Customs - importing multiple packages

[Louwai (Bryan)]

Originally Posted by casstony

Did customs ask you to supply proof of the purchase price before they'd release the scope?

Keep in mind also that sometimes Customs will work on the actual advertised price or supposed value of an item, regardless of what the person actually paid for it.

For example, Below I noted the experience with the railway carriage. The railway carriage was actually GIVEN to the guy in AU. All he had to do was get it from where it rested in the UK. So effectively the carriage was FREE.
For Customs I was still required to submit a "value" of the carriage & the owner was required to pay import duty & GST on that value. In this case Customs valued the carriage at AU$30k & so Duty & GST were paid on a value of $30k.

B

[citivolus (Ric)]

Originally Posted by casstony

Did customs ask you to supply proof of the purchase price before they'd release the scope?

Yeah, I had to fax them a printout of the eBay auction page along with their reference number, and the scope is now happily in my hands It added a few days to the shipment, as they received it on the weekend.

No charges ended up being added, so all is good. It turns out that WO had listed the value of the item including postage, which at $910 US had put it dangerously close to the $1000 AU mark. I believe they only need to include postage in the valuation when calculating GST/duty if the item itself is over $1000AU.

Eric

[citivolus (Ric)]

Originally Posted by Louwai

In this case Customs valued the carriage at AU$30k & so Duty & GST were paid on a value of $30k.

B

Ouch!

[Stephen65]

Yep, got the letter from Customs today about my Megrez.

I've received packages with a value close to A$1000 before but this is the first time I have had to deal with Customs, maybe they are having a crackdown?

[mlcolbert]

... maybe they figure the lead up to christmas is when most parcels with significant value arrive? Even though I've worked in spite of the government, I still wouldn't know.

michael

[Stephen65]

Here's what happened, when WO sent the scope they declared its value on the accompanying documents a total value of scope price + shipping and handling. This was enough to push it just over A$1000 and prompted Customs to send me a letter saying pay duty and GST.

I spoke to them on the phone and they told me if I had an invoice that separated the price and shipping then I should fax that in as the A$1000 limit is measured against price, shipping is irrelevant. Yesterday at luncthime I faxed in a printout of the Ebay email that showed the price was just under A$1000 and this morning the courier delivered it.

An interesting fact I found is that when you have paid in foreign currency Customs converts this by using the rates published by the RBA on their website as at the date of shipment/

[mlcolbert]

Stephen,
I wonder if it would alter anything if you then provided a copy of a printout from xe.com (dated) or from a bank etc which showed the exchange rate on the day of purchase / sending?


michael

[Argonavis (William)]

Originally Posted by Louwai

Michael, I have accounts with TNT, DHL, FEDEX, Allied Express, TOLL Priority & a few others.

If you are transporting a bullet proof (unbreakable) item, use TNT. They are the cheapest but also the most careless when it comes to freight handling. They quite litterally don't give a crap if your item is breakable or not.

If you are transporting crystal (or a telescope) use DHL. They are the most expensive, but also the most careful with packages.

Bryan

Any experience with UPS?