Tax and Duty and ugly things like that...help!

[Former_Member]

I am increasingly posting items to the states from the UK and have a sneaky suspicion that ticking the "gifts" box on that little green customs sticker is not quite lawful. Can anyone tell me what I should be doing? Should I be paying duty and if so, how to go about it?
Help please.

[Former_Member]

I know it is illegal to do that here in the U.S. But any import or custom fees is to be paid by the buyer. I state that in all my listings. But I do not know the UK laws, I don't think that you should be charged though, the person that buys is the one that is importing the item.

[threestonebirds]

You're right - marking something as a gift when it's actually merchandise is illegal, and if the customer asks you do it, they're trying to avoid fees. Let them know point blank that you'll be marking it correctly, because if it's found out, you'll be the one paying the fine, not them.

Any duty or custom fees are the buyer's responsibility, and they should be aware of this when buying from overseas. Some aren't, however, and it might be worth mentioning it in your policies and your message to buyers when a purchase it made.

[Former_Member]

Ahaa, lightbulb moment.

Thanks Sandy.

[Former_Member]

Interesting, so what would the buyer have to do to pay duty on an item bought from the UK? Anyone know?

[Former_Member]

Here (Ontario) when I've ordered things from the US and had to pay a duty on them, the mailman/carrier collects it when the item is delivered to me...

[Former_Member]

Really?? How bizarre. Our mailmen definitely couldn't be trusted to collect anything, least of all MONEY.Nope, that doesn't happen here!
Thank you for that insight though.

[GoTo]

Most of the time the recipient receives a notice in their mail box that they need to go to the PO to pay taxes or duty owed.

In the US we can generally receive $200 in merchandise without paying extra (but only $100 if marked "gift"--which should only be done for items that are unsolicited gifts, not items purchased whether they are sent to the buyer or a gift recipient):


"Packages whose declared value is under $200 ($100 if being sent as a gift to someone other than the purchaser) will generally be cleared without any additional paperwork prepared by CBP. However, CBP always reserves the right to require a formal entry for any importation and generally exercises this option if there is something unusual about the importation, or if important documents such as an invoice or bill of sale do not accompany the item."

Source: http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/trade/basic_trade/internet_purchases.xml#PostalServiceCouriersandFreight