Thank you for the reply! I agree with you I prefer to pay any tax or customs duty than paying the penalty. I am actually reallocate from work and would not like to create problems because of some Hermes bags. I thought sometimes they allow you to bring it as long as you prove you were not living in the US and bought while living in another country . Did you declare in the airplane or you can state verbally? Item by item or in general the total value and the pieces?
US Customs discussion - airports, importing
- Thread starter esyee
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I flew back home (USA) and the declaration forms are handed out on the plane- and customs is there for you right before the exit - very easy…good luck on your move- we’ve also moved internationally a few times and it can be overwhelming..
I seriously doubt you will have any problems moving with your bags - just take photos (your camera will have a date stamp) and document them in the move- that should be good enough to prove your ownership prior to your move - good luck !
Thank you! Our flight is at 10:30 and we should be at the airport by 7am. Hopefully the line is not that long. We are planning to go to customs first and then check in.
Since the instillation of the Pablo machine, there have really been no lines. If it works, great ( probably not with your bag being a reasonable amount of money). If not, then the official directs you to the window ( again, minimal to no line) to do the paperwork. You do not need to post the paperwork either any more, but can have the refund posted directly to your CC. Last time ( March) my refund was posted to my next CC cycle.
Hope you had a wonderful trip.
Hope you had a wonderful trip.
This is probably too late for you, but I wanted to answer with my experience.
I always felt like the amount should be the net of any VAT refund I have filed to get back. I figured that’s what I end up paying in the long run. And of course because that amount is less it would mean that my US duty would be less
.I have had multiple customs officials tell me the gross amount should be declared.
You don't get a refund of 20% though just a portion depending of the item, usually 10-12%. I always declare whatever is on the receipt.
Last time I came into the US from Europe, I was laughing with the CBP officer about there being only 2 people declaring items on a full flight from Paris. He told me that the detaxe folks in France do indeed send over notices of people who have filed detaxe - not always, but often, especially for large purchases. CBP will then look out for those folks and track them down if they don't declare.
This is probably too late for you, but I wanted to answer with my experience.
I always felt like the amount should be the net of any VAT refund I have filed to get back. I figured that’s what I end up paying in the long run. And of course because that amount is less it would mean that my US duty would be less
I have had multiple customs officials tell me the gross amount should be declared.
I agree with Sbelle as I feel it should be the net amount but I have been told to put the gross amount. That said, they frequently don’t try to do forex conversions so if you paid in € then it sort of evens out.
Is there any change to the procedure when traveling to another country/continent between the place of purchase and returning to the USA? I plan to make purchases while in France, then we going to Dubai for a week or so, then returning to the USA. I assume we still file for the VAT refund when leaving Europe/France and declare the purchase only when returning to the USA (and not declaring when entering Dubai, since that is not the final destination).
You will do detax/refund as normal when leaving Europe. When you enter Dubai, you'll have to prove that the purchases are for personal use (not resale) and your country of residence is not the UAE. If you only have a few items and not like 10 birkins new in box, 99.99% chance customs in UAE will not bother you. They are pretty lenient in the UAE with customs, generally they are looking for banned goods or items in very large quantities. There is nowhere to ask you to declare anything unless you are stopped. When you fly back to the US, you'll declare your purchases normally as purchased from France (as they ask what countries did you visit prior to entry in the US) and if they decide to tax you, you'll go through that process normally with CBP.