Warning for those who model from America

[JTR4472]

Hello everyone,

I don't want to get political, however, this is just a warning. Due to the de-minimis exemption ending on August 29th, 2025, this is a warning for those who order things from Britain and around the world. If you are an American, everything you purchase that ships into the U.S. after August 29th, 2025, will either have a 10% tariff if using a private mail carrier, or a $80 flat fee if using a national carrier like Royal Mail. This includes purchases under $800 as well. This will go until February of 2026. After that point, everything will have the 10% tariff. If I were you, I would order everything right now that you were looking at getting to avoid a hefty price increase that could have been unexpected. Everything could change, but from what I have seen, this is what will be happening. Please try to not get politics into this, but if you have any other useful information, please let us know! Have a good day.

From, Jim Riley

PS: If you have a Graham Farish Peppercorn A2 LNER #525 for a good price for sale, please DM me immediately!

Edit: Just realized this should have been in General Discussion, sorry!

[jpendle]

I thought that anything originating from China would get a 20% tariff, from the EU 15%, and the UK 10%.

So a Farish loco, a Zimo decoder, and a piece of Peco track bought from a UK retailer would get hit by 20%,15%,&10% respectively.

It also means that for the time being you would want any purchases shipped by Fedex et al, rather than by mail, unless the other shippers charge tariff collection fees.

What a PITA!

John P

[bigdawgks]

How disappointing. I guess I need to start ordering everything I need soon.

[TrainMan2001]

Thanks for the warning! Do you know if this would apply to British models that were made in China as well? It's been difficult to find consice information that explains what's going on.

[jpendle]

Thanks for the warning! Do you know if this would apply to British models that were made in China as well? It's been difficult to find consice information that explains what's going on.

From the end of the month the tariffs apply to absolutely everything, with the probable exception of printed materials, magazines, books, etc.

So as in my previous post anything you by from a UK retailer that was made in China will attract the tariff for China, currently 20%.

Regards,

John P

[bwj]

my 2 cents:

(i)The tariffs are designed to apply to be rated by the original country of origin so that a Farish loco manufactured in China should attract the higher 20% rate. My post Brexit experience of buying stuff for import from EU to UK though is that with small parcels the shippers never delve too deeply into the original contry of origin and I just pay the import duty and UK VAT. Ssometimes small parcels get through with no additional charges

(ii) VAT or the equivalent of GST is 20% in the UK and EU but if you are importing to North America you should make sure you aren't being charged this on the original purchase price; only the import & customs duties should apply to you

eg para 9 of Gaugemaster's FAQ
"9. Do you ship abroad?
Of course, and we like to think we are rather good at it too! We charge postage at cost in order to get you the best value and it's visible before you checkout. We also offer VAT free sales to qualifying countries. All shipments are marked up with the value of goods contained within so you may be charged import duty on arrival by the relevant authorities."

(iii) if you have friends or family you vist in Canada importing via them should be tariff free but there are still going to be the normal charges of GST/PST/shipper's admin

[woodbury22uk]

My friend in Oklahoma just received her Christmas present from me early! Like many US residents she was unaware of the $800 duty free import allowance ending. As I understand it the new rules apply equally to gifts and purchases.

[njee20]

It'll certainly be interesting to see how things like John's hypothetical Zimo/Peco/Farish parcel are handled. Surely, purely from a logistical standpoint they won't be poring over every individual item in a shipment, and one presumes they'll go for the lowest common denominator (ie highest tariff all around), or the country of shipping (less likely).

[EtchedPixels]

It'll certainly be interesting to see how things like John's hypothetical Zimo/Peco/Farish parcel are handled.

It will be interesting to see how many UK suppliers just stop shipping to the USA because the paperwork for this is a menace and if it's rejected or the seller refuses to pay the duty there's potentially a load of fees that get billed back as well as the loss of the shipping costs.

surely, purely from a logistical standpoint they won't be poring over every individual item in a shipment

I fear not because this is the USA and therefore all regulations are supposed to be applied identically to anyone whoever they are and whatever their status, as opposed to the UK where "I can't be bothered to notice" is considered acceptable behaviour. Remember this is the country that made the first men on the moon fill in customs forms for the moon rocks.

There's a lot to say for treating everything the same and properly but sometimes it's really annoying.

[chrism]

Remember this is the country that made the first men on the moon fill in customs forms for the moon rocks.

However, the IRS did allow Jack Swigert, Command Module Pilot on Apollo 13, an extension after he remembered that he'd forgotten to send in his tax return - because he was out of the country on deadline day.

[jpendle]

or the seller refuses to pay the duty

There's no duty on toy trains, and it's the buyer who will be paying the tariff, not the seller.

The only downside for UK retailers is that their goods may be returned and the buyer asks for a refund.

Personally, if a modeller over here thinks they can mess around rejecting shipments because of the tariffs then I think they should be liable for all shipping costs plus a re-stocking penalty.

Worst financial case is that the 16.666% VAT that we save goes to the US Gov as a 20% tariff.

Second worst case is goods taking weeks or even months to clear customs, as opposed to the roughly 1 week door to door that we currently have.

Regards,

John P

[icairns]

I have received the following email message from Alan at Modelu regarding sending goods to the United States.

Ian

Important Notice for Our U.S. Customers

From 29 August 2025, new U.S. import rules mean every overseas parcel sent by post will face a flat $80 import duty per item – no matter the value.

Unfortunately, this means we will no longer be able to ship orders directly to U.S. customers under our current model. We will continue accepting U.S. orders until midnight (UK time) on Sunday 24 August.

From the week beginning 25 August, we will temporarily pause U.S. orders while we work to establish a U.S.-based stockist or distribution partner. This will allow us to continue offering our products to you without the burden of excessive import fees.

If you've had your eye on something – place your order before the 24 August deadline to avoid the new charges.

Thank you for your understanding and for your support over the years. We're committed to finding the right U.S. partner so we can get Modelu products back into your hands as soon as possible.

Best Regards

Alan

[jpendle]

So I just read some of the fine print and it's worse than I thought.

For the next 6 months there will be a flat fee for goods based on the existing tariff rate.

For anything made in the UK or EU the flat fee is $80 for anything under an $800 shipment.
For goods made in China the flat fee is $160.

In 6 months time each item will be assessed based on the specific country of origin tariff and the value of the shipment.

So for now, it's best to get $800 worth of goods in each shipment, that's around 600 quid.

I think that I'll be asking for all my Revolution pre-orders to be shipped together to minimise the cost.

And FWIW you are only allowed to hand carry $200 worth back to the US, this might just buy a loco $200 = £150.

So I don't plan on buying any goodies when we visit the UK next week.

Regards,

John P

[EtchedPixels]

Yep, and unlike the EU there's no easy work around (EU stuff you just ship via a mate in Ireland), unless you are US military and spending time on non US bases.

Perhaps the Mexican cartels will switch from drugs to Bachmann Farish 

[icairns]

I subscribe to several UK railway magazines including Railway Modeller, Model Rail, BRM, Steam World, etc.

Copies of these magazines all arrive in the U.S. in either a white envelope or plastic packaging but none of them has a customs declaration label.

However, I also am a member of the Bachmann Collectors Club and their quarterly magazine always arrives in the same size envelope as the other railway publications but it always has a customs label. 

My most recent magazine arrived yesterday with the customs label describing the contents as a "magazine/newspaper" with a declared value of £2.00. 

Do you think that there is any danger that the U.S. customs will see the customs label and automatically slap an $80.00 flat fee on the shipment?

If this occurs, I suppose I can reject the delivery and then also not renew my Collector's Club subscription. 

Any thoughts?

Ian