Customs/VAT??

HellCat said:
Rearing my ugly head again and bringing this back to ask a question I'm uncertain on.

As I said back in October, I've been having a magazine + blu-ray parcel every month for the last year. The final volume is out this month, which means I'll be going back to just the magazine. Said magazine is about £4-7 but is the typical Japanese phonebook style, making the total cost higher.

As the magazine is only a fiver or so, does this mean I should be back to avoiding customs on said parcels? Thanks../quote]
Click to expand...

The limit is £12 at present iirc? Size of parcel doesn't matter, it's the price declared on any customs slip.
 
Magazines are exempt from VAT so as long as it's declared as a magazine/book you should be free of nasty charges for a while. Even if you add a few extra books/magazines to the shipment and pop over the limit for personal imports, it's still charged at 0% VAT.

R
 
I've found that FedEx will invoice you duty for magazines unless you kick up a fuss, at least that's what they did to me (once I complained the invoices mysteriously stopped arriving).
 
http://customs.hmrc.gov.uk/channelsPort ... e=document

The above link should help greatly

top ^

2.3 What are the limits for customs duty and import VAT?
■ Commercial consignments i.e goods you have purchased, of £15 or less are free from customs duty and import VAT.
Note: This does not include alcohol, tobacco products, perfume or toilet waters; these items are excluded from the relief of duty and VAT at import.
In addition, commercial consignments sent to the UK from the Channel Islands do not benefit from any relief of import VAT.
■ If you are sent a gift with a value of £40* or less, which complies with the rules shown in paragraph 2.4, it will be free from customs duty and import VAT. Gifts of alcohol, tobacco, perfumes and toilet waters are subject to the limits shown in paragraph 2.5, while gifts of perfumes and toilet waters are subject to the limits in paragraph 2.6.*Please note this limit will reduce to £36 with effect from 1 January 2013.
■ Customs duty becomes payable if the value of the goods is over £135 but duty is waived if the amount of duty calculated is less than £9.

In summary:





Goods Value*



Customs Charges applicable





£0.01 to £15


■ No customs duty
■ No Import VAT**




£15.01 to £135


■ No customs duty
■ Import VAT due




£135.01 and greater


■ Customs duty due, but waived if the amount calculated due is less than £9
■ Import VAT due


*Excludes the following goods: alcohol; tobacco products; perfumes and toilet waters. These items do not benefit from the relief of customs duty or VAT at import, and alcohol and tobacco products will also be liable to excise duty.

**Commercial consignments sent to the UK from the Channel Islands do not benefit from relief of import VAT.

There are a number of other circumstances where relief from some or all customs charges may be available. If you think your goods may be eligible for a relief you should contact the HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) Excise and Customs Helpline on Tel 0845 010 9000 for further information.
 
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