Importing from the USA

Harryburgundy

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Hi, was wondering if anybody in the UK has experience of buying frames/bikes in the US for shipping to the UK.
I have bought small stuff before without any problems but will there be customs/duty requirement on bigger stuff.
The mrs got a whopping £12 duty charge when she bought a small parcel of fabric from the states :shock: , had no problem with my Thomson stem :roll:
Cheers. Carl
 
It's a pretty common thing on here, I bought a complete Fat a while back and more recently a frame.. Both arrived with GBP30ish to pay on them in duty which wasn't so bad.. Normally takes about 10 days - fortnight..

What you buying? :twisted:
 
Importing

Hi, thanks for that... £30 duty...well worth it.
At the moment looking at a couple of things, neither retro I'm afraid :oops:
Kona explosif single speed frame for me, and a Specialized something or another for a mate.
Cheers, Carl.
 
I got stung for £80+ on a Mantis frame and a pair of Grafton cranks, so beware, it's been discussed on here before, try a search, some people have been lucky, others not so.
 
And I recently got a complete secondhand bike from the US and paid £120 Customs charge and VAT! Plus £30 VAT on a pair of second hand wheels.

Best to factor this in I'd say - I would probably do it again but the added 'costs' can be very high
 
At least here in Finland you have to do customs clarification if the item's (which is coming outside of European Union) value is more than 40€, even if it marked as a gift.

I had to pay 350€ worth of customs fees + VAT for my Adept and almost the same for my Attitude. So, that's why I like to buy from Germany or the UK, 'cause I know I won't have any hassles with customs...
 
Harry,

Topic pops up every now and then.

Basically UK customs add up the cost of your bike (new or 2nd hand - doesn't matter) and the cost of the shiping and the cost of the insurance on the shipping and tax that total at 14% in the case of a bike. (% changes depending what items you import).

Then they tax that new total at 17.5% for VAT.

And that's your import duty. And they hold onto it until you've paid.

No escaping it other than tieing a rubber ring round it and cycling it across the pond I'm afraid as far as I can see.

If the seller slaps a gift certificate on it, it's only good up to £36.00. over that and it's not a gift as far as customs see it.

:evil:
 
Thanks....so I guess it is a bit of a lottery.
Mr Wu...comprehensive reply ty...but how do 'they' know how much you paid?
Jesus.....is this a nation of stealth taxation or what :twisted: ...oops off my soap box now....before I'm fined by the local authority for failing to make a full risk assessment and not wearing a dayglo vest.
 
Just to hijack this slightly - I may be having a rear shock serviced in the states - would I be expected to pay any duties on that item when it gets returned to me in the UK? Is there a way of letting customs know that it's actually a return and not a purchase? :?
 
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