CUSTOMS - legally avoid being screwed

[pmsbull]

Seen lots of people talk about being shafted for customs charges , heres how not to get screwed...

Get the seller to describe your parcel as a "collectable item" or if appropriate a "work of art" or "antique".

Legally this attracts a FIVE % VAT rating instead of the full 20%

If you have been shafted, go onto royal fail website and find their downloadable form
and claim back that tax.

Just be sure to declare full value because if your 12 back gets damaged and you declare
It's value at a tenna, a tenna is what you get.

You could aslo quote customs code number
Customs Import Code 9705000090

I have claimed back SUBSTANTIAL amounts.

 

[Cazza]

Thanks for the advice mate

 

[pmsbull]

Thanks for the advice mate

You are very welcome bro

 

[TWOFOOT]

That's awesome advice. I had no idea. Cheers.

 

[coomber75]

Great call, never knew this

 

[Richard_H]

I would change this slightly to:

Customs never take any notice of codes or anything written on there. Download the form and claim it back but they keep the £8 handling fee. Last year I posted on here that they were looking at getting rid of it due to misuse.

 

[pmsbull]

I would change this slightly to:

Customs never take any notice of codes or anything written on there. Download the form and claim it back but they keep the £8 handling fee. Last year I posted on here that they were looking at getting rid of it due to misuse.

It's what I have always done and it's never failed yet.

 

[spoons]

I normally have to claim back too, as they ignore anything written on the customs label.

Reckon I have a 90% success rate. One over officious HMRC employee told me that the code only applied to car parts - as I said in the other thread, they make it up as they go along

 

[yoda]

Obviously I'm thinking this only applies to second hand items?
I had to pay £156 on customs charges last week. It was all new items hobby /sports use in the package that i bought from the States. They were items from a shop/store ordered online and for personal use. All was listed on the label outside the package. Am I able to claim anything back or entitled to any refund?

 

[spoons]

Obviously I'm thinking this only applies to second hand items?
I had to pay £156 on customs charges last week. It was all new items hobby /sports use in the package that i bought from the States. They were items from a shop/store ordered online and for personal use. All was listed on the label outside the package. Am I able to claim anything back or entitled to any refund?

If its new then unfortunatley you'll have to pay full amount

I got stung this week so I'm off to download the form and make my claim - fingers crossed

Form BOR286

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk

 

[spoons]

From Frank's original post

If importing SW toys & they confirm to the below criteria they will qualify for the 5% import tax bracket -

Must be -

30 years old
In original packaging
& no longer in production