Import Duty

Timbuck

Timbuck

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I decided it was time for me to have a Martin Soprano uke..of my own for reference purposes ..up till now i've scrounged details off other players Martins and the Scott Antes drawings..I found one at the right price on E-bay in the US:D..But when it arrived in the UK..I had to cough up $140 USD import tax:mad:...If I'd have known it was going to be that much before I bought it I wouldn't have bothered.:(
 
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Sorry for you Ken, I can sympathise and empathise even. Unfortunately, I have grown very used to paying customs taxes here in Australia. Just a fact of life when importing expensive ukuleles. Living in Tasmania one has no other choice if one wants a really nice uke. These days I just factor it in to my overall cost before I even buy. Softens the blow a bit.

I do remember though the first time it happened: like you I was unaware of the hit coming and ended up paying an extra $300 on a $1500 uke...kind of tarnished the experience a bit.
 
Aloha Timbuck,
How much percentage of the actual cost was it....like 25% or 33%....??? and did you have VAt charges as well....sorry to hear man....thank you for posting your
beautiful ukes....I can imagine how muck it is to Hawaii...I always thought youurs
looked like martins...Mahalo, Stan
 
It's all in how things are valued, what kinds of paperwork accompany the object, and how the export forms are filled out. Typically, if the value is below $500.00 on items shipped to Australia from the US you won't have to pay customs. I've sent instruments to Tasmania without a problem.
 
In USD the price was $539 plus $50.55 postage to UK...Then I paid import duty/VAT..and whatever cut parcelforce charge (just for storing it untill I collect) @ $140 TOTAL $729 USD = about £450 UKP..about the going rate for a Martin style "O" in the UK.
It's one of those ukes that someone has varnished all over:mad: fretboard bridge the whole thing:(...luckily the varnish is very brittle and comes off pretty easy..and I'm now in the process of carefuly chipping it off the fretboard:)
 
The charges are complicated.

Import duty is not really the problem. That is only about 3% for ukuleles. VAT is the thing that many people don't expect. And VAT at 20% is payable on the cost of the item and the shipping. Added to that, if it is sent USPS, then Parcelforce get hold of it and charge an £8 Admin Fee (£12 if it is sent express). It adds up to a lot.

The sad thing is that if you visit the US from the UK and bring back a ukulele worth up to £390, you pay no tax at all.

Check this HM Revenue and Customs page:

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/customs/arriving/arrivingnoneu.htm
 
Rick Turner said:
It's all in how things are valued, what kinds of paperwork accompany the object, and how the export forms are filled out. Typically, if the value is below $500.00 on items shipped to Australia from the US you won't have to pay customs. I've sent instruments to Tasmania without a problem.
Click to expand...

yeah Rick, that's right. It's only instruments over $1000 that attract customs tax here.
 
Without getting more specific, I can tell you that it's all about what the paper work says, and the caveat is that the paper work must match any insurance valuation. 'nuff said...
 
i can half understand paying vat on a new instrument, but on a second hand instrument.

how many times do you pay tax on a 100 year old instrument?

Such a con.

6sc

ps: if you pay tax in the USA on a uke, surely you don't need to pay UK tax too?

I once brought 8 bottles of fine Kentucky bourbon back to Blighty - in the suitcase. Nothin to declare - ooh yeah!
 
I recieved the invoice this morning.

CUSTOMS DUTY £10.71 :(

EXCISE DUTY £0.00 :D
IMPORT VAT £69.10 :wtf:???

OTHER £0.00 ???

CLEARANCE FEE (Zero rated for VAT purposes) £8.00 ??

TOTAL £87.81 :wallbash:
 
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I really feel for you in this man...and realistically thing it is money for old rope and complete rot!

It is what limits my choice of purchases and puts me off shopping outside the EU,


Chris
 
That's the only reason I don't own a Ken Timms Uke ;)
 
I'm going to say this once again:

It's ALL in how the paper work re. value is filled out in the country from whence the instrument is shipped.

I would be tempted to consider the value of a used instrument the same way the tax authorities do with regard to depreciation on any asset. It was worth "X" when new, and every year it's worth "X-minus" a fixed percentage.

Of course this may have nothing to do whatsoever with fair market value or for what you paid for it, and both of those figures may or may not be relevant.

The whole system is set up to screw small time sellers and buyers and favor multi-national corporations who ship stuff by the container load. For us small timers in North America, for instance, NAFTA has proved less than worthless. It's a total pain to get legitimate things into and out of Canada, while drugs flow freely from Mexico... 'Nuff said about that...
 
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