Are import duties for goods from Canada the same as for the US?

[DianaDreads]

Hmm, just debating whether or not to buy 72 prismacolour pencils off ebay for £14.49 plus £13.00 postage - it's such a bargain that I feel it would be rude not to! :D
But I would just like to check with some of you more experienced importers that the rules will be the same as for the US and I won't be liable to pay VAT on this as I really don't want to pay £8 for the joy of RM handling the parcel :eek:
Thanks for looking,
Diana x

[Phree]

Import duty is likely the same regardless of where it comes from so my guess is you can safely buy those pencils - its such a flippin GREAT BARGAIN at that price, it's probably worht the risk of paying duty..... but as you don't pay duty on stuff till you hit £18 which should only be the value of the goods .........NOT including shipping cost you should be good to go.!

[DianaDreads]

Thanks very much Phree, I had a feeling that you would be most likely to answer this question...not that I'm implying you buy lots from abroad of course! :D :eek: :p
ps they had 6 packs available last night if I can tempt anyone else :cool:

[sheilaj]

mmmm be careful, that 13.00 postage sounds like it might be hiding some of the item cost...if the customs think its the case then they will do you for the VALUE of the item, not what you paid for it....otherwise you could buy things in the US for 10p and pay £200 p and p and get away with it!

[Phree]

At the cost of Prismacolor pencils UK price......even WITH duty that's still a damn good bargain!

[Julie]

Just took a quick look at the Canadian Postal Service charges, sounds spot on to me. I guesstimated the size of the package and came up with £15 which is the cheapest air freight choice.

[DianaDreads]

Thanks guys, I ordered them yesterday and then decided to be brave and bid on a melt pot in the States which I got for £21 inc p&p!
This could be a very slippery slope when the import allowances increase :D

[Marie]

This is an extract from the Customs notice about imports which you may find useful! The title of the section is Internet Shopping so would cover anything you purchase on line.

"Currently, goods with a value of £18 or less can be imported from countries outside the EU free of customs duty and import VAT. From 1 December 2008, the value before customs duty becomes payable will rise to £105. However, the VAT limit is not changing and will remain at £18. Excise duties, where applicable, will also be unaffected."

Sadly in real life I'm a tax consultant so know where to look for these useless bits of information!

One point that is relevant is how the value is calculated - the basic rule is that the value is the cost of the goods, plus insurance and freight (or CIF as it's known). However in practice Customs often don't bother trying to collect small amounts of duty and VAT, in fact I've never paid VAT or duty on any personal imports from outside the UK or the EC. Hope this all helps.

[Prudence2]

Can you give the link please, looked on Ebay but couldn't find it.:)

[gill71]

Marie
May I just ask your advice?
I know the customs duty rate is rising to over £100 in December (can't wait!), but you have said that the VAT will remain at £18. How will this affect us buying anything from US?
Thanks
gill
x

[DianaDreads]

Luckily I saved them to favourite sellers, just in case I run out of pencils!
http://shop.ebay.co.uk/merchant/lotsofjoblots
They don't have the deal I got but there are some slightly more expensive deals that are still cheaper than uk prices.

[Marie]

okay what it means is that you don't pay any duty on goods valued at £105 or more, so you can spend up to £105 (remember this is the cost of the goods plus delivery and insurance) without paying any customs duty. BUT if the value of is £18 or more, then you pay VAT at 17.5% on the whole lot. So from December, if the value of your purchases is £100 (including delivery and insurance), you wouldn't pay any duty but you'd pay VAT of £17.50.
Just to complicate things, even if the value of the purchases is more than £105, if the duty that would be due is less than £7, than apparantly they waive the duty charge, although you would have to pay the VAT!
I hope this all makes sense, it is a complicated area. The best place to get info is on the HMRC website, Notice 143 (A guide for International Post users, see sections 2 and 3 I'll try to do a link later but I'm not very good at doing links) which explains the principles. It hasn't been updated for the changes from 1 December, they are mentioned in a separate document (I think it is VAT Notes no 2) again I'll try to do a link in a separate reply below.

[Marie]

here is the address: www.hmrc.gov.uk/thelibrary/import.htm. Click on the heading Public Notices and scroll down to notice 143. Sorry I can't get my head round doing links tonight, I can't seem to copy the URL of the specific sections, the address just goes out of the box!

[Marie]

even easier than all of that, go to the HMRC home page, www.hmrc.gov.uk, in the middle column there is a news section and the second item ""shopping on teh internet?" sets out the changes in full.
Marie

[gill71]

Thanks Marie for taking the time to explain and put the links in. It does get complicated, doesn't it?!

gill
x

[Prudence2]

Luckily I saved them to favourite sellers, just in case I run out of pencils!
http://shop.ebay.co.uk/merchant/lotsofjoblots
They don't have the deal I got but there are some slightly more expensive deals that are still cheaper than uk prices.

Thanks for the link:D