GST on an imported second-hand camera? Say what!

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#1680080 30-Nov-2016 13:36

geekIT:

So Fedex are telling me that I have to pay them the $170, which, presumably, they will pass on to NZ Customs, or whoever collects these fees.

This sounds a bit weird to me...

Whierd in what way?

FedEx are a customs agent/broker so can collect this on your behalf. If you don't pay them you'll need to contact customs directly and pay or find a customs broker to do this on your behalf.

You're just lucky it's not over $1000 or you would have needed to use a broker or apply for your own customs client code first.

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#1680123 30-Nov-2016 14:59

Mind you getting a customs number isn't a hassle either. When I bought my Vive, the FedEx lady tang me up and asked if I had one. As I didn't, she emailed me the forms which I scanned and sent back, paid the gst and a couple of days later the Vice arrived safe and sound. Numbers good for 3 years.

Often posts on this topic seem to revolve arround people being annoyed that they have to pay gst and idea that if they bought overseas it must be exempt.. (wrongly)

A.

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#1680139 30-Nov-2016 15:39

andrewNZ: Had a workmate get pinged for GST and duty on his own tools. He put them in a container with a machine going to Aus, then flew over to install and commission the containers contents. He then sent them home by courier to avoid excess baggage charges. They got held at the border, and as he had no documentation to prove they had been exported, he had to pay about $400.

He could have tried to argue it, but needed the tools so he could work.

he's lucky he didn't get stung with AU GST as well

sounds like he's a business, so he'd be able to claim back the GST component included in the $400 as an input cost to his business.

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#1680141 30-Nov-2016 15:41

Rikkitic:

I might as well buy lotto. Maybe I win, probably I don't. Sounds like a pretty half-arsed way to run a country's Customs business.

imagine the additional costs and delays involved if _every_ single package was inspected and held while valuations were done or invoices seeked of the included goods...

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#1680144 30-Nov-2016 15:45

geekIT:

Rikkitic: Sounds like a pretty half-arsed way to run a country's Customs business.

Yeah, you're dead right.

The more I think about it, the weirder this looks.

I mean, when I was on B&H Photo's website and selected Fedex as the shipper, why the frigg wasn't I told that, on top of the Fedex freight charge, there'd be another $173 to pay???

This stinks.

caveat emptor

overseas sites don't necessarily know about NZ tax law

why wasn't I informed when I bought something from a NZ website and had it sent to me in the US, that I shouldn't be paying NZ GST, as the merchant can claim that back as an export when leaving the country.

the merchant made an extra 8% margin

nathan

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#1680145 30-Nov-2016 15:46

geekIT:

Guys, I need urgent Kiwi advice.

Coupla days ago I bought a used camera from a store in New York - B&H Photo.

The $US550 price translated, with freight, to $NZ833. It was more than I wanted to pay, but I did the deal.

Just got a call from NZ Customs. They've got the camera and tell me I have to pay them 15% GST plus another $50 for some other damn thing. Around $170. Sheez!

Anyone know if this is a legit charge?

does the confusion arise from this being a used good rather than new?

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#1680150 30-Nov-2016 15:50

nathan:

geekIT:

Rikkitic: Sounds like a pretty half-arsed way to run a country's Customs business.

Yeah, you're dead right.

The more I think about it, the weirder this looks.

I mean, when I was on B&H Photo's website and selected Fedex as the shipper, why the frigg wasn't I told that, on top of the Fedex freight charge, there'd be another $173 to pay???

This stinks.

caveat emptor

overseas sites don't necessarily know about NZ tax law

why wasn't I informed when I bought something from a NZ website and had it sent to me in the US, that I shouldn't be paying NZ GST, as the merchant can claim that back as an export when leaving the country.

the merchant made an extra 8% margin

From the B&H website:

Duties, Taxes, Customs & Other Fees

International orders are generally subject to local import duties and taxes (VAT). B&H offers the convenience of handling these fees on your behalf for specific countries and for many items. If your order qualifies for this option, it will be presented to you during the checkout process. In some cases by adding the item(s) to your cart and indicating to which country you are shipping, you can see applicable duties and taxes. If none are shown, you will still need to check with that country as to their regulations regarding duties and taxes.

If you opt to pre-pay, we will collect and pay any local import duties and taxes on your behalf. By choosing this service, you authorize B&H to charge any additional import duties, VAT or taxes to the original payment method. You also authorize us to charge any subsequent delivery fee resulting from incorrectly identifying your delivery location as a business vs. residential address to the original payment method.

If you decline our pre-payment service, B&H cannot be responsible for, nor can we offer, any specific advice regarding any customs-related fees that you may incur. For specific information, please consult with your local government import office.

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#1680165 30-Nov-2016 16:07

nathan:

andrewNZ: Had a workmate get pinged for GST and duty on his own tools. He put them in a container with a machine going to Aus, then flew over to install and commission the containers contents. He then sent them home by courier to avoid excess baggage charges. They got held at the border, and as he had no documentation to prove they had been exported, he had to pay about $400.

He could have tried to argue it, but needed the tools so he could work.

he's lucky he didn't get stung with AU GST as well

sounds like he's a business, so he'd be able to claim back the GST component included in the $400 as an input cost to his business.

This situation is best handled by organising a carnet

nathan

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#1680167 30-Nov-2016 16:11

traderstu:

nathan:

andrewNZ: Had a workmate get pinged for GST and duty on his own tools. He put them in a container with a machine going to Aus, then flew over to install and commission the containers contents. He then sent them home by courier to avoid excess baggage charges. They got held at the border, and as he had no documentation to prove they had been exported, he had to pay about $400.

He could have tried to argue it, but needed the tools so he could work.

he's lucky he didn't get stung with AU GST as well

sounds like he's a business, so he'd be able to claim back the GST component included in the $400 as an input cost to his business.

This situation is best handled by organising a carnet

which will work perfectly if you had a time machine

pbgben

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#1680168 30-Nov-2016 16:11

Not the most legit way of doing it, but .. Order notes "Rough up the box and declare broken with value as 1/10th"

$5USD 1GB RAM, 10GB SSD VPS in SYD

nathan

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#1680170 30-Nov-2016 16:12

Geektastic:

nathan:

geekIT:

Rikkitic: Sounds like a pretty half-arsed way to run a country's Customs business.

Yeah, you're dead right.

The more I think about it, the weirder this looks.

I mean, when I was on B&H Photo's website and selected Fedex as the shipper, why the frigg wasn't I told that, on top of the Fedex freight charge, there'd be another $173 to pay???

This stinks.

caveat emptor

overseas sites don't necessarily know about NZ tax law

why wasn't I informed when I bought something from a NZ website and had it sent to me in the US, that I shouldn't be paying NZ GST, as the merchant can claim that back as an export when leaving the country.

the merchant made an extra 8% margin

From the B&H website:

Duties, Taxes, Customs & Other Fees

International orders are generally subject to local import duties and taxes (VAT). B&H offers the convenience of handling these fees on your behalf for specific countries and for many items. If your order qualifies for this option, it will be presented to you during the checkout process. In some cases by adding the item(s) to your cart and indicating to which country you are shipping, you can see applicable duties and taxes. If none are shown, you will still need to check with that country as to their regulations regarding duties and taxes.

If you opt to pre-pay, we will collect and pay any local import duties and taxes on your behalf. By choosing this service, you authorize B&H to charge any additional import duties, VAT or taxes to the original payment method. You also authorize us to charge any subsequent delivery fee resulting from incorrectly identifying your delivery location as a business vs. residential address to the original payment method.

If you decline our pre-payment service, B&H cannot be responsible for, nor can we offer, any specific advice regarding any customs-related fees that you may incur. For specific information, please consult with your local government import office.

if the OP feels like he's been misled, it sounds like he could use these Ts & Cs to refuse to accept the goods, and ask for a reversal of the charges from his credit card company and let B&H sort out the mess.

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#1680211 30-Nov-2016 17:58

nathan:

andrewNZ: Had a workmate get pinged for GST and duty on his own tools. He put them in a container with a machine going to Aus, then flew over to install and commission the containers contents. He then sent them home by courier to avoid excess baggage charges. They got held at the border, and as he had no documentation to prove they had been exported, he had to pay about $400.

He could have tried to argue it, but needed the tools so he could work.

he's lucky he didn't get stung with AU GST as well

sounds like he's a business, so he'd be able to claim back the GST component included in the $400 as an input cost to his business.

Should have followed proper process and got a certificate of export when taking them out of the country.

d3Xt3r

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#1680938 1-Dec-2016 21:52

sbiddle:

d3Xt3r:
sbiddle:

Geektastic:

I've certainly sent watches to Australia that are worth far in excess of the duty threshold. (for repair) and never been charged.

If a product is sent overseas for repair under warranty then you don't pay but the customs declaration needs to make this very clear. If a product is sent overseas for repair and it's not under warranty you'll pay GST on it's return.

What if it's under warranty, but there's a repair cost associated?

Under what scenario would this happen?

I've got a phone which I purchased from an overseas website. The manufacturer said it would be inclusive of any taxes/duties so I don't have to pay anything when I receive it (and I didn't have to).

Unfortunately I broke my screen within a few months of owning my phone - and since it's so niche there aren't any spare screens available, nor does anyone here repair it. Thankfully, the manufacturer offered a screen repair for a reasonable fee - however, I'm reluctant to ship the phone overseas in case it gets picked up by customs upon re-entry.

Would I have to pay a fee upon re-entry, and if so, will that be charged based on the repair cost (GST?) or the value of my phone?

sbiddle

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#1680941 1-Dec-2016 22:01

d3Xt3r:

I've got a phone which I purchased from an overseas website. The manufacturer said it would be inclusive of any taxes/duties so I don't have to pay anything when I receive it (and I didn't have to).

Unfortunately I broke my screen within a few months of owning my phone - and since it's so niche there aren't any spare screens available, nor does anyone here repair it. Thankfully, the manufacturer offered a screen repair for a reasonable fee - however, I'm reluctant to ship the phone overseas in case it gets picked up by customs upon re-entry.

Would I have to pay a fee upon re-entry, and if so, will that be charged based on the repair cost (GST?) or the value of my phone?

http://www.customs.govt.nz/news/updates/pages/gst-on-repairs.aspx

wsnz

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#1681324 2-Dec-2016 15:14

andrewNZ: Had a workmate get pinged for GST and duty on his own tools. He put them in a container with a machine going to Aus, then flew over to install and commission the containers contents. He then sent them home by courier to avoid excess baggage charges. They got held at the border, and as he had no documentation to prove they had been exported, he had to pay about $400.

He could have tried to argue it, but needed the tools so he could work.

We had a similar situation with a laptop that was left at our Brisbane office. Because no one was coming back anytime soon and the device was required urgently, it was sent via courier. We didn't have a receipt for the device (3 years old) and Customs would not budge so we had to pay GST on the estimated valuation.

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