Import duty for glasses from abroad?

pieroabcd

Hi, today I bought some cheap glasses (£58 + 7 for shipping) from a web site that is based in the US but *seems* to also have a branch in the UK.
The website has the .co.uk domain name but I'm not totally sure that they still have the UK branch.
The question is: if I have to pay custom duties, will the delivery company surely tell me and ask me to pay a bill? Or are there cases when they don't send a bill and I have to pay proactively?
I'm hypothesizing that they have closed the UK branch and shipping from the US. If I receive the bill from the customs ok, easy, but if I don't what do I have to do?

Thanks

powerful_Rogue

pieroabcd said:

Hi, today I bought some cheap glasses (£58 + 7 for shipping) from a web site that is based in the US but *seems* to also have a branch in the UK.
The website has the .co.uk domain name but I'm not totally sure that they still have the UK branch.
The question is: if I have to pay custom duties, will the delivery company surely tell me and ask me to pay a bill? Or are there cases when they don't send a bill and I have to pay proactively?
I'm hypothesizing that they have closed the UK branch and shipping from the US. If I receive the bill from the customs ok, easy, but if I don't what do I have to do?

Thanks

Having a .co.uk domain doesn't mean anything. Anyone in the world can purchase one.

There are usually two ways this is handled depending on who the courier is.

1) You get the invoice and have to goto the local sorting office to pay and collect.

2) Item gets delivered and they you get an invoice in the post to pay the outstanding duties.

Manxman_in_exile

Is it the case that import duty (or whatever it's called) is only charged where the total value exceeds something like £130?

I assume VAT is payable whatever the value?

born_again

Got a link to the site?

Not saying this is the case, but often something seeming to be from US with a UK base (maybe) often turn out to be chinese co's selling less than legit brands.

DullGreyGuy

Manxman_in_exile said:

Is it the case that import duty (or whatever it's called) is only charged where the total value exceeds something like £130?

I assume VAT is payable whatever the value?

Since Brexit the default is...

£135 total cost of the package (inc P&P, insurance etc) or more... importer pays VAT, Customs Duty and Excise at the appropriate rate for the goods

Under £135 total cost... exporter pays VAT and no Customs Duty applies, the exception to this is if there is Excise applicable (ie alcohol, tobacco etc) in which case it all falls on the importer

Larger companies can offer a landed price for parcels over £135, most that do offer it as an option rather than compulsary and its not always clear that its the cheaper option but it does give you a fixed cost.


Its as clear as mud of how the whole thing works if the exporter either doesnt realise their obligations or ignores them... as far as I could see the idea was HMRC would still be quids in due to large companies now paying VAT from the ground up whereas under the old scheme parcels under £20 were exempt but idea and practice dont always match... most my imports have  been over £135 since Brexit so not tested the under process materially but the couple I did have came without any additional charges.

pieroabcd

Update: the parcel has arrived and no duty was due. Collected from the post office collection point.

DullGreyGuy

pieroabcd said:

Update: the parcel has arrived and no duty was due. Collected from the post office collection point.

Good to have an update and is inline with what expectation should be... only word of caution is that some deliver first and bill later for importation costs, though in my experience RM tend to bill before collection/delivery. 

pieroabcd

Also, over email they confirmed that no import duty is due. 
It's not for the money, I just don't like to be told that I didn't pay what was due.

pieroabcd

BTW, the return address is in Uxbridge, so they were shipped from the UK after all.

Jonboy_1984

That’s another sign of a typical Chinese supplier, they airfreight consignments in bulk via Heathrow, customs clear them in bulk and then pass to Royal Mail for final delivery.

There are a whole host of freight companies in the Uxbridge/West Drayton area (due to its proximity to Heathrow) that process them and receive returns if required on behalf of these sellers.

CKhalvashi

Jonboy_1984 said:

That’s another sign of a typical Chinese supplier, they airfreight consignments in bulk via Heathrow, customs clear them in bulk and then pass to Royal Mail for final delivery.

There are a whole host of freight companies in the Uxbridge/West Drayton area (due to its proximity to Heathrow) that process them and receive returns if required on behalf of these sellers.

The industrial estate we reside has one of these freight companies now that definitely is not Chinese.

This could be from anywhere in the world