EU postage experiment.

[claustra]

4 hours ago, Hellzero said:

With a friend of mine, we sent a high value (declared and insured) bass to the U.K. from Luxembourg on the 8th of January, which cleared the local customs on the very next day as all the paperwork was perfectly filled and only went out of the U.K. customs on the 18th of January. The parcel has arrived today at the local facility, so it should be delivered tomorrow.

Now let's wait for the total fee amount for the import thing...

 

I'd be interested in having a clear idea on taxes both ways as well.
I have read a few threads, but am stil not sure on second hand goods.

There is this, though :
 

2.2 Paying taxes on goods sent to you

[...]

These taxes must still be paid if:

• you purchase the goods or receive them as a gift
• the goods are new or used (including antiques)
• [...]

I have bought and sold a few basses and gear on here - enjoying the language courses in the meantime - and added VAT on imports both ways would probably mean a bargain won't be a bargain anymore. 20% is a lot.

[Paul S]

Should find out soon enough, Ben.  

[Newfoundfreedom]

51 minutes ago, claustra said:

 

I'd be interested in having a clear idea on taxes both ways as well.
I have read a few threads, but am stil not sure on second hand goods.

There is this, though :
 

2.2 Paying taxes on goods sent to you

[...]

These taxes must still be paid if:

• you purchase the goods or receive them as a gift
• the goods are new or used (including antiques)
• [...]

I have bought and sold a few basses and gear on here - enjoying the language courses in the meantime - and added VAT on imports both ways would probably mean a bargain won't be a bargain anymore. 20% is a lot.

Indeed. I've now sadly stopped buying anything from the UK. 

[greenolive]

7 hours ago, Hellzero said:

With a friend of mine, we sent a high value (declared and insured) bass to the U.K. from Luxembourg on the 8th of January, which cleared the local customs on the very next day as all the paperwork was perfectly filled and only went out of the U.K. customs on the 18th of January. The parcel has arrived today at the local facility, so it should be delivered tomorrow.

Now let's wait for the total fee amount for the import thing...

And received today 👍

I’m not sure what the charges are yet , I was expecting a letter or call to pay them before Parcelforce delivered today.

I was under the impression I’d have to pay the import/courier fees before delivery, but no doubt I’ll receive a letter in the coming days ( maybe it’s this way to stop things clogging up the borders ).

I’ll keep you updated when I hear more.

[tubbybloke68]

Word of warning for our European friends! 
sent an Alembic Stanley deluxe (very reluctantly) to Corsica last week.buyer unfortunately told me he got hit for €1375 import tax to France.I did warn him to check and that there may be extra charges etc due to brexit,in fact I tried to’put him off’ as i by then had a potential uk buyer.As he was insistent that he wanted the bass I felt it the decent thing to do as he was first in the queue.Never been so bloody nervous in my life when the bass was collected by the courier I can tell ya!!! 
BUT BIG BIG SHOUT OUT FOR FEDEX.first class service! Picked up Tuesday morning,delivered safely on the Thursday ahead of schedule! Never been so relieved in my life.followed fedex instructions on correct paperwork required and didn’t undervalue it as it would have voided the insurance in the case of a claim.Felt very sorry for the buyer but if this stops someone else getting caught out in the future then some good may come of it I guess! 

 

 

 

[LukeFRC]

On 18/01/2021 at 17:24, LukeFRC said:

I ordered a new coffee grinder from what said was a UK company... they posted it today and it's coming from Poland   

UPS shows this due for delivery today... but also when last updated it was in Poland still...

[Newfoundfreedom]

2 minutes ago, LukeFRC said:

UPS shows this due for delivery today... but also when last updated it was in Poland still...

I get that all the time coming the other way. It shows as being stuck in another country somewhere, then shows up at the door. Just a gap somewhere in the tracking procedure I presume. I've never had anything not turn up when it said. 

[KiOgon]

My parcel to Nederlands, one week on, apparently in customs NL, with no further information available from postNL

Track and Trace - Track your Item Check the progress of your deliveries

Tracking no. RY012345678GB

Your item has been presented to Customs on 21-01-2021 for assessment. More information will be available once the assessment is complete.

Service used: International Tracked and Signed

Handed to: Delivery partner

Continue tracking There may be more information on our delivery partner's website.

Updated on: Thursday 21 January 08:24pm. Your item is currently with Customs in the destination country. Netherlands

Thursday 21 January 08:23pm. Item Received Netherlands

Saturday 16 January 02:02am. Item Leaving the UK LANGLEY HWDC

Saturday 16 January 12:59am. Item Received by Royal Mail LANGLEY HWDC

Friday 15 January 07:36pm. Item received at Gatwick MC

Friday 15 January 04:52pm. Accepted at Post Office

Thursday 14 January 02:26pm. Sender preparing item

[Hellzero]

I've ordered, this Monday, some La Bella White Nylon's through Amazon.fr from Amazon EU (not a third party seller) using the Prime system as I'm in since the beginning. They were supposed to be delivered on the next day before I hit the buy button, then on the Wednesday when officially bought and today I had a message saying that I will get them next Tuesday and they are coming from ... the U.K.

I'll refuse the parcel if there's any additional fee.

This world is becoming more stupid every day. 🤦‍♂️

[LukeFRC]

7 hours ago, LukeFRC said:

UPS shows this due for delivery today... but also when last updated it was in Poland still...

Didn’t come - now maybe due Monday :s 

[BigRedX]

I am in the middle of trying to sort out sending a parcel of printed labels to Belgium for my business.

Previously this wouldn't have been a problem. I would have given the printers the EU delivery address and paid a small extra charge for non-UK delivery on top of the printing costs and that would have been it.

However...
1. The printers are currently not delivering to the EU because it is too complicated. I can't use a different printer because this is a repeat order and the print has to match exactly for colour and stock. Plus the quality I am getting is great from this printer and any other would be an unknown quantity.
2. I have spent ages trying to find the correct Tariff Code for self-adhesive labels printed on paper. It turns out that they are a sub-category of leather and fabric labels rather than a sub category of printed paper.
3. And now I need an Economic Operator Registration and Identification (EORI) number. I have filled out the required form on the HMRC web site, but there is no indication of when I will actually get my number. I suspect that it won't be quick. 

The labels need to be in Belgium by Friday. If it wasn't for Covid. I would suspect that it would be easier and quicker for me to deliver them in person.

[BigRedX]

Finally managed to find the web chat  page on the HMRC web site and it turns out that the link from the Interparcel page is out of date and if I used the correct one that will be supplied I should get my number with a couple of minutes of completing the form.

I thank him and start filling in the this new on-line form... until I need to supply a Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code. I follow the link to search for the relevant code for my business. 10 minutes and plenty of lateral thinking later I still can't find a code for anything like my business. Start the HMRC web chat again and after 5 minutes of being number 1 in the queue I am informed that there are no advisers available despite the fact that it says on the page that web chat is open from 8am to 4pm on Saturday. 

Return to the EORI form only to discover that I have been signed out "for my security" and that my what I have complete so far has not been saved.

Grrr...

[Hellzero]

4 years to get ready and we are still in the middle of nowhere : extraordinary ! There should be a stronger word than incompetence for this !

[Clarky]

I tried to book a bass to be delivered to Belgium. My usual preference UPS has temporarily stopped international deliveries due to a backlog so I checked out DPD. When I clicked on the form it says I have to an EORI (export licence) number for the package, even though I am a private seller not a company. Have others found this? I have applied for an EORI but its gone into the HMRC jungle and I have no idea how long it takes to issue one.

[BigRedX]

8 minutes ago, Clarky said:

I tried to book a bass to be delivered to Belgium. My usual preference UPS has temporarily stopped international deliveries due to a backlog so I checked out DPD. When I clicked on the form it says I have to an EORI (export licence) number for the package, even though I am a private seller not a company. Have others found this? I have applied for an EORI but its gone into the HMRC jungle and I have no idea how long it takes to issue one.

@Clarky How are you doing this? Direct with DPD or via a reseller like Interparcel?

AFAICS the Interparcel form (the one I am using) only requires an EORI number if you are a registered business. 

If you do need one then go via the Government Gateway and not via the direct link as it may take you to an out of date version of the form like I got. However you will need a SIC (Standard Industrial Classification) Code, which technically is only business requirement...

I am currently on the telephone "on hold" to the HMRC while the person answering my call and his manager attempt to help me find a suitable SIC code for my business. It appear that they have as little idea about it all as I do!

Apparently if you do manage the complete the correct form it will generate you the EORI number straight away. I can't confirm that at the moment.

[Clarky]

Thanks, this was via Interparcel website. The booking form states that private individuals also need an EORI, yet when you click on the HMRC link it provides to gain an EORI, the boxes to be filled in are framed as if I was a business. Utterly befuddling. I have applied but noted in the 'additional comments" box that I am a private seller not a business.

[Clarky]

[BigRedX]

Just now, Clarky said:

Thanks, this was via Interparcel website. The booking form states that private individuals also need an EORI, yet when you click on the HMRC link it provides to gain an EORI, the boxes to be filled in are framed as if I was a business. Utterly befuddling. I have applied but noted in the 'additional comments" box that I am a private seller not a business.

I've just received one of those emails too. 

However I have also been told by an HRMC representative on their web chat that this form is out of date and have been given a new link to follow, which asks similar questions but one just a few at a time on each page. However this version requires you to have a SIC Code too. HMRC are still trying to help me work out which one is right for my business. I am once again on hold as my representative asks his manager yet another question.

They have been trying to fob me off with finding it for myself as the SIC codes come from Companies House and not HMRC, but as I have firmly pointed out it is an HMRC form that requires the correct SIC code so it is their duty to help find the right one for me.

[BigRedX]

And finally I have a SIC Code and an EORI number!

It has only taken 3 hours of persistent internet searches, web chats and telephone calls. I can see why a lot of small businesses have decided to stop sending goods between the EU and UK. It has taken me a whole morning on what should be a day off. I can't charge anyone for the time I have lost sorting this out, and most of the time has been spent trying to interpret obscurely worded information and getting clarification from those who should know the answers but as can be seen very obviously do not.

And now the Interparcel web site needs an email address for the person receiving the parcel. I'm pretty certain this wasn't a requirement previously. I have their telephone number because Interparcel have always asked for that (even though they never appear to use it). So I'm waiting for my client (in London) to email it to me.

Also the supposed email confirmation of my EORI number has still not come through, even though I was told I would get one. Just as well I saved the page that gave me the number as a PDF.

[BigRedX]

1 hour ago, Hellzero said:

4 years to get ready and we are still in the middle of nowhere : extraordinary ! There should be a stronger word than incompetence for this !

Although I very rarely need to send items outside of the UK for my work, back in November when the "New Rules" ads were on the telly, I decided to have a look to see if there was any useful information for me. Having worked my way through the various questions the web site I presented with a list of things that I "may" have consider after 31st December 2020, but because this was before any agreement had been finalised nothing was actual concrete information.

I suspected that VAT would be a problem and maybe import duty depending on if there was actually an agreement and what was agreed, but nothing else seemed obvious from the list of articles the UK Government website thought would be relevant to my business.

Prior to today (mostly from the various threads on here about importing and exporting items) I was aware that I would need a Tariff Code for anything I sent and that for some items it might be less than obvious to find. I didn't expect them to be as obscure as they were for something that IMO should be fairly straight forward, and I did want to make 100% sure that I was using the right code for what I was sending. It looks as though all the various printed items I might need to send in the future are covered by many different codes so I'll probably have to go through it all again when I need to send printed items that aren't labels. (I also haven't been able to find what I consider to be a 100% definite code for my GFs business making Wax Melts).

However I can't recall any mention of requiring an EORI number (and consequently an SIC Code) in anything I had read up to this point, until I actually needed to send something. I suspect this will be the case for most small business owners, and I suspect that a lot won't have either the time or the energy required to find all the information and to make sure it is right, because you can rely on the fact that if something hasn't been done correctly it will result in your items being at best severely delayed while the correct paperwork is sorted out.

[Dad3353]

30 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

Although I very rarely need to send items outside of the UK for my work, back in November when the "New Rules" ads were on the telly, I decided to have a look to see if there was any useful information for me. Having worked my way through the various questions the web site I presented with a list of things that I "may" have consider after 31st December 2020, but because this was before any agreement had been finalised nothing was actual concrete information.

I suspected that VAT would be a problem and maybe import duty depending on if there was actually an agreement and what was agreed, but nothing else seemed obvious from the list of articles the UK Government website thought would be relevant to my business.

Prior to today (mostly from the various threads on here about importing and exporting items) I was aware that I would need a Tariff Code for anything I sent and that for some items it might be less than obvious to find. I didn't expect them to be as obscure as they were for something that IMO should be fairly straight forward, and I did want to make 100% sure that I was using the right code for what I was sending. It looks as though all the various printed items I might need to send in the future are covered by many different codes so I'll probably have to go through it all again when I need to send printed items that aren't labels. (I also haven't been able to find what I consider to be a 100% definite code for my GFs business making Wax Melts).

However I can't recall any mention of requiring an EORI number (and consequently an SIC Code) in anything I had read up to this point, until I actually needed to send something. I suspect this will be the case for most small business owners, and I suspect that a lot won't have either the time or the energy required to find all the information and to make sure it is right, because you can rely on the fact that if something hasn't been done correctly it will result in your items being at best severely delayed while the correct paperwork is sorted out.

All of this is gong to be great fun (not..!) for those crossing the Channel with second-hand items in the boot of their car. On my next visit to Blighty I'm expecting to bring back to France a bass cab I bought  and a bass guitar, both second-hand from private sales from this very Forum. What, if any, customs declaration s will be required of me from the French Douanes I've no idea, and don't, in all honesty, consider them relevant, as the deals were done before this 'B' stuff kicked in. I'll find out, maybe, once this 'C' stuff is over; by then the dust may have settled on these new arrangements. I doubt very much that I'll be asked for wotsit numbers, thingemy codes or TVA registration, and if asked, they'll be disappointed by the replies. 

[BigRedX]

9 minutes ago, Dad3353 said:

All of this is gong to be great fun (not..!) for those crossing the Channel with second-hand items in the boot of their car. On my next visit to Blighty I'm expecting to bring back to France a bass cab I bought  and a bass guitar, both second-hand from private sales from this very Forum. What, if any, customs declaration s will be required of me from the French Douanes I've no idea, and don't, in all honesty, consider them relevant, as the deals were done before this 'B' stuff kicked in. I'll find out, maybe, once this 'C' stuff is over; by then the dust may have settled on these new arrangements. I doubt very much that I'll be asked for wotsit numbers, thingemy codes or TVA registration, and if asked, they'll be disappointed by the replies. 

I suspect that one of two things will happen.

Either no-one on either side of the channel will be the slightest bit bothered, or you'll end up in your underpants next to your completely unpacked and dismantled vehicle whilst the items you are trying to import/export end up seized and destroyed by customs.

[Dad3353]

Just now, BigRedX said:

I suspect that one of two things will happen.

Either no-one on either side of the channel will be the slightest bit bothered, or you'll end up in your underpants next to your completely unpacked and dismantled vehicle whilst the items you are trying to import/export end up seized and destroyed by customs.

But not both, I assume. I think I'll try for the former; the latter pleases me not at all, especially the destruction of the bass..! 

[BigRedX]

My EORI number confirmation email has just come through about 2 hours after it was supposed to have done.

And I have noticed that in the small print it says:
"Your EORI number will be ready to use within 48 hours. It will appear on the EORI validation checker within 5 days." 

To me that could mean that my parcel could be held up in customs somewhere until it is active on the validation checker. No doubt I'll find out next week...

[Clarky]

Interesting, I booked direct with DPD and clicked 'private individual'. Had to fill in a customs form which I need to attach to the parcel but no EORI requirement, yay!