Package from U.S.

[Jean-F]

Not sure where to put this for advice, but here goes.
My kid wants an item of clothing that he’s seen on a U.S. website, he maintains that although it may be possible to buy the item from the same supplier in U.K., the one in the U.S is made in the U.S. and is of better quality than one sold here but manufactured in Bangladesh.
To purchase it from the U.S. site you must have a U.S. credit card and the item must be shipped to a U.S. address linked to that card.
No problem there, I have many friends in the U.S. that would do that, providing I transferred the funds to them before they submitted the order.
The fly in the ointment is customs fees, I presume that they are payable on or after arrival in U.K., or are they payable when the shipping company collects the item in U.S., or the item is taken to a U.S. Post Office?
Again, I would establish the shipping and customs fees and forward the money to whoever sends the item to U.K. before they send it.
This is a one off, valued at app $160, anyone suggest a painless way of doing it?
I’m not especially looking for cheapest, just the easiest and most efficient.

 

[koolpc]

Send your kid over there. Put the item on, fly back!

 

[Thekwango]

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/notice-143-a-guide-for-international-post-users/notice-143-a-guide-for-international-post-users

Seems to say that if the item is under £135 no customs duty.

 

[Werewolf]

No duty, but VAT will still be applicable.

 

[Surveyor]

https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...tice-143-a-guide-for-international-post-users

Seems to say that if the item is under £135 no customs duty.

No customs duty and if the OP was purchasing directly from the USA the seller should apply UK VAT.

 

[Richie]

Given its a friend that's sending it over rather than a company, it may go through customs without even flagging up for VAT especially if marked as a gift.

It would be as if you left it there by mistake while visiting said friend and they were simply posting it back to you.... You wouldn't pay VAT on something you already owned.

 

[Haze]

Given its a friend that's sending it over rather than a company, it may go through customs without even flagging up for VAT especially if marked as a gift.

It would be as if you left it there by mistake while visiting said friend and they were simply posting it back to you.... You wouldn't pay VAT on something you already owned.

This.... Gift from a friend/relative

 

[jpaul]

need to put an appropriate customs lable on it nonetheless (maybe usa post-office/ups where they deposit it will suggest that )
and if the size indicates it may be more than £39, the risk of having it opened and then paying processing+vat.

 

[The Running Man]

I can't even believe this is a thread.

Ship to friend.

Get them to ship to you and second hand t shirts are worth what, 15 quid?

Simple.

 

[Deleted member 651465]

Drive a black cab over.

Drive back.

 

[Yaayuh!]

Drive a black cab over.

Drive back.

Come on now, that's not fare.

 

[Jean-F]

This.... Gift from a friend/relative

Good thinking Haze

Send your kid over there. Put the item on, fly back!

Did you miss the bit where I no longer drive a Black Cab?
I did it for him once, years ago his Venezuelan girlfriend’s mother was ill and the girlfriend went back to see her.
I bought him a round trip ticket from London to Caracas to join her.
Another time I got a friend in NYC to buy him a leather jacket and take it with her when she went to Madrid on vacation, I flew to Madrid for a weekend and brought it back to him, Jeez I love that kid, and he’s only number two son, mind you I’d do anything for his big brother too.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...tice-143-a-guide-for-international-post-users

Seems to say that if the item is under £135 no customs duty.

Sounds good, it’s $160, around £118.

Given its a friend that's sending it over rather than a company, it may go through customs without even flagging up for VAT especially if marked as a gift.

It would be as if you left it there by mistake while visiting said friend and they were simply posting it back to you.... You wouldn't pay VAT on something you already owned.

Now you’re talking Richie, the only thing is, my kid’s a more upstanding citizen than me, he’s like George Washington, he never tells a lie, he’d worry that HMRC would come knocking on the door.
He says, “I know that you got away with murder when you were driving a cab, but they’re probably a lot more sophisticated now, and with my luck they’d come after me.”

 

[Jean-F]

I can't even believe this is a thread.

Ship to friend.

Get them to ship to you and second hand t shirts are worth what, 15 quid?

Simple.

It’s a thread because it seemed to me that I’d have to visit HMRC, USPO, UK Post Office, and possibly FedEx sites to find out what I needed to know, or I could enlist the aid of the intelligent denizens of Overclockers GD, I chose the latter, plus he'd rather do this without lying about second hand T shirts etc.
Just as simple.

 

[The Running Man]

It’s a thread because it seemed to me that I’d have to visit HMRC, USPO, UK Post Office, and possibly FedEx sites to find out what I needed to know, or I could enlist the aid of the intelligent denizens of Overclockers GD, I chose the latter, plus he'd rather do this without lying about second hand T shirts etc.
Just as simple.

Lying? It won't be purchased by you or shipped to you.

Therefore it might be as new but really, it is second owner.

 

[Dave85]

If you want to do it legit and save your friends some hassle I have used myus for a bunch of stuff and never had any issues with it.

 

[Jean-F]

Lying? It won't be purchased by you or shipped to you.

Therefore it might be as new but really, it is second owner.

I appreciate that you’re trying to help and I thank you for that, but maybe one of us, probably me, is missing something in the translation.
It WILL be purchased by me, via proxy as I’ll send the money for the item to my friend in the U.S. to make the purchase, but you’re right, it will ostensibly be bought by my friend with her credit card.
It will initially be shipped internally, U.S. to U.S., but ultimately it will be shipped to me, (or my son), from U.S. to U.K.
I can see what you mean about second owner, as it could be construed that my friend in U.S. bought the item, but then decided to sell or give it to me.

 

[The Running Man]

I appreciate that you’re trying to help and I thank you for that, but maybe one of us, probably me, is missing something in the translation.
It WILL be purchased by me, via proxy as I’ll send the money for the item to my friend in the U.S. to make the purchase, but you’re right, it will ostensibly be bought by my friend with her credit card.
It will initially be shipped internally, U.S. to U.S., but ultimately it will be shipped to me, (or my son), from U.S. to U.K.
I can see what you mean about second owner, as it could be construed that my friend in U.S. bought the item, but then decided to sell or give it to me.

It's not construed that's literally what will happen.

It's not a fake web here with fictitious actors. Someone else is buying and receiving the goods and then shipping it to you...

You are not the first owner. There is no contract between you amd the vendor and presumably the US person who buys the goods will pay tax on it.

 

[Semple]

I appreciate that you’re trying to help and I thank you for that, but maybe one of us, probably me, is missing something in the translation.
It WILL be purchased by me, via proxy as I’ll send the money for the item to my friend in the U.S. to make the purchase, but you’re right, it will ostensibly be bought by my friend with her credit card.
It will initially be shipped internally, U.S. to U.S., but ultimately it will be shipped to me, (or my son), from U.S. to U.K.
I can see what you mean about second owner, as it could be construed that my friend in U.S. bought the item, but then decided to sell or give it to me.

It's irrelevant whether you've sent the money to your friend. If your friend is using her credit card then the contract is formed between her and the supplier, ergo she is the owner of the product.

What she does with it after that is only her concern - in this case shipping it to you.

 

[Jean-F]

It's not construed that's literally what will happen.

It's not a fake web here with fictitious actors. Someone else is buying and receiving the goods and then shipping it to you...

You are not the first owner. There is no contract between you amd the vendor and presumably the US person who buys the goods will pay tax on it.

And naturally I’ll reimburse her for whatever she paid, including tax, forgive me if this is only slowly permeating to my brain, I’m blaming it on having had too many birthdays!

 

[Feek]

I recently bought a Winkeyer from a US site that would only sell to US addresses. It was $139

It was sent to my friend in MD who opened it up, removed the invoice, sealed the package, put my address and a customs label on it with a valuation of $20 and posted it to me. Incidentally, this friend used to be a customs officer at both Dulles and Andrews.

It arrived less than a week later.

The seller was happy, they'd sold it to someone in the USA. My friend was happy to do me a favour and I was happy that I received my Winkeyer.

This sort of thing isn't rocket science.