Import duty from the Netherlands (to uk)

se2020

I bought an item on ebay. It was listed as being located in the Netherlands. 
Tracking shows it was dispatched from the Netherlands via Netherlands post.

I have received a card from royal mail today telling me there is a fee (customs charge) to pay.
Have I got the Brexit dates wrong or has the Netherlands left Europe without me noticing? 
Is this likely to be a royal mail error?

Another strange thing, The item was £50 (free p&p) but the duty amount is £11.49.
If royal mail charge £8 fee then £3.49 is wrong for vat?

Yahoo_Mail

se2020 said:

I bought an item on ebay. It was listed as being located in the Netherlands. 
Tracking shows it was dispatched from the Netherlands via Netherlands post.

I have received a card from royal mail today telling me there is a fee (customs charge) to pay.
Have I got the Brexit dates wrong or has the Netherlands left Europe without me noticing? 
Is this likely to be a royal mail error?

Another strange thing, The item was £50 (free p&p) but the duty amount is £11.49.
If royal mail charge £8 fee then £3.49 is wrong for vat?

Could it be a different item entirely?

Vegastare

In July I got a parasol and stand via E Bay - not knowing it was from Germany - it was just over £45 inc delivery and I paid no duty.  So I would check with Royal Mail.  The only thing I am aware of is slight difference on member states and VAT...but that would be worked in by seller - very strange -its not wine or spirits with duty.

Caz3121

there was another poster that had same - not sure if there was any update
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6190268/royal-mail-customs-charges-for-post-from-netherlands/p1

custardy

se2020 said:

I bought an item on ebay. It was listed as being located in the Netherlands. 
Tracking shows it was dispatched from the Netherlands via Netherlands post.

I have received a card from royal mail today telling me there is a fee (customs charge) to pay.
Have I got the Brexit dates wrong or has the Netherlands left Europe without me noticing? 
Is this likely to be a royal mail error?

Another strange thing, The item was £50 (free p&p) but the duty amount is £11.49.
If royal mail charge £8 fee then £3.49 is wrong for vat?

You cant know whats 'wrong' as you havent seen the CN22.
Likely(as was covered extensively in the linked thread) this is a cross border item.

se2020

It's the same item,
The tracking number on the royal mail 'fee to pay' form is the same as the one added in ebay.

Tracking number ends in NL but from reading the other thread i think it might well have come from china originally. 
It's a led torch. Annoying if it is a cross border item as I paid a higher price for one I thought would be delivered quicker and it's taken over a month already.

The listing clearly says item location is NL but the sellers business address is china.
Should I contact the seller and ask for a refund of the import fees?

mikb

You could also contact eBay to report the item/report the seller for mis-representing where the item is. Make it clear that you would not have bought this item if you had known it was coming from outside the EU as tax/duties are levied, whereas Netherlands is inside the EU.

Modelman_2

Sometimes they drop ship to an EU warehouse where you think it's coming from however customs can still source it's original shipping destination, ie China. The RM fee is a standard handling fee which is a rip especially on cheap items just over £15. VAT and customs fees are based on the total cost of item plus postage.

se2020

I presume the seller has understated the cost of the item.
As the £8 RM fee only leaves £3.42 for vat which should be a tenner.

It says they will return to sender if I don't pay the fee so I might just let them send it back and ask the seller for a refund.

I can buy the same thing directly from china for £42.

mikb

Modelman_2 said:

Sometimes they drop ship to an EU warehouse where you think it's coming from however customs can still source it's original shipping destination, ie China

An interesting possibility -- if the item was dropshipped to an EU warehouse from China, then *that* was the time to hit the Netherlands recipient with charges. Once inside Europe, it should move freely with no further charges.

Otherwise, HMRC and the couriers are double-dipping!

Sandtree

mikb said:

Modelman_2 said:

Sometimes they drop ship to an EU warehouse where you think it's coming from however customs can still source it's original shipping destination, ie China

An interesting possibility -- if the item was dropshipped to an EU warehouse from China, then *that* was the time to hit the Netherlands recipient with charges. Once inside Europe, it should move freely with no further charges.

Otherwise, HMRC and the couriers are double-dipping!

Its not that straight forward when you add in bonded warehouses.... legally if the goods go into the bonded warehouse they havent entered the country’s market. If they are exported directly from the bonded warehouse they never enter the country’s market and so the receiving country will count them as having come from the original source. So in this case no european taxes have been paid so the UK taxes apply