Purchasing a Macbook Pro in Hawaii and bringing it back to NZ.

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Dluo09

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#204933 23-Oct-2016 17:14

Hey guys,

I'm traveling to Hawaii for a holiday in December and i'm thinking of buying a Macbook there. I'm wondering if there's going to some sort of tax or anything like that when i bring it back to NZ.

If there is, does anyone know how much it'll be?

Any help is appreciated.

Thanks.

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#1656656 23-Oct-2016 17:53

It's likely Customs will try charge you GST 15% as it's well above their threshold.

Anecdotally I've heard that if you discard the packaging overseas and bring it back as if you just brought it with you from NZ in the first place you'll be fine, but YRMV.

You won't obviously have Consumer Guarantees Act purchasing overseas, but I *think* Apple's warranty is international, it does vary between their product ranges so you will want to check and be sure first :) EDIT: Just checked and all Apple Products except iPhone have international warranty so you should be sweet.

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#1656659 23-Oct-2016 18:04

no point get it in NZ

sbiddle

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#1656661 23-Oct-2016 18:08

You can bring back $750 worth of goods when you enter NZ. Above this and you'll have to pay GST and/or duty and the IETF fee which can all be calculated on the whatmyduty website

Of course if you decide to not bring any packaging and just bring it back as a used product and decide not to declare the product you'll be breaking the law but will not have to pay this.

Aaroona

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#1660094 28-Oct-2016 22:46

If you want it from Hawaii - get it from toshbuy.com. Jens is very friendly- I've purchased from him before and wouldn't hesitate again if I was in the market for another Apple machine.

He can get it to you GST free as well, which really brings the price down. He can also do GPS tracked shipping etc. too.

eracode

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#1660151 29-Oct-2016 04:21

OP is talking about bringing one back - not having it shipped.

"GST-free" sounds dodgy.

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nathan

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#1660244 29-Oct-2016 08:46

Aaroona:

If you want it from Hawaii - get it from toshbuy.com. Jens is very friendly- I've purchased from him before and wouldn't hesitate again if I was in the market for another Apple machine.

He can get it to you GST free as well, which really brings the price down. He can also do GPS tracked shipping etc. too.

how does he legally do this?

The Govt relies on GST to pay for beneficiaries, schools, hospitals and police

Zeon

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#1660410 29-Oct-2016 13:34

If you buy in the US you would also have to pay sales tax there which you can't claim back when you leave?

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Aaroona

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#1660478 29-Oct-2016 15:54

nathan:

Aaroona:

If you want it from Hawaii - get it from toshbuy.com. Jens is very friendly- I've purchased from him before and wouldn't hesitate again if I was in the market for another Apple machine.

He can get it to you GST free as well, which really brings the price down. He can also do GPS tracked shipping etc. too.

how does he legally do this?

The Govt relies on GST to pay for beneficiaries, schools, hospitals and police

Good question, I'm not entirely sure.
It was a few years I spoke to him and purchased from him. His website says Australia and NZ clients he can do GST-free, but yeah, not sure how that all works.

He has both retail and GST free options listed.

While I don't want to start a GST discussion (there are long ones here on GZ already), I appreciate the call out for the purpose of GST, all the same.

Aaroona

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#1660479 29-Oct-2016 15:56

Zeon:

If you buy in the US you would also have to pay sales tax there which you can't claim back when you leave?

I was of the understanding you were able to claim back the sales tax if you were traveling? I'm not sure how it all works, as I've not used it myself, but I did hear that either you can claim it at the airport, or, some stores allow you to present your travel information I think and do something that way.

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#1660483 29-Oct-2016 16:03

Aaroona:

Zeon:

If you buy in the US you would also have to pay sales tax there which you can't claim back when you leave?

I was of the understanding you were able to claim back the sales tax if you were traveling? I'm not sure how it all works, as I'm not used it myself, but I did hear that either you can claim it at the airport, or, some stores allow you to present your travel information I think and do something that way.

I tried it in 3 states - Illinois, Texas and California and they all declined. Some stores do a "travellers" discount of like 10% but its not possible to claim back at the airport.

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surfisup1000

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#1660485 29-Oct-2016 16:04

sbiddle:

You can bring back $750 worth of goods when you enter NZ. Above this and you'll have to pay GST and/or duty and the IETF fee which can all be calculated on the whatmyduty website

Of course if you decide to not bring any packaging and just bring it back as a used product and decide not to declare the product you'll be breaking the law but will not have to pay this.

also the time factor -- i declared goods once , and the customs people seemed surprised I was declaring and said 'i suppose you'll have to go over to the duty area'.

So, I did, took a little over an hour to get processed which is ridiculous.

Aaroona

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#1660487 29-Oct-2016 16:06

Zeon:

Aaroona:

Zeon:

If you buy in the US you would also have to pay sales tax there which you can't claim back when you leave?

I was of the understanding you were able to claim back the sales tax if you were traveling? I'm not sure how it all works, as I'm not used it myself, but I did hear that either you can claim it at the airport, or, some stores allow you to present your travel information I think and do something that way.

I tried it in 3 states - Illinois, Texas and California and they all declined. Some stores do a "travellers" discount of like 10% but its not possible to claim back at the airport.

You are correct- a quick google search shows a Government website with information regarding no ability to claim the tax back. I stand corrected!

https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/373/~/how-to-obtain-a-refund-of-sales-tax-paid-while-visiting-the-united-states

The United States Government does not refund sales tax to foreign visitors.

sbiddle

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#1660509 29-Oct-2016 16:08

Aaroona:

Zeon:

If you buy in the US you would also have to pay sales tax there which you can't claim back when you leave?

I was of the understanding you were able to claim back the sales tax if you were traveling? I'm not sure how it all works, as I've not used it myself, but I did hear that either you can claim it at the airport, or, some stores allow you to present your travel information I think and do something that way.

There is no such process in the US.

Australia let you claim back GST and the UK let you claim back VAT. They're certainly the only two counties I can think of that have such a process.

eracode

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#1660533 29-Oct-2016 16:55

Yesterday I was looking into buying one of the new MBP 13", mid-spec, in Canada - and bringing it back from there when we visit in January.

There's no GST refund, but on straight price and FX conversion, there's a saving of about NZD500 to be had - even allowing for bank FX fees etc - but not counting NZ GST.

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DaveDog

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#1661031 30-Oct-2016 18:35

nathan:

Aaroona:

If you want it from Hawaii - get it from toshbuy.com. Jens is very friendly- I've purchased from him before and wouldn't hesitate again if I was in the market for another Apple machine.

He can get it to you GST free as well, which really brings the price down. He can also do GPS tracked shipping etc. too.

how does he legally do this?

The Govt relies on GST to pay for beneficiaries, schools, hospitals and police

I wonder the exact same thing...

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