Importing to the UK - VAT & Delivery info

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hsp123
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Mon Mar 10, 2014 6:12 am

Morning all,

I have a package coming from overseas and its currently awaiting customs clearance in Parcel Force.

As regards to Customs Duty/VAT, I bought the print for around $700 and had it insured up to £400 for peace of mind on its journey to me in the UK, its a rare print after all.

According to the duty calculator the total customs would see would be around £800 odd.

I assume then if the 5% VAT is correct the duty paid should be about 40.00?
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jampar5000
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Mon Mar 10, 2014 6:40 am

hsp123 wrote:Morning all,

I have a package coming from overseas and its currently awaiting customs clearance in Parcel Force.

As regards to Customs Duty/VAT, I bought the print for around $700 and had it insured up to £400 for peace of mind on its journey to me in the UK, its a rare print after all.

According to the duty calculator the total customs would see would be around £800 odd.

I assume then if the 5% VAT is correct the duty paid should be about 40.00?

if it has been marked correctly, it'll be 5%, but more than likely it will be for 20% of the total price (ie the marked value plus the shipping).
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LeeKaye wrote:I liked it, but I am trying to resist the lure of one more 'wafer thin print'
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LeeKaye
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Mon Mar 10, 2014 6:43 am

hsp123 wrote:Morning all,

I have a package coming from overseas and its currently awaiting customs clearance in Parcel Force.

As regards to Customs Duty/VAT, I bought the print for around $700 and had it insured up to £400 for peace of mind on its journey to me in the UK, its a rare print after all.

According to the duty calculator the total customs would see would be around £800 odd.

I assume then if the 5% VAT is correct the duty paid should be about 40.00?
Seems reasonable.
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hsp123
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Mon Mar 10, 2014 7:02 am

Thanks for the quick response,

I believe I will have to challenge my case as I don't think the print tube will be marked up unfortunately.

The waiting game begins...I will report back with how I get on this week.

Thanks

:)
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Fattyramone
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Mon Mar 10, 2014 8:02 am

hsp123 wrote:Thanks for the quick response,

I believe I will have to challenge my case as I don't think the print tube will be marked up unfortunately.

The waiting game begins...I will report back with how I get on this week.

Thanks

:)

Im assuming it will be sent USPS/Parcel Force ? ...if so , follow this advice (below) so try and pre-empt the problem occuring before it lands on your doorstep and ring border control right now , have your tracking number ready to quote to them and explain that it is "original artwork/limited edition print" .....DONT LET THE WORD "POSTER" LEAVE YOUR LIPS, ....

if the word "Poster" is written on the customs slip then your buggered basicaly , you may as well bend over the table right now and let them insert a pineapple up your arse leafy-side first.

first and formost it needs to be clear on the import sticker that its a "print" or "artwork" as they will liase with your local depot to confirm that that is the case....hopefully with the correct tarrif code on it as well.

We all know that they should read this info in the first place ...but we all know they dont! ...hense the fuss afterwards.

Right first off , you will recieve the letter from Parcel Force telling you how much you owe PF before they will hand it over to you , then you need to ring customs on 0845 0109000 ...keep the letter handy

You will then enter a miriad of option choices designed to make you give up! ....press the button that says "VAT import"

Eventually you will get thru to a human , explain the problem of being overcharged on VAT art import and have the correct tarrif to hand.

They will need to ring "The Border Agency" whilst you are put on hold , at this point it may get tricky. It looks like the Border Agency are difficult to get hold of and customs will only ring them 3 times at your instance that they try again before telling you to ring back again at another time ....if this happens you are back to square one again.

If they do get thru to Border Agency , they will get back to you and tell you the the Border Agency are looking in to it ...this is good.......ask for a reference number of the telephone call that youve just had with customs

Border Agency will then contact your local PF depot to ask what exactly is written on the import document/ sticker , if all is correct they will ring you back within about 48 hours telling you of their decision .

If their decision is favourable then they have to phone AND Fax the new charges through to PF before you get to pay the lower fee now due.

It will take about 8 days in total.
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Fattyramone
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Mon Mar 10, 2014 8:24 am

Suchanoo , ....What Ho Dave!

Dave , been thinking, how about you start another VAT thread in tandem with your existing thread that dilutes the relevent info that between us weve all gleaned together on dealing with the dreaded Border Control ands its various methods of dealing with the problems we all face with them?...and their solutions

I think a concise thread with all the info on one single page would serve a great purpose for all the UK newbies that come along asking the same (perfectly reasonable) questions , the solutions of which are now buried deep within your original VAT thread and now take some digging out or necessitate the tedious re-writing of.

You could weed out all the chaff (i.e. most of the nonsense what Paul writes :roll: ) and keep it relevent and pertinent to the solutions that are sought. And we could still use your original thread to chew over new solutions to new problems as and when they occur.
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suchanoo
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Mon Mar 10, 2014 8:44 am

I'll have a crack next time I have a quiet day at work Dai. I think I can download or copy it into a text file, edit it, and post it back into the thread. We can then use it as a standard quote-bump which can be updated each time it's used.
UK Member? Reclaim some VAT... http://forum.expressobeans.com/viewtopi ... =8&t=85994
shut your mouth and open your mind
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Fattyramone
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Mon Mar 10, 2014 8:58 am

OK mate , i wasnt meaning to chuck all the work onto your shoulders , I was thinking more along the lines of keeping both threads under your auspices seeing as it was you that kicked the first one off for us.

Its proved to be a very helpful and pertinant thread , i just think the time is right now for a more condensed "absolute info" partner for it.
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suchanoo
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Mon Mar 10, 2014 9:06 am

Yeah, maybe condense the stickied thread to just one or two pages of info, and then get it locked by a mod. Then turn this open thread into the UK VAT discussion thread?

Need input from a mod on this really.
UK Member? Reclaim some VAT... http://forum.expressobeans.com/viewtopi ... =8&t=85994
shut your mouth and open your mind
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Fattyramone
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Mon Mar 10, 2014 9:16 am

suchanoo wrote:Yeah, maybe condense the stickied thread to just one or two pages of info, and then get it locked by a mod. Then turn this open thread into the UK VAT discussion thread?

Need input from a mod on this really.

Yeah thats what i meant , keep this original VAT thread as it is for general info , inquiries and for posting up new info as it comes to light and have the new "condensed and absolute" VAT thread locked so that doesnt get swamped that we can post a link to for any newbies on the scene.

As it now with this thread getting to be 20 pages long its a bit much to ask a total newbie to re-read all of it to dig out the various nuggets of solid infomation that has been seeded in here (somewhere!)
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dearmrecho
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Thu Mar 13, 2014 5:56 am

I never heard back from Customs by phone but I just got a revised bill through from Parcel Force… down from £74 to £28.68 which is certainly more acceptable… and I can claim the VAT back… hell I might just claim both bills back and see them in hell!!!!

Thanks for all the info Fatty and Suchanoo. :)
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1nkling
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Thu Mar 13, 2014 6:01 am

A locked thread with all the info sounds like a good idea. Could maybe then change the other thread to a discussion and link to it in the summary for people who have further questions.

Thread could then be stickied too if its allowed.
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suchanoo
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Thu Mar 13, 2014 6:05 am

1nkling wrote:A locked thread with all the info sounds like a good idea. Could maybe then change the other thread to a discussion and link to it in the summary for people who have further questions.

Thread could then be stickied too if its allowed.
When I get the chance I'll get the summary thread made and posted, then we can figure it out from there. Might be good to leave it open for a while so we can have suggestions for editing, then when everyone is happy, lock it up.
UK Member? Reclaim some VAT... http://forum.expressobeans.com/viewtopi ... =8&t=85994
shut your mouth and open your mind
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Fattyramone
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Thu Mar 13, 2014 7:44 am

Just a thought Dave , you could break it down its its various component parts of who is doing the deliveries

..i.e. UPS or UPSP/parcel force....and other delivery couriers (Fex Ex etc)

It looks like for the most part the Mondo collectors get usps/parcel force , Obey = UPS. , Emek and Sperry = usps

It would be handy for any newbies in the future If between us we could compile a list of the likely couriers for the various artists we collect between us and outline the various problems and solutions involved with their usage.

I personaly am now a confirmed fan of UPS delivery (Obey) as although their postage is high , generaly in the $50 range, they are by far the easiest to get the problem of overcharging corrected there and then in front of the driver ....

Again , I've Just taken delivery today of last weeks Obey drop , and again (2nd time in 2 weeks) they have waivered ALL charges as an apology of getting it wrong AGAIN. (£17.21 down to £00.00) ...it took under 2 mins to do

You have the web link to the government customs reclaim form for claiming back retrospectively from Parcel Force , as well as the methodology from Andrew and myself for getting it changed BEFORE you pay up and take delivery.....albeit it adds a week before you get it in your hands.

Let me know and Ill gladly write a concise 100% no-fail-rate UPS solution for its inclusion on your new locked thread for you to post up.
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suchanoo
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Thu Mar 13, 2014 8:48 am

Start writing it up Dai, I should have time to get the summary bit done on Sunday. I'll post that bit, and then you can post your section. Just need to coordinate who is doing what. Then we can leave it open for comment, and then get it locked up.
UK Member? Reclaim some VAT... http://forum.expressobeans.com/viewtopi ... =8&t=85994
shut your mouth and open your mind
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