150 item?

[Coinery 926]

Is anyone better in the know about these things?

I've just taken delivery of an item from Hong Kong (a ceramic Buddha), marked as a gift by the sender, and marked with a value of £150.

I've had to pay £46.04 Import VAT and £13.50 Clearance Fee, a total of £59.54, nearly 40% of the value of the item! That can't be right, surely?

Cost the guy £75 to send it, for goodness sake...going to nearly cost me that to take receipt of it!

[TomGoodheart 373]

Mmm .. Looks as if they have charged VAT (20%) on the full cost (value of item plus postage costs).

Sadly I believe that's correct. Or rather, that's what they are supposed to do. Because it's clearly pretty daft.

Guidelines here, in case you want to look them over: https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad

Ah, just seen. The VAT is also levied on the duty payable(!!) (in this case 2.5%) so that's been added to the value of the item and postage costs too. And which accounts for the odd amount I guess.

Edited June 23, 2015 by TomGoodheart

[Coinery 926]

Thanks, TG!

Crikey, that's just ludicrous. I'm amazed they can also levy it against the postage which has already been paid in full!

Goodness me, he'd better not send me anything else!

He assures me that they pay no import taxes at all in Hong Kong! I truly hope he's right?

[Coinery 926]

Yes, that all calculates out correctly!

£150 item, weighing 8kg and costing £75 to post, will cost you a whopping £60 to take receipt of, when Clearance Fees are included! Unbelievable!

Thanks for the link!

[azda 973]

We also get charged for the item plus the postage which i find insane, what has the postage got to do with the value, everyone has to pay postage.

Its the same with ebay now charging 10% on postage costs, why? They don't post it or pay any costs towards it.

And they say Buddhas Are Lucky charms lol. Ask him next time to drop the value to a tenner

Edited June 23, 2015 by azda

[copper123 1,352]

Sounds like it will be a lot cheaper to buy this sort of item from a wholesaler.

You will know better next time.

Rub that Buddhas belly and dream of not being ripped off

[TomGoodheart 373]

Oddly, if it were an antique or individually made and signed by the maker ceramic Buddha, it would have been cheaper. Only 5% VAT in those cases.

.

[Coinery 926]

Oddly, if it were an antique or individually made and signed by the maker ceramic Buddha, it would have been cheaper. Only 5% VAT in those cases.

.

Actually it is hand-made in a studio! I must check whether it's signed?

Though, hmmmm...I wonder how much hassle and paperwork I'd have to go through to get a partial refund on this basis?

This Buddha is the female incarnation, so I can go with the belly rubbing for luck!

And £10 next time? It would be my luck the thing would go missing and I'd lose EVERYTHING...bar a tenner, of course!

[bagerap 706]

If the shipping terms had been C.I.F. (Cost, Insurance & Freight) you would have paid duty on the insurance too.

[Coinery 926]

If the shipping terms had been C.I.F. (Cost, Insurance & Freight) you would have paid duty on the insurance too.

Isn't that just crazy?

In the silliness of this whole thing, I could well imagine a situation where I might be charged duty on the potter's riverside studio too, AND the chow mein his wife cooked for him that evening!

[TomGoodheart 373]

See Original sculptures and statuary section...

I've certainly claimed for reduction of VAT on coins. There's a form you can download and complete and then it's a matter of waiting for a decision..

.

Edited June 23, 2015 by TomGoodheart

[Peter 615]

Stewie

Cherry Lane garden centres knock out decent ones for £1.

BTW I love my tummy to be rubbed.

[copper123 1,352]

For £1 each you could use them as an alternative to clay pigeons >

"FORE" BANG!!!

[Coinery 926]

Cheers TG!

Tummy rubbed...NO!

Copper..."Pull!"

[Paulus 1,942]

LOL, yes, surely you are thinking of golf Copper, it's "PULL" !!

[copper123 1,352]

No doubt shooting Buddhas would go down badly with the PC brigade and be banned as being racist