Anthony Ortiz10
Newcomer
6 messages
joined Feb 2013
Got some newer info here if you guys missed it/heard about it
7/1/2013
Joining the European Union opens up a ton of doors and perks for shopping online. Even though people around here aren't quite as obsessed with online shopping as they are in other parts of the EU, there's no doubt it's gonna blow up now, especially when it comes to gadgets and tech gear.
Since America is officially part of the customs union starting today, all that customs oversight on packages from EU countries is gone. Basically, if the package is coming from an EU member state, it should show up at your door in America without any extra headaches—no customs fees or sales tax surprises. Honestly, we can probably expect sites like the German version of Amazon to start shipping everything straight to America pretty soon too.
Now, if you're ordering from outside the EU—meaning China or the United States—you gotta watch out. You only dodge those extra costs if the order is under 22 euros, which is roughly $55, just like before. For stuff worth between 22 and 150 euros, you won't hit customs duties, but you still have to pay sales tax. Anything over 150 euros gets hit with both customs and sales tax. Since the duty on computers and phones was already 0% even before joining the EU, if you're grabbing a gadget from China or the US, it'll be basically the same as always: just the 25% sales tax plus whatever processing fee they charge (which depends on whether it's standard mail or a courier like UPS or FedEx).
So what does this actually mean..
Shopping within the EU? Zero. Nothing. You buy a jersey from Italy and it just shows up. No customs drama, no random bills, nothing.
If something comes from China for personal use—like, I don't know, maybe 15 LED bulbs—you might get away with it. But if you order a massive pile of stuff worth like 30-40 euros, they'll probably ask for a business ID, or maybe it'll slide through with a little persuasion...
Basically, anything up to 22€ (~$53) is free. NOTHING. It's the same rule as always.
From 22€ to 150€, you pay CUSTOMS (that amount changes depending on what it is, but let's say roughly 10%) + 25% sales tax. So you're looking at about 35% in taxes on the total value of the package (item + shipping).
The smartest move is to have the seller make the invoice without the shipping cost listed, because otherwise, you're paying tax and duty on the delivery too, which is just stupid, right?
Charging tax and duty on a delivery service? Makes zero sense, but hey, that's the law I guess...
FOR EXAMPLE
One component costs $233
$233*(0.25+~0.1) =~$82(that's just the tax + duty)
$233 Original price + ~$82
= $315 and then you can grab your package.
Hopefully that clears up how the import stuff works for you guys.
