Import Duty FROM Singapore to UK

[Alidoll]

Hiya,

Was wondering if anyone in the UK had purchased anything from Ebay sellers in Singapore and if so, if they were charged import duty etc...

Basically I've seen a scarf I like from a seller based in Singapore and don't want to end up paying lots more to get it sent from there than it would cost if I were to try and source it from the mothership. It would be about $860 including shipping...

Thanks

 

[Loony]

I've never had to pay any customs on parcels from ebay and I've bought from all over the world. I find that if something is posted by regular airmail then it's a lot more likely to sneak through unnoticed especially if the seller agrees to tick the Gift box. If it's shipped by a courier like FedEx or UPS then there's no chance of avoiding the fees.

 

[princessfrog]

Hi Alidoll,
I understand UK has VAT. Do you know what is the max cost of the item before it gets VAT?
Like in my Alaska, it's called goods and services tax and anything above a certain amount gets taxed and it is 7% right now.
Is it used, sometimes, when it's declared as used & gifts, they usually do not get duties. But that is at the discretion of the seller and it's at the sellers' loss if she would to do that. Personally, I won't try to compromise the seller.

 

[Alidoll]

Hi Alidoll,
I understand UK has VAT. Do you know what is the max cost of the item before it gets VAT?
Like in my Alaska, it's called goods and services tax and anything above a certain amount gets taxed and it is 7% right now.
Is it used, sometimes, when it's declared as used & gifts, they usually do not get duties. But that is at the discretion of the seller and it's at the sellers' loss if she would to do that. Personally, I won't try to compromise the seller.

The duty for goods arriving in the UK varies depending on the item so it's really difficult to work out before the parcel arrives how much it's going to cost. As a general rule, if it's under £36 then it's classified as a gift but any more then it's subject to between about 3-9% duty then 17.5% VAT and then there's usually a "handling fee" the carrier includes which for Parcelforce is £12..

By law the sender must complete the declaration of goods as accurately as possible as otherwise YOU [the receiver of the goods] could be fined...NOT the seller!!

Thing is, I've got a Japanese penfriend and usually when she sends me anything I don't have to pay duty [even when she's declared the item to be over the £36] so am wondering if anyone else had received goods from Singapore and not had to pay...the seller is Bagalley49 if that helps!