Gold coins from foreign parts

ghosties

Hello,
Looking for advice we have Gold coins in a safe deposit box in the EU. This was put aside by my wife's parents as a retirement fund. The time has now come to liquidise some of the coins.
So is it best to sell them where they are or import them into the UK. My wife is a German national so has German bank accounts. Also what is the most cost effective way to liquidise them.
There is no provenance with these coins.
Thank you in advance for any help you can provide.

artyboy

ghosties said:

Hello,
Looking for advice we have Gold coins in a safe deposit box in the EU. This was put aside by my wife's parents as a retirement fund. The time has now come to liquidise some of the coins.
So is it best to sell them where they are or import them into the UK. My wife is a German national so has German bank accounts. Also what is the most cost effective way to liquidise them.
There is no provenance with these coins.
Thank you in advance for any help you can provide.

A furnace perhaps? 

(Sorry...)

ColdIron

It would make sense to me to sell them in the currency that you want, no point in inviting Fx fees

I've bought many coins from abroad, mostly the USA, and qualifying coins are free from VAT or duty though you may need to declare them at customs. You may be liable to Capital Gains Tax on some of the coins upon disposal

Read these 2 links particularly the advice regarding VAT Notice 701/21A
https://www.bullionbypost.co.uk/info/how-much-gold-can-you-travel-with/

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/gold-acquisitions-imports-investments-and-vat-notice-70121

These are reputable dealers
https://www.chards.co.uk/

https://www.bairdmint.com/

https://atkinsonsbullion.com/

https://www.bullionbypost.co.uk/

https://www.hattongardenmetals.com/

DullGreyGuy

So they are yours or your in-laws? Confusing as you say yours but they put them aside for retirement. Where are the in-laws? 

Assuming they are simply the value of gold and not considered more valuable due to rarity or such then its unlikely there will be much difference between the countries. Do you know what you have? Will someone have to go to collect it? 

As long as it meets the requirement for investment grade gold then there shouldn't be VAT were you to bring it into the UK but you have to consider how you're going to do that and its costs. Here you can sell it fairly easily, Royal Mint for example gives 96% of the LBMA spot rate but prices are fairly volatile, its gone up £73 per troy oz in the last month but there was also an £8 difference between the AM and PM rate yesterday and the penultimate week of June it fell £30. Rates in Germany look similar. 

Make sure you are cross comparing the same things though! In the UK gold is weighed in Troy Ounce not Avoirdupois Ounces (the former is 31.1g the later 28.3g) which is used to weigh other things.

Brie

If you have them in your possession (or can get them) I would suggest taking them to a legitimate coin collector/dealer rather than to a high street shop the advertises "we buy any gold".  A dealer will be able to tell you if the coin itself is of value whereas a shop will simply give you a buy price for the gold.  Some coins will have a value based on who/why/where they were minted and their condition.  And that may add value for a coin collector.  

Can't recommend anyone in particular other then to suggest you contact one of the better know auction companies.  

akm2018

artyboy said:

ghosties said:

Hello,
Looking for advice we have Gold coins in a safe deposit box in the EU. This was put aside by my wife's parents as a retirement fund. The time has now come to liquidise some of the coins.
So is it best to sell them where they are or import them into the UK. My wife is a German national so has German bank accounts. Also what is the most cost effective way to liquidise them.
There is no provenance with these coins.
Thank you in advance for any help you can provide.

A furnace perhaps? 

(Sorry...)

Just in case @ghosties doesn't get the joke - the thing you're asking how to do is liquidATE the coins (turn their value into cash) rather than liquidISE them (turn them from solid to liquid)

ghosties

DullGreyGuy said:

So they are yours or your in-laws? Confusing as you say yours but they put them aside for retirement. Where are the in-laws? 

Assuming they are simply the value of gold and not considered more valuable due to rarity or such then its unlikely there will be much difference between the countries. Do you know what you have? Will someone have to go to collect it? 

As long as it meets the requirement for investment grade gold then there shouldn't be VAT were you to bring it into the UK but you have to consider how you're going to do that and its costs. Here you can sell it fairly easily, Royal Mint for example gives 96% of the LBMA spot rate but prices are fairly volatile, its gone up £73 per troy oz in the last month but there was also an £8 difference between the AM and PM rate yesterday and the penultimate week of June it fell £30. Rates in Germany look similar. 

Make sure you are cross comparing the same things though! In the UK gold is weighed in Troy Ounce not Avoirdupois Ounces (the former is 31.1g the later 28.3g) which is used to weigh other things.

Sorry for the confusion I am new to all of this as @artyboy has amusingly revealed. The retirement pot was originated back in the 1970's for my wife to draw upon. Her parents are no longer around. The coins are a mixture of 100 Austrian Krona and 4 Ducat pieces.  We regularly travel to Europe so collecting them is not a problem. Am I correct in thinking there will be capital gains tax to pay on selling?
Thank you for the advice on ounces, we will bear it in mind.

Keep_pedalling

AFAIK these coins have no value over their gold content unless they have date prior to WW1. Ones struck after the war are all dated 1915 even though they were minted years later.

Selling in the UK would be subject to CGT so better to sell in Germany where they are not.

wmb194

Keep_pedalling said:

Selling in the UK would be subject to CGT so better to sell in Germany where they are not.

Makes no difference in which market they're sold. If the OP is tax resident in the UK then, after allowances, UK CGT applies to the sale of foreign coins

Because they're considered legal currency, if they were British coins dated 1837 and later no CGT would apply.

lohr500

Depending on the quantity if I was you, I would be looking to sell to a reputable gold dealer in Germany close to where the coins are currently stored with payment into my wife's German bank a/c.

The thought of travelling with a large value of gold would worry me from a security point of view.

As mentioned above by @Keep-pedalling , an internet search would suggest that if the 100 Corona coins are dated 1915, they are restrikes and their value is purely based on the gold price. Likewise if the 4 Ducat coins have a 1915 date.

No affiliation but this company has locations in Germany. You could call them and get a spot price for the coins.

https://stonexbullion.com/en/buy-back/

Spot price online now :  https://stonexbullion.com/en/gold-coins/corona-austria/100-corona-franz-joseph-i-austria-gold-coin/

Then compare their spot price to that of one of the UK based gold traders listed in the list that @ColdIron has posted above.

I have used Atkinsons in the UK before and found them to offer an excellent service for both buying and selling gold coins. 

 https://atkinsonsbullion.com/sell-to-us/gold/gold-coins/other-gold-coins/pre-owned-austrian-100-corona-gold-coin-mixed-dates

dasherman

I sold some gold coins that I  inherited from relative a few months ago. Most were Sovereigns but some were also foreign, such as krugerrands, florin, ducats, etc.

I just took them to a local bullion dealer who gave me a price based on their gold value.