question for Dutch headfi-ers: custom payments

[Tiemen]

I'm thinking of ordering a headphone in the USA.
But I wonder if the Dutch custom will led it pass, or that I have to pay extra money for taxes and so on.
Does anyone have experiences regarding this?

 

[dura]

It's am atter of luck; I ordered lots of stuff from the US, usually it goes well, sometimes a parcell 'disappears' in track&trace for a week or more and then it's in customs, waiting to be checked, and then you pay.

 

[digitalmind]

Generally a question of luck. Packages with a value below roughly €150 and marked 'Gift' are usually delivered without extra costs. Above that, and from experience, it's a 50/50 shot of being hit with an addition 21% or not. If the package was sent through Fedex and you don't immediatly get a bill, it can still come weeks later.
Check your mail if you're expecting a package though, I've had an amp held up at customs for three weeks because I didn't notice the letter from customs inquiring about what was in the package and it's value.

 

[Tiemen]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dura /img/forum/go_quote.gif It's am atter of luck; I ordered lots of stuff from the US, usually it goes well, sometimes a parcell 'disappears' in track&trace for a week or more and then it's in customs, waiting to be checked, and then you pay.

Thanks for the reply.
How much do you pay extra for, let's say, a 200,- Dollar buy?

 

[Dzjudz]

What's the rate now, 18%? And custom's fees? Too much

.

 

[tk3]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dzjudz /img/forum/go_quote.gif What's the rate now, 18%? And custom's fees? Too much .

Should be 19% VAT + handling fees and possible import tax as well (around 2-5% depending on the type of goods its classified as).

As for OP, they are supposed to tax everything above €25 or so, and slightly higher if the item is marked as "gift" (€40-50 range), but in my experience you often don't get fees on the smaller packages marked in the $200> range.
It's mostly luck though, sometimes they just pass through customs instantly and you don't pay anything, and sometimes it's stuck there for a month and you get the full bill.

But for used headphones which are relatively small items, they pass through without problems most of the time in my experience.
It's the 20 KG amps that are marked at $50/gift that you have to look out for.

Goods from commercial sources marked at full value are probably a different story though.

 

[digitalmind]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tiemen /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks for the reply. How much do you pay extra for, let's say, a 200,- Dollar buy?

There's an initial import fee of a bout 2-5% of the item (this depends on the classification of the item), and then 19% of the total amount (item + shipping + initial import fee) is added to that.

There are better descriptions to mark your gear with than "Gift", but I'm not sure tax evading is a business that should be discussed on the board.

 

[Tiemen]

So I tried to buy for the first time from a US headfi-er.
I was willing to pay the asked price, using paypal.
And I gave him an address in the USA to ship the headphone to.
His answer was: "Sorry, I can only ship to confirmed address".
What! I gave him a proper address. What is this?

 

[Dzjudz]

It's a PayPal confirmed address, look it up on the paypal website.

 

[Tiemen]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dzjudz /img/forum/go_quote.gif It's a PayPal confirmed address, look it up on the paypal website.

But if I pay with my confirmed paypal account, and give the seller a different
shipping address, what's the problem?
He get's his money, and doesn't has to ship to Europe.
But I found out a way to pay with a US paypal account from the same people
where the package can send to.
For those who wants to know this service: visit Huifkar Betaal- & Verzendservice Duitsland. De slimme eBay kruiwagen voor Duitsland, België en Nederland
I still hope it's not some sort of not wanting to deal with Europeans.

 

[hoosterw]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tiemen /img/forum/go_quote.gif But if I pay with my confirmed paypal account, and give the seller a different shipping address, what's the problem? He get's his money, and doesn't has to ship to Europe. But I found out a way to pay with a US paypal account from the same people where the package can send to. For those who wants to know this service: visit Huifkar Betaal- & Verzendservice Duitsland. De slimme eBay kruiwagen voor Duitsland, België en Nederland I still hope it's not some sort of not wanting to deal with Europeans.

Well there is a BIG problem there.
The following happens, I know it happened to me a lot of times and I now only ship to the payments confirmed address.

You pay, he ships out to a different address, you give your bank the order to refund the money taken by paypal from you bankaccount or CC because of internet fraude (they do that without further asking), he looses his money because paypal simply also refunds. He claims paypal unauthorised refund, Paypal ask the shipping and delivery proof..... wrong address..... paypal refunds and closes the case. He has lost the goods and has no money!

And about buying in the US I think you will know how I feel about that, although with the low dollar I can't blame you. But it kills local business and I praise the companies that forbid export sales out of the US.


Rgds Hans

 

[carlosgp]

Here in europe we need to stop whining so much about customs. Of course nobody wants to pay them, but it isn't so bad. As Hans said, it helps to "equalize" prices and helps local business. Every product that sells in Europe must pay european taxes. Why products bought through Internet shouldn't pay the same taxes?
Yes, in USA the prices are low because the dollar. In top, they do not have the same level of taxes. They do not have VAT, for example. But they do not have the same level of social services that we have in europe. Look at the USA sanitary system. With all respect, is a mess. You need to pay top dollar for medical care. If you don't have good insurance or are out of job, you are out of luck. If you have something serious, you are dead. I have to tell you, it scares me. Here in Spain, for example, all the population is covered and with a good level of attention, and we need to pay for that.

We need to support a bit more our local economies. If the american manufacturers we love were in danger of bankruptcy, I would be the first helping with my purchases. But is not the case, is it? I think they are doing more than fine

.

 

[Tiemen]

But, but, but, I only wanted to buy used gear.....
If one of you has a second hand Denon AH-D2000

Supporting local stores is fine, but I don't have the money to buy a new D2000.
Thanks for the clarification about confirmed addresses.
Still, it's a matter of trust. If I do a internet buy, I also have to trust the seller to actually send the stuff.

 

[carlosgp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tiemen /img/forum/go_quote.gif But, but, but, I only wanted to buy used gear.....

As far as I know, second hand products have to pay customs too. Is it right?

Sorry about the speech

. Unfortunately I do not have a pait of D2000. I would be glad of selling it to you XDXDXD.

 

[hoosterw]

yep in principle any import will be taxed unless you have requested exemption before shipping. This is only valid for certain type of goods.

Check the douane website for those exemptions and how to proceed.

Rgds hans