Clearance fees on purchases from the EU - what can I expect?

Ena123

Hi, I am considering buying alcohol markers that come from the EU and they worth just above £200, i.e. a subject to all those extra charges. Some are included in the price already, but the 'clearance fee' isn't and I will have to pay it separately. But I am struggling to find even a hint how much that could add to my final price. I know it may depend on the courier, but looking for this info, it feels like it is deliberately hidden from us, not even a price range to be approximate. Nothing. I have totally no clue how much I could expect. I checked the Royal Mail website, couldn't find the answer.
Does anyone know? I am not even sure this is the correct forum section for this question, but I couldn't think of any other more suitable from what I could see here. 
TIA. 

martindow

It will vary according to the carrier who does the customs clearance.  It could be anything from £8 to around £15.

What charges are they including?  You are likely to be charged VAT on the price that you pay and also on the carriage charge.  There could also be duty payable depending on the item and its country of origin although this is usually only a few per cent if it is chargeable at all.  You can check this on HMRC commodity codes pages.

https://www.trade-tariff.service.gov.uk/find_commodity

You need to tot everything up to decide if it is worthwhile buying from abroad.  Sometimes it can be cheaper buying from a UK importer even if the initial price on a foreign site looks a bargain.

Ena123

martindow said:

It will vary according to the carrier who does the customs clearance.  It could be anything from £8 to around £15.

What charges are they including?  You are likely to be charged VAT on the price that you pay and also on the carriage charge.  There could also be duty payable depending on the item and its country of origin although this is usually only a few per cent if it is chargeable at all.  You can check this on HMRC commodity codes pages.

https://www.trade-tariff.service.gov.uk/find_commodity

You need to tot everything up to decide if it is worthwhile buying from abroad.  Sometimes it can be cheaper buying from a UK importer even if the initial price on a foreign site looks a bargain.

Thanks for that. I queried this previously and this is what they wrote to me: 

"The UK are subject to Import VAT when the value of goods exceeds the local duty-free amount.  To ensure a smooth delivery, we've included UK customs duties in UK destination orders.  These fees cover UK authorities' requirements and are not additional costs. 

The UK are subject to clearance fee when the value of goods exceeds the local duty-free amount.  The Clearance Fee need to be borne by the customer."

It is coming from the EU warehouse, it is Ohuhu brand, I checked them on Amazon but too many people reported faulty products, me suspecting they were counterfeited or returns after previous customers tampered with them, so I am not going to risk this. I prefer purchasing directly from the brand. I am not sure how many businesses are selling the full set over here, at such a good price as the producer, plus a present at a discount. 

Plus, I think DPD charges £29 or so and try to justify it on their website. The thing is the producer cannot tell me which courier will deliver it to me so none of us have any control over it. 

Ena123

Update: I received my order just today and to my pleasant surprise, it had a sticker on the box that I am not to be charged ANYTHING. All zeros. All taken care of, so the confusing correspondence with the company caused me stress unnecessarily. No handling charges even... arrived by DHL or Parcelforce, stickers of both on the box and I didn't ask the delivery man for ID, not paying much attention, just happily grabbed the box from his hands and ran to my cave with it. LOL