Import Duty etc On Goods From UK After 1 January 2021

[guest311]

ohhh 

[jpendle]

Hasn't the £15 low value consignment relief limit now been removed? It was based on an EU Council Directive 2009/132/EC which no longer applies in the UK.

So yet another benefit of being in the EU that we have lost........

Wonderful 

Only until April this year. The low value relief is being removed by the EU to stop certain sellers declaring a low value to get around these charges.

Northern Ireland is still in the EEA/EU for customs purposes, so goods from the rest of the UK now have paperwork to be dealt with.

Regards,

John P

[dannyboy]

Sort of related - the courier company DPD has suspended road deliveries from the UK to the EU until next Wednesday, due to problems with Customs paperwork.

"Parcel courier DPD UK has said it is pausing its road delivery services into Europe, including Ireland, until at least Wednesday.

The courier has become the latest company to warn that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's divorce settlement with the European Union had led to more complex processes at the border." .....

"The company said in a statement: "The EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement resulted in more complex processes, and additional customs data requirements for parcels destined for Europe."

Apparently 20% of items have incorrect paperwork.

(Taken from RTE News website)

[TMcG1959]

Peco phoned me this morning to say they are trying to get their heads around customs papers and hope to send my order out soon. They use DPD so it's going to be a while before I get my order.

[Snowwolflair]

I have had four high value items delivered from Germany and Holland in the last week by FedEx DPD and a carrier that used Parcelforce to deliver.  None were delayed.

Why

The customs forms on the packages asked all the necessary questions.  Once they created the correct forms everything else works.

Items even from big companies can easily pass customs if sent as individual items with the customs form correctly filled in avoiding the HMRC customs registration requirement.

[swisstrains]

I had a parcel containing two high value articles delivered today from Germany. It was despatched using DHL but arrived with Parcelforce.
It was only posted on Wednesday so no delays.
Why?
The value of the goods on the Customs form was total fantasy.
But I'm not complaining.

[longbow]

That's not something I'd be boasting about online. No sensible seller would agree to understate the package value in that way - making a false customs declaration is illegal, so they risk being fined, and it would prejudice their insurance cover on the item. And the practice makes it more likely that properly declared packages are inspected and thereby delayed. 

[swisstrains]

That's not something I'd be boasting about online. No sensible seller would agree to understate the package value in that way - making a false customs declaration is illegal, so they risk being fined, and it would prejudice their insurance cover on the item. And the practice makes it more likely that properly declared packages are inspected and thereby delayed. 

I might have sounded flippant but please don't imply that I was in cahoots with them.
For all I know the figure they quoted on the customs form might have made sense to them and could well have satisfied the requirements in Germany if not the UK. Like many of us they are possibly gaining experience and not deliberately making false statements. The goods had been paid for before 31/12/20 and it was only the delivery that was taking place after that date. Perhaps it was their way of trying to ensure that I was not subjected to UK VAT after already paying German MwSt?

[Dancess]

Very interesting discussion, regarding eBay I for one will not be buying anymore items from the UK as the charges put on are extortionate compared to the cost of the item. For example I found an item I was interested in at a Buy it now price of £25, postage was a reasonable cost but eBay charges of £22 to include customs duty etc made it much too expensive when if in UK I would only be paying the £25 plus postage. I just don't understand why customs duty as I haven't paid any when buying from a dealer since January 1st.
Only thing I will be using eBay for in future will be books as these seem to be exempt from extra charges.

[woodbury22uk]

@Dancess  Can you identify the breakdown of the charges from Ebay? Seems much more than just French VAT. Model railway items are not subject to import duty in most jurisdictions. If your item was subject to import duty, and it was not manufactured in the UK, then duty will have been paid once already when it arrived in the UK. However, the rules are that duty applies again when it moves from one tax jurisdiction to another. An intra-EU transaction would not attract duty, but from July, when the EU rules change, it will attract French VAT. There is a comprehensive article here specifically aimed at the model sector but also using examples for dutiable goods like clothes and electronics.

https://www.maronline.org.uk/the-impact-of-brexit-on-uk-model-collectors/

[Railwaygun]

Costs from Germany - MB LIppe

they say "If you have a tax ID, then please let us know. We then will deduct the German value added tax from your bill."

they then charge german VAT on a purchase, and DHL shipping to UK is €9.90 ( below €100)

will i then be charged VAT on the full German price +excise duty ( exempt) + handling charge??

[woodbury22uk]

Costs from Germany - MB LIppe

they say "If you have a tax ID, then please let us know. We then will deduct the German value added tax from your bill."

they then charge german VAT on a purchase, and DHL shipping to UK is €9.90 ( below €100)

will i then be charged VAT on the full German price +excise duty ( exempt) + handling charge??

UK VAT should be due on the full landed price including shipping and German VAT. But it seems Customs are a bit busy at the moment so some low value packages are being allowed through uncharged.

[daffy]

The Martin Lewis Money Saving Expert team have now produced a guide/article on this thorny subject.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/buying-online-from-europe-post-brexit/

Note that it is at pains to state that the page will be updated as more info comes to light, but reading it through this morning it is clear that what you might get charged can vary considerably depending on seller, value, and courier.

Caveat emptor indeed!

[dannyboy]

To answer my own question in the original post about buying from the UK for delivery to Ireland. If I order something from the UK, I should be able to buy it free of UK VAT now. Once it gets to Ireland, I am then liable to pay Irish VAT and if necessary, Customs Duty plus a collection fee. So, basically, buying from the UK now is the same as buying from the USA or Japan prior to Brexit. I have had two packets from the USA lately and got away with no import charges. Of the items bought from the UK, it is about 50/50 as to whether I have had to pay import charges, although if I use the 'An Post' drop off facility to save on postage, I will get lumbered with import charges, (think An Post and Customs are working together on this), so I have to work out whether the savings on postage outweighs the possibility of having to pay the import duties.

[Dancess]

Just received a loco from Rails which was sent by Royal Mail with no extra charges. I did pay the UK VAT and postage was £8.50, customs form was filled in fully with the value stated as the price I paid. My previous delivery from one of the large retailers likewise had no extra charges and fully completed paperwork so maybe they know what is required.
However if I want to buy off eBay and the seller uses the Global Shipping Programme then I will get charged import duty in their extortionate fees even on low value items as I found out to my cost so now I will only buy from sellers who use Royal Mail.