Purchasing off B&H USA

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trainsonrails

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#132202 12-Oct-2013 13:00

HI,
I would like to know if anyone has had experiences of buying things from B&H USA. I would like to buy a product under $1000. What are the procedures of getting the item to NZ?
Cheers

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freitasm

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#914084 12-Oct-2013 13:41

If they don't ship to New Zealand directly then you might use a service such as NZ Post YouShop. This will give you a US-based address and once they receive the item it will be forwarded to you, at a cost. You pay NZ Post for the shipping service.

When the item lands in New Zealand the Customs service will inspect it and if fees + tax + GST is more than $60 they will ask you to pay it before release for local delivery.

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trainsonrails

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#914087 12-Oct-2013 13:44

It says they do ship to NZ.

sbiddle

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#914089 12-Oct-2013 13:45

If they do you'll just need to pay customs duty and GST when it arrives. The freight company or NZ post will contact you when the goods arrive to arrange payment.

freitasm

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#914090 12-Oct-2013 13:46

As above. Just have it shipped and if any GST/fees are needed the shipping company will contact you for payment - usually credit card or bank deposit.

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trainsonrails

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#914091 12-Oct-2013 13:47

Thanks for the quick answers. Much appreciated.

gregmcc

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#914095 12-Oct-2013 13:58

I've brought from them a few years back, no problems at all

trainsonrails

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#914100 12-Oct-2013 13:59

Did you have to pay any fees/GST?

profrink

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#914102 12-Oct-2013 14:08

Have purchased a few times from them and have also visited the store in NY.

Solid process from order placement to shipment. They ship to NZ with either UPS or FedEx I think. Pricey but you're paying for an international 2-3 or 3-5 day courier service. Even with the shipping costs added on I was still saving close to a couple hundred dollars buying through them.

No GST - BUT only because my shipments either have been under the allowance or have not been pulled for checking. It's a random check at customs. Plus I think UPS/DHL/FedEx pre-clear customs but not 100% sure on that.

freitasm

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#914103 12-Oct-2013 14:11

As above. You owe GST in everything but Customs will only really charge if the amount to collect is over $60. This means anything over $400 (including shipping) will need to pay GST, if not tax.

If you have to pay GST then the shipping company will also charge you a handling fee.

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gregmcc

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#914145 12-Oct-2013 16:17

trainsonrails: Did you have to pay any fees/GST?

Didn't have to pay anything more as it was only about an $80 purchase all up

timmmay

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#914155 12-Oct-2013 16:39

I've bought from them multiple times, no problems at all, including one return. From memory I used UPS, I call to pay the duties once I know it's almost in NZ, I don't wait for them to call me.

You will end up paying GST and any applicable duty. Often that negates the benefit of buying overseas, especially counting lack of warranty.

spearsniper

133 posts

Master Geek

#914160 12-Oct-2013 16:58

Purchased from them on numerous occasions.

Never had a problem, and would not hesitate to get more kit from them.

Lou1983

34 posts

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#914162 12-Oct-2013 17:02

Different items have different GST thresholds. For instance you can bring in clothing and pay no tax up to the value of $250 not including shipping.
Car part's used to be around $400 and even more higher if it was considered classic and hard to get.

Use this calculator to find out roughly what you'll need to pay.

http://www.whatsmyduty.org.nz/

EDIT:Looks like some things have changed since I last imported anything.

Also, alot of sellers will mark the receipt as being less than what you actually paid.
I've done it a couple of times with car parts from the US but if anything happens through transit the insurance will only pay out
what the receipt value.

kiwitrc

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#914178 12-Oct-2013 17:49

As others have said they are good to deal with. I bought stuff for the company so wasnt worried about GST etc, and we did have to pay it.

stevenz

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#914180 12-Oct-2013 17:57

B&H insist on using UPS for shipping though from memory which tends to be around the NZ$80 mark for even a small parcel, so often the shipping charges will offset much of the benefit of the lower prices. You may be better off getting them to ship to you via YouShop.

Handling fees tend to be in the $30-$40 region for smallish items in my experience.

B&H themselves though are totally reliable.

@KnightNZ

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