I ordered an intel i7 processor from eBay Australia due to its very low price and I checked Parcel Force and it says it is held at customs. However, it has been a week now and it still hasn't been cleared. Any thoughts? Why is customs taking this long?
I orded a CPU from Australia and it is held at customs?
- Thread starter asdfguy
- Start date
It's been nabbed for inspection, now you'll have to pay loads in import and vat
Can't get something for nothing
this is not going to go well.....
Soldato
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I'd have thought Aussie customs will scrutinise more than others. A long wait is probably to be expected. Worst case scenario you can work out what you'll have to pay here:
https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/tax-and-duty
https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/tax-and-duty
UK customs? As in parcelforce? You can speed things up by calling them and paying import fees over the phone. They won't send it before its paid for.
Its either phone them or wait for them to get around to sending you a letter with the charges.
Its either phone them or wait for them to get around to sending you a letter with the charges.
Associate
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I had a keyboard sitting in customs for about 3 weeks, I eventually gave the relevant place a call and was able to pay the import charge there and then and it was delivered within the next 2 days.
So I say make a call.
So I say make a call.
Soldato
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Ive had stuff in customs for ages in the past too and have import charges and taxes that equated to more than the items value.
It's calculated mainly on the value the sender puts on the customs declaration, some senders will grosly undervalue them, which results in a happy customer with smaller fees to pay, but its risky as if it's damaged in transit, good luck claiming more than the declared value form the freight forwarder/carrier.
Plus the "handling" fee payable to the parcefarce mafia.
Soldato
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As Rilot said - luck of the draw. Can be days, can be weeks.
Customs is normally charged at UK VAT rate (so 20%), but what makes it unfair is that they VAT the shipping as well. Which means that if the CPU was £100 and the shipping was £15, they'll VAT it as if it's £115. Parcel Force also charges approx. £8.50 admin fee for holding your item. When it arrives at your local depot, you'll receive a letter in the post with a phone number to ring and a reference number to quote. You pay by card, then the CPU is dispatched and usually arrives on the next working day.
Customs is normally charged at UK VAT rate (so 20%), but what makes it unfair is that they VAT the shipping as well. Which means that if the CPU was £100 and the shipping was £15, they'll VAT it as if it's £115. Parcel Force also charges approx. £8.50 admin fee for holding your item. When it arrives at your local depot, you'll receive a letter in the post with a phone number to ring and a reference number to quote. You pay by card, then the CPU is dispatched and usually arrives on the next working day.