Phreeranger Phrum wrote (see)

I've seen advice that you should get the sender to use U.S.Postal Service (USPS). Apparently that increases the chance of it getting through unchecked.  Can't vouch for it though.

I agree with Frum,

3 of my items came via USPS 

I order items from the UK all the time and have them delivered here in Michigan.  When I need to return them, on the customs sheet I just say Reason for Sending - Other - Explanation: returning item.  That way I can declare the value in case it gets lost, and I do not believe anyone has to pay VAT on the return.

Although, I am telling the truth...

Shuttleworth wrote (see)

Also I thought the GPO charge £8 for handling, not £13.99.

The fee charged depends on the value of the goods.

It is not the value of the goods that determines the charge, there are two charge rates, one at £8 and one at £13.50, and which charged depends on the delivery system used to deliver the parcel into the UK.

Extract from the Parcel force website:-

"We have two levels of clearance fee for import parcels.  There is a charge of £13.50 for express parcels imported through the EMS (i.e. International Datapost equivalent) and GLS (i.e. Euro 48 equivalent) networks and also for high value standard parcels (valued at over €1000).  For all other import parcels, an £8 charge will apply."

My experience of getting someone to send high value items from USA and getting them marked as low value gift has been ok. Never paid any tax.

I even came back from US hols with 2 huge suitcases was stopped and asked how much I'd spent, knew I was well over the limit but pleaded stupidity and eventually got off with a warning.

As for the threat of a criminal record, i think that is grossly exageratted. Wost case scenario would be that you pay the tax.

Big mac,

WE are not talking paying the tax on items where no deceit is involved, which would be the most common experience of most people, but if there is intent to deceive by the parcels being wrongly marked the HMCE WILL prosecute!

Well, I'd say it would have to involve a significant amount of money to be worth their while going down that avenue. Lets face it their hardly going to drag you through the courts fo the sake of £30/40 quid. Just htink of the time and effort they would ahve to spend building up a case to prove that you had set out to avoid paying the duty. 

Now if you were importing a large quantity then yes they would go down the prosecution route, but for a few quid it would not be cost effective.

You are probably right Big mac, but isn't this thread just a typical indictment of the decline in the moral fabric of society when law breaking is condoned in such cavalier fashion.

Exceed the speed limit and you are a master criminal, defraud the tax system and it would appear to attract hero status!

As a civil servant in a cetain 'big bro is watching dept' it's my experience that if you were to look into the affairs of the average person, you would find that very one has broken the law at some time or other. Such as paying trades people cash and never querying if its going through the books, buying from ebay etc etc the list is endless

Hmmmm, that is interesting, I never knew that buying from ebay was illegal!

VAT is paid on all new items sold on ebay in the UK and if the item is second hand, then VAT has already been paid on it. (Unless zero rated of course)

The complication comes when international items outside the UK are purchased in which case then import duty is payable and sometimes avoided!

Oh hang on a minute, that sounds familiar doesn't it?

Discussing ways on how to import goods without paying duty on a public forum. 

However the advice given has been pretty good though the best time for importation is undoubtedly the festive season.

It's just so busy.

Cysgod,

I understand.  What I'm saying is that if someone wants to buy from a person in the US, have them mark under reason for sending on the customs sheet -- returning item.  I do not think the item will then be taxed when it enters the UK.

Prices in the U.S. from companies like North Face, Arcteryx, etc are 1/2 the U.K. price.  That's why many dealers are not allowed to ship items internationally.  You'd have to find a person in the U.S. to buy the item and ship it.  It costs me usually about $20 (10 pounds) to ship internationally when I return big jackets.

And what you describe in your first paragraph is a criminal offence in the UK, and here we are, apparently condoning it!

How standards in society have deteriorated!

Not to mention the criminal offence under US law committed by the sender.

I talked about  the non collection of import duty by Royal Mail with a friend who works for them last year after this topic last came up - especially the difference from couriers (including Royal Mail's Parcelforce) who seem to collect customs charges on 100% of imports.

Apparently 95% of incoming international Royal Mail parcels went through an extremely small office in Mount Pleasant sorting office in Central London, which was totally overwhelmed  and so only a proportion of parcels were being examined for customs payable and a very, very small proportion examined for false declarations.

However the plan was/is (I dont remember the timescales, but I think it was late last year sometime) to move the sorting office out to a shed near Heathrow, where the plan was for all parcels to be checked for customs payable and a greater proportion checked for false declarations, drugs, whatever.

There was also the factor that Royal Mail claimed to be losing money on the previous clearance fee of £4 but had been allowed by the regulator to increase this to £8

I was in the USA in December/January, and bought a fair amount of stuff in the sales, both online and places like REI. I couldn't actually get it all home in my suitcase (had a Ryanair transfer - error) so I asked my American girlfriend's parents to ship the excess to me using the USPS Express pre-paid boxes. Because they didn't know how much everything cost, they left the 'value' field blank on the form, and it got to me within 4 days and with no customs charges. The parcel seemed to have arrived into the country at Mount Pleasant, and then delivered via Parcelforce. They delivered it to the local Post Office for me to collect, and I was convinced that there would be a customs charge, but apparently not!

 I've since bought things online from US websites and had it delivered to the US address for onward sending in the pre-paid boxes. I factored in the customs charges to the total price of the item, and it still worked out cheaper. In three USA shipments (plus a couple from Ireland) I've yet to pay customs charges, despite them all arriving via Parcelforce. The form has the following options - Gift, Documents, Commercial Sample, Other - and in the most recent case my girlfriend's parents forgot to tick any of them, as well as not putting a value on it. No deceit involved, they just didn't fill in the form properly! I would have no problem paying the customs charges, I just haven't had to yet!