Royal Mail £8 Internal Post Handling Fee scam?

Adsdory

Hi there,

Just a bit lost with importing an item from eBay.
I get that I have to pay the VAT etc.

However if the seller post via DHL for example, would it still end up going through RM and having to pay the £8?

Thanks
Ads

sheramber

Adsdory wrote: »

Hi there,

Just a bit lost with importing an item from eBay.
I get that I have to pay the VAT etc.

However if the seller post via DHL for example, would it still end up going through RM and having to pay the £8?

Thanks
Ads

DHL will dealt with it but charge more than RM

http://www.dhl.co.uk/en/express/customs_support/duties_taxes/duties_taxes_receivers.html

How much is the Advance Payment / disbursement cost I have to pay?
An amount of £11.00 or 2.5% of the total Duty and/or VAT incurred, whichever is the greater.

Effective 1st May 2016, the amount for businesses and private individuals will be £11.00 or 2.5%. Occasionally this charge for private individuals may be rounded down to the nearest round pound amount.

If the total Duty and/or VAT incurred is less than £440 then a flat amount of £11.00 will be incurred as this is less than 2.5%

MickB1969

I was recently caught with this too, but feel cheated for different reasons.

I was very careful to keep the value of the goods I was buying below the duty threshold, even with slight changes in the exchange rate I was safe.

However....... On the parcel, there were 2 amounts and a total. One of these was the value of the goods and the other the cost of postage, the total being a combination of the two.

I told the post office that postage isn't "goods" but they insisted there was a fee to pay, including their £8.

So I have ended up paying over 50% more for the items I bought with no way to challenge it.

I guess what I would really like to know is is there any way to pay the duty myself before the post office get involved?

paddyrg

MickB1969 wrote: »

I was recently caught with this too, but feel cheated for different reasons.

I was very careful to keep the value of the goods I was buying below the duty threshold, even with slight changes in the exchange rate I was safe.

However....... On the parcel, there were 2 amounts and a total. One of these was the value of the goods and the other the cost of postage, the total being a combination of the two.

I told the post office that postage isn't "goods" but they insisted there was a fee to pay, including their £8.

So I have ended up paying over 50% more for the items I bought with no way to challenge it.

I guess what I would really like to know is is there any way to pay the duty myself before the post office get involved?

VAT
You pay VAT on goods sent from non-European Union (EU) countries and EU special territories (eg the Canary Islands) if they’re:

gifts worth more than £34
other goods worth more than £15
alcohol, tobacco products and fragrances (eg perfume, eau de toilette and cologne) of any value
You have to pay VAT on all goods sent by mail order from the Channel Islands no matter what their value.

You’ll be charged at the VAT rate that applies to your goods. VAT is charged on the total value, including:

the price paid for the goods
postage, packaging and insurance
any duty you owe
Customs Duty
You’ll be charged Customs Duty on gifts and other goods sent from outside the EU if they’re above a certain value, unless the duty comes to less than £7.

The value includes:

the price paid for the goods
postage, packaging and insurance

from https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/tax-and-duty

powerful_Rogue

MickB1969 wrote: »

I was recently caught with this too, but feel cheated for different reasons.

I was very careful to keep the value of the goods I was buying below the duty threshold, even with slight changes in the exchange rate I was safe.

However....... On the parcel, there were 2 amounts and a total. One of these was the value of the goods and the other the cost of postage, the total being a combination of the two.

I told the post office that postage isn't "goods" but they insisted there was a fee to pay, including their £8.

So I have ended up paying over 50% more for the items I bought with no way to challenge it.

I guess what I would really like to know is is there any way to pay the duty myself before the post office get involved?

Yes

https://www.nibusinessinfo.co.uk/content/how-declare-goods-when-importing-post

custardy

MickB1969 wrote: »

I was recently caught with this too, but feel cheated for different reasons.

I was very careful to keep the value of the goods I was buying below the duty threshold, even with slight changes in the exchange rate I was safe.

However....... On the parcel, there were 2 amounts and a total. One of these was the value of the goods and the other the cost of postage, the total being a combination of the two.

I told the post office that postage isn't "goods" but they insisted there was a fee to pay, including their £8.

So I have ended up paying over 50% more for the items I bought with no way to challenge it.

I guess what I would really like to know is is there any way to pay the duty myself before the post office get involved?

First hurdle is working out you aren't dealing with the Post Office.

The-Truth

I'm now at the point where I think people who complain but are completely in the wrong should be taxed/fined in some way. It would bring in the country one hell of a lot revenue!

forgotmyname

Those nice people at FedEx charged me nothing and even paid my duty for me.

Although my 2 item delivery got separated, where the 1st item empty box got delivered. Yes an obviously empty open ended tube of a box. Driver handed it over and virtually ran away without asking for a signature.

The other item arrived a couple of days later in a bashed and ripped state with a few fixing nuts/screws missing and a scuffed case.

Not their best attempt (i hope).

KxMx

You are only charged VAT on postage if the parcel itself has a value over the threshold.

So, something valued at £14 with postage at £10 attracts no charges.

Something valued at £16 with postage at £10 gets charged on a total of £26.

The parcel may have been over valued by the sender, check the customs label on the package. In that case, you have been correctly charged by HMRC & Royal Mail and would need to approach the sender.

SpammyTheSpammer

And it aint gonna get any better. Once we fully BREXIT, there will be tax & duty on everything from every country.
HMR&C must be rubbing their hands in gleee...