"The magical world of eBay..." Topic

Buyers beware!
Recently won an eBay for an item in the US. Postage was steep, but what the heck. Came to checkout and BANG! an extra $20 USD dollars to cover 'import' charges. Check eBay small print! Its a good job I checked with HM Revenue and Customs – they do not charge 'import' duties on what I bought and only reduced VAT!
Now I can see that if it is flat rate of $20 USD per item (but whats the betting that it is a sliding scale), this may be worth paying (import on toy soldiers is 4.7% plus vat on final value, plus Post Office 'handling charge') on larger orders esp to avoid Post office getting their cut.
Books are exempt from all forms of international charges and taxes.
Be Aware!!!

That's just robbery as the seller wouldn't have to pay any customs-related charges at all. That would all happen on your end.

Hi

Is the shipper the awful E-bay international shipping company?

Need more information to tell if this is some scam or the OP misunderstanding a legitimate charge.

Ebay have a system which allows sellers to list items with their "global shipping programme" which essentially charges the VAT and handling fee up front, and dropships via Ebay in the UK. In this case you're simply paying up front the VAT, duty (if applicable) and handling fee that you'd be liable for anyway – it just gets to you a bit quicker as you've prepaid the charge so it doesn't sit in a depot for a few days waiting for the charge to be processed and a letter posted notifying you of the charges.

This Ebay shipping "new option" made me stop buying from all sellers who use it.
This shipping option always charges you extra for "import/custom taxes" when the national postal service (in my case the Mexican Postal Office) charges NO taxes.
So, I also recommend all to be aware of this "taxes". If the seller has Ebay International shipping method activated think twice or search for another seller.

they do not charge 'import' duties on what I bought and only reduced VAT!

VAT isn't "reduced" – rather it's waived on parcels worth less than £15.00 GBP If the goods were worth over £15.00 GBP, then VAT at the usual 20% is charged on both the goods and the shipping cost. (Eg. if the goods were worth £25.00 GBP, then they're liable for £5.00 GBP VAT on the goods, plus 20% of the shipping cost, plus a handling charge, which is £8.00 GBP for Royal Mail – in total rather more than $20. USD)

WR automatically factors in the "steep" Ebay Global shipping program" charges on his bidding for the total cost. So, heads up sellers…. you are most likely receiving less for the auction item from the bidding as your bidders are reducing their bids to offset the shipping Ebay Global shipping program overcharges".

In many cases the posting/using the Ebay Global shipping program causes a "no bid" situation and the auction doesn't close with international bidders. The seller must then rely on just the local bidders who may not bid to a higher revenue point to the seller satisfaction.

"VAT isn't "reduced"
Actually Dom, VAT is payable at less than the standard rate on the item I was buying (of of course it was standard for that item). There are different rates for all the strange items that can be imported.
HMRC have a big long list (the Tarriff) of the weird and wonderful on which they might levy charge.
In some cases, like a bulk buy of tin soldiers, you might get a reasonable deal. I was pointing out that indiscriminate use of this eBay wheeze could cost you extra!

Without knowing what you were ordering I can't be 100% certain, but I very much suspect you're confusing VAT rates with import duty rates (which don't apply on orders worth less than £135.00 GBP anyway.) The tariff gives the multitude of rates of *import duty* – there aren't lots of different VAT rates, just standard, reduced and exempt.

The only three rates of VAT are:
0% (books being the main relevant thing in terms of gaming stuff.)
5% (can't think of any gaming supplies that would be 5% rated – most 5% stuff is energy or building related.)
20% standard rate (which applies to most things, including games, toy soldiers, model kits etc.)

I was pointing out that indiscriminate use of this eBay wheeze could cost you extra!

Possibly, but frankly it's impossible to pass judgement on a vague warning rather than actual precise figures. When ordering from outside of the EU it's always worth making sure you're aware of VAT / duty / handling charges though – if you know those, then it's easy to judge whether you're saving money or being charged extra.

Basically that means no extra on books, while most other categories add 20% VAT if the goods are worth more than £15.00 GBP (VAT is charged on the shipping as well as the goods), plus £8.00 GBP Royal Mail handling fee (usually more for couriers.) Import duty isn't charged on goods worth under £135.00 GBP – above that it *may* apply (then you need to look up the rates in the Tariff) – if the duty payable would be less than £9.00 GBP it's waived.

No ebay purchases for 1 an 1/2 year, their structure is no good even for 2nd hand goods.
But world wide postage prices have become crazy anyway.

Yeah that is why I do not sign up with the global shipping program it is highway robbery. Ebay claims they do not charge for this service, but you know as well as I do they keep whatever is not spent on customs fees and make millions on it.

I don't buy from sellers that use eBay's Global Shipping System. It's just a scam by ebay to earn more fees. The one time I did use it it took extra time because the shipping company tried to use UPS and of course I have a PO Box which UPS can't deliver to. There is no extra convenience to me as a customer and the potential for a lot of extra inconvenience plus the guarantee of extra fees.

Actually, I find the US version of eBay pretty useless these days anyway. The searches only bring up US sellers (and maybe Canadian) and the option to search for overseas sellers has disappeared. Now I log into the UK eBay, or maybe France, and find they are much more useful.

Yet another reason to minimise business on eBay.