Ordering from the States

[the_lone_wolf]

No, it's not another "can i label it as a gift and dodge the import duty" thread...


i'm getting a new pipe for the DRZ, plus the James Dean jetting kit and a couple of other bits and bobs from thumpertalk - and before i place the order i'd like to see if i've got my maths straight:

Total cost of goods = $555.05

Plus shipping = $614.21 = £304.11 (according to x-rates.com at 22:11 Sunday)

As far as i can ascertain from the incredibly helpful HMRC website this is the figure to which they apply duty at 3.5% then VAT at 17.5% (the applicable rate in the UK)

So the total to pay = £369.84

Is that pretty much the gist of it? i assume my credit card company will shaft me on the exchange rate? how bad is that likely to be? can the shipping company apply a handling fee on top of their rates if the package is labelled correctly?

any other comments, yes i know warrenties **might** be an issue, but i'm good at kicking up a fuss, and at the prices i'm getting them for it's worth the risk in my opinion, unless someone in the UK fancies price matching it?

I think it's the 3.5% on the goods, VAT on the result of that and the postage, then a handling fee by the courier of about £7-9 and then VAT on that too!

Pretty much what you said.

[the_lone_wolf]

Originally Posted by arenalife

Pretty much what you said.

sounds reasonable, i just didn't want to get a call from fedex to collect the "Gordon Brown is a tight fisted ****** who's bankrupted the economy and wants another juicy bite" tax

Unlikey to get shafted on the exchange rate. Credit card companies usually apply a better rate than you'd get at the bank.

That's some cool kit you're buying

[the_lone_wolf]

Originally Posted by Ed

Unlikey to get shafted on the exchange rate. Credit card companies usually apply a better rate than you'd get at the bank.

That's some cool kit you're buying

cool, nice not to be shafted in this modern economy

should be some nice kit, Yoshi RS-2 full system (stainless/alu not ti, i'm not made of money) comes well recommended by the boys over at thumpertalk...

[Lissa]

I can answer this.................seeing as Pete is right at this moment playing with the rear sets we've just received from the States

The amount of duty you pay varies depending on the item. From 0-80%, depending on the commodity code. Our parcel was marked up 'Motorcycle parts' by the sender, which allowed the correct commodity code to be chosen.

Our rear sets cost $200.

We paid NO duty.

We paid £19.15 VAT

The biggest stinger.................which you may not know about................is the handling charge from whichever courier/ postal service here in the UK delivers your parcel.

£13.50 handling charge from Parcel Force.

Hope that will help you work out a rough idea.

[the_lone_wolf]

Originally Posted by Lissa

I can answer this.................seeing as Pete is right at this moment playing with the rear sets we've just received from the States

The amount of duty you pay varies depending on the item. From 0-80%, depending on the commodity code. Our parcel was marked up 'Motorcycle parts' by the sender, which allowed the correct commodity code to be chosen.

Our rear sets cost $200.

We paid NO duty.

We paid £19.15 VAT

The biggest stinger.................which you may not know about................is the handling charge from whichever courier/ postal service here in the UK delivers your parcel.

£13.50 handling charge from Parcel Force.

Hope that will help you work out a rough idea.

thanks for that, i reckon i'll just have to order and see what happens when it gets here, hopefully the handling charge is related to the amount of paperwork, not the size or value of the package...

[the_lone_wolf]

The deed is done, let's see how long it takes to get here