Ordering stuff from U.S. to europe, how-to?

[Spent&Bent]

I am really interested in buying something from the U.S., and having it shipped to the netherlands, but I am worrying about extra import costs and the risk of damage / losing stuff.
Because of that I am paying way too much on a lot of things

Can someone tell me what their experiences are buying overseas, costs involved, tips on reducing risks,etc. since I really would like to buy a emmeline / ppa / something from a private seller right now.

TIA!

 

[erik]

Hi,

I bought stuff from the US and had it shipped to the Netherlands.

I ordered from Headroom (er4p) and i had to pay about 60 euro`s import duty (it`s worth it though) so be careful. I was not charged on an amp (Headsave transit) and a cable (Zu pivot)

It sucks when you have to pay, but that`s how it is. Think of it this way: if the item was imported you probably pay the same amount anyway. Cheap price in dollars+shipping+tax compared to price of an officialy imported item in euros. Just look at the prices for Grado`s in the Netherlands.(sr-60 = 70 dollars/99euro)

If you want you can always have insurance on your shipment if you are worried


When you buy used gear i don`t think you have to pay import duties anyway. (as long as the seller writes on the box it is used stuff)

Good luck!

Erik

 

[00940]

Buy only from someone with a solid feedback and reputation, it could get messy quickly otherwise.

Pay with something offering you safety. Paypal is a good choice. But as european, you'll have to pay with a credit card => 3% fee + exchange rates will apply (total about 5.5%). You must be aware that some sellers could not accept a payment made by CC (read paypal rules to understand why).

Duty costs could be high indeed. Shipping is not that expensive (slightly more than having something shipped from France for example) but taxes could add quickly. Have the stuff declared as gift at least. Most of the times, it will pass without being taxed. Do not buy from a company. They would have to mark it as something commercial and, voila, 25% taxes on it (anything bought new online outside the EEC has to be taxed according to european laws). Some shops will send you stuff marked as gift, but it's not legal.

Always have stuff shipped airmail. Surface is too long, the longer it stays in the mail, the more chances to loose it. Ask the seller to pack it very carefully (mainly in the case of an amp), even if it means a few more bucks.

edit : sr60 at 99€ ain't so bad. Locally, it's 120€ !!

 

[Spent&Bent]

Thanks for the replies so far!

I understand the problems associated with the credit card payments, but what about just going to the bank and transfer the money directly into a regular account of the owner, isn't this possible??.

P.S. I paid 250 euro's for my SR-125, paying 125 dollars for them plus adding import tax,shipping, etc. would still be less....

 

[Fastjack]

I've bought my Etys on Ebay (US) and had them shipped to Germany. Must have been aroung June I guess. And last week I "finally" got the bill for taxes, duty and whatnot from the parcel service. 40 Euros. Ouch.

But that story about the SR-125 sounds even worse.

Problem is that you just can't get much of the stuff discussed on this forum in Europe. And if you can the prices (compared to US) make you weep.

My Headsave Transit came as a gift and I hope there won't be any more costs coming up. Well, I guess in about a year or so I'll know

BTW If somebody here knows a good (reasonably cheap) way to get a Grado SR-235 or an Echo Indigo please let me know.

 

[Spent&Bent]

Quote:

Originally posted by Fastjack I've bought my Etys on Ebay (US) and had them shipped to Germany. Must have been aroung June I guess. And last week I "finally" got the bill for taxes, duty and whatnot from the parcel service. 40 Euros. Ouch. But that story about the SR-125 sounds even worse. Problem is that you just can't get much of the stuff discussed on this forum in Europe. And if you can the prices (compared to US) make you weep. My Headsave Transit came as a gift and I hope there won't be any more costs coming up. Well, I guess in about a year or so I'll know BTW If somebody here knows a good (reasonably cheap) way to get a Grado SR-235 or an Echo Indigo please let me know.

The store I bought the 125's from in the netherlands isn't even the most expensive in this country..... so, yes it annoys the hell out of me.
Are you asking about the SR-325? I have seen those on ebay for 300 Euro's from a german seller, but the guy may be out of stock because I haven't seen him offer anything in the last two weeks or so except RS-1's which go for 700.

Today an american seller was offering 2 RS-2's for 200$ a piece, needless to say the offer was gone within 2 hours.
I responded to his sell, got an email back telling me it was okay and he was willing to sell me a pair, I went on to close the deal through the ebay system but could not go on because in the meantime (a few minutes after I found them) the items were already off the available items listing.

Grrrr!!!! well I'm hoping that he has kept one of the two pairs for me since I emailed I would buy one, it's been a good two hours since the last email from me to him and I'm still waiting.

http://cgi.ebay.nl/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?...tem=3053898871 for the items

 

[00940]

Quote:

Originally posted by Spent&Bent I understand the problems associated with the credit card payments, but what about just going to the bank and transfer the money directly into a regular account of the owner, isn't this possible??.

it is really far more expensive. But you can do it of course...

 

[Spent&Bent]

Thanks for the reply, the seller of the rs-2's emailed me back today saying that he was sorry but that he had to sell the two phones to the sellers that bought them even though I was faster with the email........god I hate this!!!!
Anyway he will keep an eye out for any new ones and promised me one.
Not that I will wait for that ofcourse... I'm willing to buy any used RS-1 /RS-2 at a fair price.

 

[Nisbeth]

Standard procedure (at least in Denmark) is as follows when buying from non-EU countries:

1) You pay the seller the purchase price and shipping costs by PayPal/creditcard/bank transfer/whatever.

2) If the items are caught in customs (most are), you'll have to pay local VAT (25% here - is it 20% in Holland?) of the full amount (meaning both purchase price and shipping costs). For certain articles, there is an additional import duty that you must pay. On audio equipment this is usually ~3%, but if you're not sure, check it with a postal/customs office first.

3) In addition to these charges, whoever handles the customs procedure (courier, postal service etc.) will charge you a fee for handling the paperwork (The Danish postal service charges me ~10 euros depending on how many different articles are on the invoice, but couriers such as UPS and DHL may be considerably more expensive).

4) If no invoice is shipped along with the items, you will receive a letter from the customs authority asking you to state the contents of the package, the purpose of the import (gift, sample, merchandise, documents without commercial value etc.), the value of the shipment and perhaps even the country of origin for the items. VAT and import duty will (usually) not be added to samples and gifts.

5) The VAT and duties should in most cases be paid cash on delivery, but some couriers will deliver the package and then bill you later to save time and aid swift delivery.

I am certain the general principles are the same in Holland, but the rates will most likely vary a bit. Before deciding on a means of shipment, be sure to check the fees for processing the customs form first. AFAIK some couriers can charge 20-30 euros for this, which I think is outrageous (especially if the postal service will do it for 10

).

Hope this helps!

/U.

 

[Spent&Bent]

Thanks, I have called customs already.... I have to pay 19 % tax plus 3 % import duties, but I had a hell of a time explaining to the guy what I was buying...kept me waiting on the phone for at least 5 minutes before he figured out in which class heaphones would fall.
Not sure about the extra money I may have to pay to the courier, I will mail the seller back on this since I'm actually in the process of getting something shipped.

I just hope my purchase will slip through, 22 % is a lot.

 

[Nisbeth]

Quote:

Originally posted by Spent&Bent I just hope my purchase will slip through, 22 % is a lot.

Keep your fingers crossed! If you add up everything, I paid 35% extra for the PPA board and parts I bought a few weeks ago

If what you're buying is shipped by courier you almost certainly have to pay for them. With standard post you have a chance of avoiding the charges though (even if it is a small chance).

/U.

EDIT: As someone mentioned above, getting the seller to write that the items are used might help you avoid charges.

 

[Anders]

It is no idea asking the seller what will happen in your country with taxes, fees for the customs declaration etc. They don't know.
The cheapest shipping on small items as headphones is usually the US Postal Services (if the seller has that option). It usually takes about a week from US to Sweden. It happens that the seller states a delivery time of 2 - 3 weeks but I think this is for safety because the delivery time can be longer to some countries.

It is not unusal that small USPS packages slip though the customs without duty, but almost never on courier freight.

 

[marios_mar]

Fastjack why did the bill delay so long? Did you know that you would get it or did it come as a surprise?

How is one supposed to know if he is charged or not?

Anybody else had similar experiences.

A few months ago I received a PDA from the USA that I bought on eBay. The seller checked "gift" but wrote $150 value. That was pretty stupid! Anyway the package was from the USPS but they delivered it at my house and not at my box where they usually put my stuff. Just like a couriere. The paper with the bill was from Germany. Thats where they calculated the costs etc. Strange huh?

Does used stuff get tax on it?



And also some people mention that they make you pay 20% for example of the value. How do they know they value? Do they calculate with the price new? Because I am buying K1000s from the US. If they say 20% of $1000 i totally screwed. What do you think?

 

[Music Fanatic]

With the dollar so weak against European currencies these days, now is definitely the time to order from the US. Almost any merchant will ship to Europe.

 

[tortie]

Have the price posted at a lower value. The downside is that if it gets lost, your insurance claim will be that low value. The best way is to have it marked as a "gift" or "sent for warranty repairs" so that you could insure it at its true value.

I know the frustration of paying customs taxes. I once paid about $100 for shipping and taxes on a headphone purchase because I asked the seller to do this, he agreed and did not do it anyway