Florida Rob Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 Hello Everyone! I am a huge fan of the forum even though this is my first post. I have been collecting 1/32 scale models for over 4 years now here in the U.S. and have amassed a pretty good collection of the die cast available through our retailers. I have recently looked into ordering from some model shops in Europe (specifically the SimTractor online store) and have a question for everyone concerning ordering models from a country in Europe and shipping them into the U.S. Specifically what kind of duties should I expect to pay and how do I go about paying them? I have also heard that if I keep the value of the items under $200 per shipment I do not have to pay any duties....is there any truth to that? I realize that most of the forum members reside in Europe and therefore might not have much insight to offer....but I figured that it wouldn't hurt to ask. Thank you again for the immensely informative forum and hopefully I can start posting on here more often now, Rob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 Rob, I have had models coming the other way and sometimes the sender has put a high value and duty has been high, but as you say, if they potentially put a low value, it can sometimes lead to no duty being paid. The downside to that being no insurance would be valid if you ordered a high amount. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerrabbit Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 I would add that if you were importing commercially then you would have to pay import duty and taxes plus any shipping fees but if you were buying in for your own private collection in low volume then you would probably only pay ordinary air freight postal costs. In either case the supplier or seller you are buying from should offer you insurance, ask when you buy or order if insurance is included or not. As for taxes and duty, I would contact your duty office to find out exactly where you stand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FordTractorCrazy Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 as said above, all depends on the seller and what he is willing to do regarding the customs form, as well as what your country custom department has for rules for inporting models through parcels. This differs per country greatly. I would recommend using a tracable postage service as this will secure your parcels getting there. Also using Paypal (they cover internet purchases up to 1000 dollars) is recommended for international purchases. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris.watson Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 hello florida, and welcome. i have purchased a good few models from the u.s.a, and here in Enland and the rest of the u.k we pay import duty which in the main part is value added tax. my wife works for british airways world cargo and her advice is to contact the united states postal service who will tell you what the u.s.a import tarrif is. it will probably be the same for fed-ex and ups. your tarrif will be a lot lower than the u.k. a 200 euro model tractor from france to the u.s.a is 0% duty but has a processing fee of $2. look at website www.dutycalculator.com for more info. hope this helps. please post photos of your collection, we would love to see them. regds, chris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Florida Rob Posted April 12, 2012 Author Share Posted April 12, 2012 Thank you everyone for the information....it really is a great help! One more question though. If a duty or processing fee is assessed how do I go about paying it? Do I have to go somewhere to pay it or is a bill sent to me etc? Sorry for asking so many questions....I just don't want to make any errors since this would be my first order. Chris, I will be sure and get some pics up once I have them on display again! I am currently renovating a farm house built in 1917....and when it is completed I am going to display them in cases around my bedroom in the home. Should look very nice when finished but for now that means that all the models are just sitting in their boxes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris.watson Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 hello florida. the charges you pay upon entry to the u.s.a are paid by you when the delivery agent calls for the costs to be paid before they deliver to your home address.when the package has reached the last major mail sorting facilitie closest to your address, they will write to you to pay over the phone and then release package. its the same sort of thing if you are able to collect in person, you pay at the sorting office and walk of with your goods.a dealer that does stock a good few euro models in the u.s.a is www.bossenimp.com , and www.3000toys.com . hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ertlerik Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 Florida, I shipped some farmtoys to the USA from Holland, and so far the receiver did not have to pay duties, always kept the value on the shipping document low, around the 150 becouse shipping will be added to the value of the goods and that will get you to about 200 total cost, and i always mark the documents as a gift Hope that helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Florida Rob Posted April 16, 2012 Author Share Posted April 16, 2012 Thanks again everyone for the information! Sounds easy enough now that you have explained it.....thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougerr76 Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 Hi Rob I have purchased many things from the good folks of Sim Tractor and had them shipped to Canada. They are a great retailer to deal with competative pricing and very reasonable postage. So far all of my orders have come in duty free most of them have been under $200.00 . I have made a lot of purchases from Europe and only had to pay to pay taxes on a few of them. As long as they are sent with regular post they do not seem to get taged for duties but if you ship with U.P.S. or Fedex you have a much better chance of paying duties. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fendt Fahrer Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 I do not know about the United States, but I always purchase my models in Europe and never had to pay Duty. (but had to pay most of the time the Taxes) Some of my orders have been around the 500 dollar mark, as I try to save on shipping. When orders are small like less than 100 , many times I had to pay no taxes either. The way taxes are charged is simple: you pay on delivery by credit card . I imagine Dutys would be charged the same way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Florida Rob Posted April 25, 2012 Author Share Posted April 25, 2012 Thanks again everyone! Dougerr76, I just placed an order through SimTractor a few days ago. Hopefully I will have the same great experience that you seem to have had buying from them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougerr76 Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 Hey Rob Just following up how did you make out with your purchase from Sim tractor? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.