Bringing things back from the EU

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Re: Bringing things back from the EU

Post by bobins »

It would appear that EU eBay sellers selling to the UK will need to list their prices as Net VAT and eBay will automatically add and deal with the VAT for a whole range of items*. This doesn't necessarily mean increased prices as the local equivalent of VAT was always charged (where applicable) anyway, it's just that now the VAT will be calculated and applied via the applicable UK rate. The EU has deferred the reciprocal arrangement for 6 months.
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Re: Bringing things back from the EU

Post by white exec »

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Can I just ask that we rein back on really bad language and personal insults/accusations here?
Quite happy for the practicalities of EU-UK purchasing to be discussed, of course.
Trying to take a gentle line here, but forum rules do need to be respected.
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Re: Bringing things back from the EU

Post by Gibbo2286 »

VAT rules are pretty complicated but Ebay sellers will only be affected if they are registered for VAT, if they are they will already be accustomed to handling the paperwork.
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Re: Bringing things back from the EU

Post by Paul-R »

There isn't just the VAT to be taken into account. There might also be import duty to pay. And this will probably be handled by the Post Office (or is it Royal Mail, not sure) and they have a flat handling charge as has already been mentioned.
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Re: Bringing things back from the EU

Post by white exec »

Sellers must be pretty used to varying rates of VAT between countries (and not just within the EU), and by-and-large cope with it (rightly or wrongly) either by charging VAT at the rate in the seller's country, or the buyer's one. Amazon has been particularly chaotic over this, but as they manage to pay little or no tax in many of the countries they operate in, I suppose they don't much care.

It will be interesting to see how UK sellers - particularly 'marketplace' ones - react to any new rules. Those of us who live outside the UK have got used to many UK online sellers posting "The item you have ordered cannot be delivered to your address". This is odd, as postal services have operated seamlessly for years across the EU, even to the extent of postal service tracking numbers being completely unified. Couriers, in the main, operate similarly.

Can only conclude that many small UK sellers just cannot be bothered to mail an international package, even a small one. Maybe they feel life ends at Dover; "Fog in Channel, Europe isolated". Who knows?

That same "cannot deliver" message rarely appears on items sold on Amazon.de or Amazon.fr - both of whom will deliver internationally without issue, and often incredibly cheaply.

Even more odd is that some of those reluctant UK sellers often have their items on .de or .fr Amazon sites, and an order placed for delivery to Spain not only gets here promptly, but is dispatched from the UK by the seller themselves, and at a delivery charge significantly less that a UK one.

Over the years, we have got into the the habit of doing a search on Am.uk for an item, then simply copy-pasting the items title into Am.es/de/fr, to (usually) find a lower Euro price, and cheaper delivery.

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Re: Bringing things back from the EU

Post by bobins »

Amazon may have their own rules that restrict trade across borders. I know that it used to be the case that certain sellers had to sign up to the fact that they weren't allowed to sell cheaper anywhere else apart from their Amazon 'marketplace'. You might find that Amazon wouldn't let them sell at that price on the .co.uk website, but they would let them sell at that price on the .de website - for example.
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Re: Bringing things back from the EU

Post by bobins »

This is what the HMRC has to say about receiving things 'from abroad'. It was updated 22/12/20

2.3 Limits for Customs Duty and Import VAT

The limits for Customs Duty and Import VAT are:

• commercial consignments (goods you’ve purchased) of £135 or less are free from Customs Duty and not subject to Import VAT - this does not include alcohol, tobacco products, perfume or toilet waters as these items are excluded from the relief of Customs Duty and VAT at import is payable
• commercial consignments sent to the UK from the Channel Islands do not benefit from any relief of Import VAT
• if you’re sent a gift with a value of £39 or less, which complies with the rules shown in section 2.4, it will be free from Customs Duty and Import VAT (gifts of alcohol and tobacco are subject to the limits shown in section 2.5 and gifts of perfumes and toilet waters are subject to the limits in section 2.6)
• Customs Duty becomes payable if the value of the goods is over £135

In summary:

Goods value - £0.01 to £135 Customs charges applicable - No Customs Duty No Import VAT
Goods value - £135.01 and greater Customs charges applicable - Customs Duty due, Import VAT due

Excluding the following: alcohol, tobacco products, perfumes and toilet waters. These items do not benefit from the relief of Customs Duty or VAT at import, and alcohol and tobacco products will also be liable to Excise Duty.

Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... post-users
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