Author Topic: Tax on DS Shipment  (Read 3411 times)

Offline Oliver

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Re: Tax on DS Shipment
« Reply #10 on: January 22, 2021, 12:50:48 »
Good to hear it's sorted.

My understanding is that the £135 limit is a bit ambiguous. For goods below the threshold they can avoid import tariffs, but the supplier has to collect VAT at UK rate and send it on to HMRC - VAT is technically paid by the consumer with the retailer just acting as the collection agent for the government.

For Playmobil this probably isn't too difficult, because they will already have the paperwork in place, but for smaller companies that don't and don't bother to do it the VAT still has to be paid at the point of delivery.

I'll be interested to see if they stick a warning on the UK site.

Offline playmofire

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Re: Tax on DS Shipment
« Reply #11 on: January 22, 2021, 13:43:52 »
Good to hear it's sorted.

My understanding is that the £135 limit is a bit ambiguous. For goods below the threshold they can avoid import tariffs, but the supplier has to collect VAT at UK rate and send it on to HMRC - VAT is technically paid by the consumer with the retailer just acting as the collection agent for the government.

For Playmobil this probably isn't too difficult, because they will already have the paperwork in place, but for smaller companies that don't and don't bother to do it the VAT still has to be paid at the point of delivery.

I'll be interested to see if they stick a warning on the UK site.

You are quite right, the situation is certainly not as clear cut as Mike 1003 says.  Indeed, it is a minefield for people in the UK buying online from the EU and vice versa and for the companies too.

Many small companies in the EU are at least temporarily stopping selling to UK customers and UK companies are doing the same or setting up a base in the EU to ease the problems.

I read this morning that buyers online in the EU are suddenly finding themselves faced with the courier demanding extra money for taxes and the cost of administering the new system and so they refuse delivery of the goods and ask for them to be returned.  But for the UK sellers, the goods returned to them may attract duties when they arrive here(!) and some are thinking of just abandoning the goods where they are in the EU or arranging for them to be burned!
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Offline tahra

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Re: Tax on DS Shipment
« Reply #12 on: January 22, 2021, 17:35:30 »
It's a huge mess, and UK companies WILL feel it.

If I have to pay fees and have the hassle, it's the same to buy from the UK or US. I am worried about where to get my movies and series though... Books... well, amazon.de has a "foreign language" section, and I got several there.

Still find it hard to believe this came to be. :(

Offline mike1003

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Re: Tax on DS Shipment
« Reply #13 on: January 22, 2021, 18:51:46 »
To clarify something. I bought from Playmobil UK and it's a UK company and its not customers fault that they ship from EU as  the order is placed in the UK . But Geobra is a fair company and all is sorted fine... I also got told it will be sorted in the next few month with the delivery companies and than all is good.

Offline GrahamB

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Re: Tax on DS Shipment
« Reply #14 on: January 22, 2021, 19:11:07 »
Can I just say that I voted NO to the UK ceding from the EU, foreseeing exactly these sort of problems. Stupid move.
At that moment the ship suddenly stopped rocking and swaying, the engine pitch settled down to a gentle hum. 'Hey Ford.' said Zaphod, 'that sounds good. Have you worked out the controls on this boat?' 'No,' said Ford, 'I just stopped fiddling with them.' (With thanks to Douglas Adams)

Offline playmofire

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Re: Tax on DS Shipment
« Reply #15 on: January 22, 2021, 19:31:13 »
Can I just say that I voted NO to the UK ceding from the EU, foreseeing exactly these sort of problems. Stupid move.

Couldn't agree more, Graham.
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Offline Ismene

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Re: Tax on DS Shipment
« Reply #16 on: January 22, 2021, 23:09:40 »
Good to hear it's sorted.

My understanding is that the £135 limit is a bit ambiguous. For goods below the threshold they can avoid import tariffs, but the sup
plier has to collect VAT at UK rate and send it on to HMRC - VAT is technically paid by the consumer with the retailer just acting as the collection agent for the government.

For Playmobil this probably isn't too difficult, because they will already have the paperwork in place, but for smaller companies that don't and don't bother to do it the VAT still has to be paid at the point of delivery.

I'll be interested to see if they stick a warning on the UK site.

I'm having that exact problem with my website. The UK wants us to collect VAT. France, Germany, and several other EU countries want us to pay for importing packaging materials into their country. I get maybe a dozen EU and UK orders per year on the website, and I can't afford hundreds of euros for all these administrative costs.
I also sell on a platform that at least handles UK VAT (well, they ought to considering the fees they get from us), but changing definitions of nexus are killing micro businesses. We're having the same issues within the US, but at least states are using thresholds (although I'm giving the side eye to South Dakota who started this, in the US anyway).

Offline GrahamB

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Re: Tax on DS Shipment
« Reply #17 on: January 23, 2021, 09:38:30 »
"Little guys" obviously aren't welcome in global commerce.

Playmobil UK website is not currently adding extra VAT to prices.
At that moment the ship suddenly stopped rocking and swaying, the engine pitch settled down to a gentle hum. 'Hey Ford.' said Zaphod, 'that sounds good. Have you worked out the controls on this boat?' 'No,' said Ford, 'I just stopped fiddling with them.' (With thanks to Douglas Adams)

Offline mike1003

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Re: Tax on DS Shipment
« Reply #18 on: January 24, 2021, 08:42:30 »
"Little guys" obviously aren't welcome in global commerce.

Playmobil UK website is not currently adding extra VAT to prices.

well, why should tehy? the problem is, as mentioned before. When you order at Playmobil.co.uk you are ordering from a UK Company and not from a EU based Company. When they ship from EU its not Customer problem really.. Or is it?

Offline Ismene

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Re: Tax on DS Shipment
« Reply #19 on: January 24, 2021, 10:56:40 »
well, why should tehy? the problem is, as mentioned before. When you order at Playmobil.co.uk you are ordering from a UK Company and not from a EU based Company. When they ship from EU its not Customer problem really.. Or is it?
They should have at least warned you if they weren't going to handle the VAT issue on their end.

"Little guys" obviously aren't welcome in global commerce.
No, we're supposed to confine ourselves to quaint little corner shops.