Azalin Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 the purchaser is not trying to get me to pay the tax, it's just going to be very difficult for her to pay it. but, you're right - it's out of my hands now, not my problem i suppose. at least she got the jeffries for a fair price. i guess the next step is to put her in touch with an irish customs agent, maybe they will be reasonable. funny enough, i recently shipped a melodeon to ireland via USPS, decided to take a chance on not insuring it. it arrived safely, and only set me back $40. d'oh! I don't get it. With my experience with UPS and Fedex, in Canada and some other countries, the receipient of the item *always* has to pay the taxes. It would be difficult for the shipper to pay the taxes for the recipient, not the other way around. Did you send it in a special way? Never heard of such thing before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 <edit>When my Rochelle arrived the other day I noticed that the post office has started adding a 6 Euro "Post office clearing charge" that I have never noticed before. Wonder how long it will be before that starts escalating as well?</edit> I think it already has in England! I sometimes buy a few clock parts from US and they occasionally get caught by customs. When they do, I seem to remember an £8 post office clearing charge plus the dreaded VAT. Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peter Laban Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 I've never quite figured out what the crossover point is but it seems to vary randomly between 125 and 200 USD before you get hit for taxes It's actually €40 over the past year or two this has been enforced more tightly, previously things tended to slip through the net when sent by post. UPS, Fedex and that crowd would hit you with a charge regardless. Sending a 6K concertina and being surprised at taxes is just plain naive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miikae Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 This is a link to UK Import Duties etc Duty Payable Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dana Johnson Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 thanks for the input fellas - i should note, the last "her" in my story was the lady at ups, not the purchaser the purchaser is not trying to get me to pay the tax, it's just going to be very difficult for her to pay it. but, you're right - it's out of my hands now, not my problem i suppose. at least she got the jeffries for a fair price. i guess the next step is to put her in touch with an irish customs agent, maybe they will be reasonable. funny enough, i recently shipped a melodeon to ireland via USPS, decided to take a chance on not insuring it. it arrived safely, and only set me back $40. d'oh! Seems pretty clear here that it wasn't a gift. I if it was, send the person the money back and let them use that for the VAT. It was a bad gamble and the buyer lost. Having been a part of the scheme I wouldn't feel too good about it myself. ( do you really feel not partly responsible?) Perhaps you could split the fee and both get off having learned a lesson. People in Ireland should know that the price of being Irish is the tax laws their representatives vote for. Sorry if it costs them, but there isn't any socialized medicine here in the US either. That is part of the problem when the government services are billed as "free" people forget that they are expected to pay for them in their taxes. (This is not a vote against a single payer health care system, only against the use of the word "Free".) The people I send concertinas to know they are liable for any fees on their end and can prepare for them in advance or can decide not to buy. You can be pretty sure that it won't be long before failing to insure an object of value no longer puts it under the radar either. I don't mean to be unkind. This is a sad situation especially for someone who overextended themselves, but it will be much sadder if they are out the cash and the concertina! I just wish everybody would stop playing these games and bite the bullet. The cost of these things has gotten a little out of hand anyway. Dana Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peter Laban Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 People in Ireland should know that the price of being Irish is the tax laws their representatives vote for. Sorry if it costs them, but there isn't any socialized medicine here in the US either. That is part of the problem when the government services are billed as "free" people forget that they are expected to pay for them in their taxes. (This is not a vote against a single payer health care system, only against the use of the word "Free".) A bit of a misplaced rant isn't it? It also helps checking whether or not a country supplies medicine for 'free', which is not the case in Ireland. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Roly Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 When we went to Paris with Rosbif we did it properly all the instruments in the van were listed numbered and all the paperwork was in order.When we arrived at Calais, because of the hour difference in time, the import checkers had it worked out that they went on a two hour lunch at exactly the time of arrival of the Ferry.We were held up for three hours before we got clearance. Ça alors! Why was that? I've criss-crossed the old Manche any number of times, doing Roly's Famous Christmas Tree Act, encumbered by everything from hurdy-gurdy to rauschpfeife and never been expected to declare a thing, other than, what does a middle-aged man think he's doing, travelling by himself like that? (Can't be up to any good. Must be a crazed, drug-dealing Muslim fundamentalist paedophile suicide bomber with incurable bed-wetting...) I respect Her Majesty's Customs and Excise and Immigration services. They have a job to do. I'd sooner they didn't do it all over me... I urge all you non-Brits: never, never, say "I went to a festival" - even if it's a Bach organ festival - in the earshot of the U.K. border authorities. The word "festival" has the same effect as a pig gate-crashing a Bar-Mitzvah. And of course the x-ray image of a concertina never fails to create an impression. Best wishes, and sorry to digress. Big Roly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marien Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 When we went to Paris with Rosbif we did it properly all the instruments in the van were listed numbered and all the paperwork was in order.When we arrived at Calais, because of the hour difference in time, the import checkers had it worked out that they went on a two hour lunch at exactly the time of arrival of the Ferry.We were held up for three hours before we got clearance. Ça alors! Why was that? Big Roly Bonjour grand roulesyeux. This must have been some years ago, before UK and France were both in the EU. I think there are no import duties nor VAT when transporting instruments within the EU, or its that different between England and the rest? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azalin Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 Seems pretty clear here that it wasn't a gift. I if it was, send the person the money back and let them use that for the VAT. It was a bad gamble and the buyer lost. Having been a part of the scheme I wouldn't feel too good about it myself. ( do you really feel not partly responsible?) Hu? What scheme? The seller wrote 'gift' on the package just to be nice, it wouldn't have changed anything in the outcome. Gift, sample, whatever, the package was insured, and the buyer had to pay taxes on it. It's none of the seller's business. Some countries in the world would probably not even tax the buyer in this case. It's the buyer's responsability to check with local law. The seller never said (I assume): "I am going to write 'gift' on the package, I assure you you won't be paying taxes". If it were specifically the case maybe you could put some blame on the seller. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dana Johnson Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 Seems pretty clear here that it wasn't a gift. I if it was, send the person the money back and let them use that for the VAT. It was a bad gamble and the buyer lost. Having been a part of the scheme I wouldn't feel too good about it myself. ( do you really feel not partly responsible?) Hu? What scheme? The seller wrote 'gift' on the package just to be nice, it wouldn't have changed anything in the outcome. Gift, sample, whatever, the package was insured, and the buyer had to pay taxes on it. It's none of the seller's business. Some countries in the world would probably not even tax the buyer in this case. It's the buyer's responsability to check with local law. The seller never said (I assume): "I am going to write 'gift' on the package, I assure you you won't be paying taxes". If it were specifically the case maybe you could put some blame on the seller. Sorry, I'm not used to having to pay $6000 for a gift. I'm sure Chris did it to be nice, perhaps that was the gift, but it hardly turned out that way. I do think it ought to be able to be returned tax free, Sale cancelled, but it wasn't a sale was it... I'm not sure scheme doesn't apply though it implies a frame of mind I'm sure no one thought of themselves as having. This doesn't seem too complicated. Money changed hands, the government wants it's cut, If the buyer wasn't prepared to pay the taxes, the deal shouldn't have been done. If there wasn't some 'arrangement' between the buyer and seller about what was affordable and how to make that possible, why the fuss over the taxes by the buyer? The point isn't Chris's good motives. It is that pretending that Customs and VAT don't exist doesn't make them go away as much as we might disagree with their utility. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azalin Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 Sorry, I'm not used to having to pay $6000 for a gift. I'm sure Chris did it to be nice, perhaps that was the gift, but it hardly turned out that way. I do think it ought to be able to be returned tax free, Sale cancelled, but it wasn't a sale was it...t make them go away as much as we might disagree with their utility. But let's say the buyer wasn't even aware the seller wrote 'gift' on the package? Let's say it was sent without that checkbox marked, how would you then describe the situation? If I follow your logic, if 'gift' was never written on the package, then it's entirely the buyer's fault? Because 'gift' was there, it then becomes almost a scheme and should be treated as a gift, even if the buyer wasn't even *aware* that he/she may have to pay taxes on an imported item, and the notion of putting 'gift' on a package was probably foreign to him/her? If I follow your logic with taxes, when I sell a concertina for someone who wants to go play a gigue in another country, and this person gets his concertina confiscated in the other country because they figured he was going there to 'work' illegally, then it is my fault? If I ship a concertina in Alaska and the buyer complains the wood cracked after a year because the weather is too dry, it is also my fault? I don't think so. I don't see why it would be my fault if the buyer gets asked by HIS country to pay taxes on something he imported. This has nothing to do with the transaction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Levine Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 This is off-topic, and is in reference Dana's comment about socialized medicine, and his assumption that medical care is socialized -- hence free, or nearly so -- in Ireland. He's wrong, and medical care isn't free here. But if I went to see a doctor the visit would cost me between €20 and €40, depending on where and when, and who I saw. If the doctor sent me to the ER that visit would be totally free - including medicine and supplies necessary in the ER. Granted, an Irish ER (in many hospitals) is not an advanced facility. But it did keep me alive. And it cost me not a penny. Contrast this to my visit to Urgent Care, a facility in Tucson, AZ, USA. Their website says: NextCare Urgent Care offers convenient walk-in medical clinics with qualified, board-certified doctors who are available during extended hours 365 days a year to treat any non-life-threatening illness or injury that needs immediate attention. NextCare is the perfect, timely health care solution for families and individuals of all ages, including those who can't get in immediately to see their primary care doctor, are visiting from out of town or are new to the area and currently don't have a doctor. Patients who do not have a life-threatening condition can save time and money by using NextCare as an alternative to the emergency room, where waiting times are on the rise. Thank you for choosing NextCare Urgent Care for your health care needs, we look forward to serving you. NextCare's compassionate, quality care extends to the following services: GENERAL MEDICAL CARE OCCUPATIONAL MEDICINE X-RAYS, LABS, VACCINES SCHOOL & SPORTS PHYSICALS ONSITE PRESCRIPTIONS MEDICAL DISCOUNT PROGRAMS I was sent a bill for this service -- which consisted of sitting in the waiting room for about two hours, having my vital signs taken, speaking to a Physician's Assistant for about 15 minutes, and being given a prescription -- which came to $265. The antibiotics cost me another $60. I do have insurance to cover everything except the antibiotics. But there are 40-60 million Americans who have absolutely no insurance and cannot afford it at current rates. Insurance for Americans costs many times more than the minimum wage of about $13,000 a year. While Ireland might not have socialized medicine as Dana might have thought, it is still miles ahead of America and its once vaunted Compassionate Conservatism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LDT Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 This is a link to UK Import Duties etcDuty Payable Mike They need a 'duty calculator' on the site.....its a load of gobbldygook to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larryo Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 Jayjers David, I have often had many a good reason to move to Clare from Dublin but looking at your charges for doctors I am on the way !!! €20 to € 40 for a visit??? Up here in the big shmoke that wouldn't even get you in the door.More like €60 to €70 where I hang out. As for visits to Er not being charged? Again not here.There is a current charge for a vist to ER, I think it used to be €30 but I am sure it has gone up recently !! But back to matter at hand.Maybe I am being unduly unfair on the buyer in this case, but anyone playing instruments in this country( with the exception of young people) knows about import tax and VAT and seeing it is the Bb Jeffries then this is most likely someone's second or maybe third concertina and this, rightly or wrongly, leads me to belief that the buyer has some experience and years of playing and must have surely known the story. But maybe not Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anglo-Irishman Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 This thread was sort of surreal for me right from the start "Irish customs help" - I thought this was someone wanting to know how to make a St. Brigit'S Cross, or the correct way to greet a Parish Priest, or something. But no, it was Customs and Excise! Then there's the very concept of someone in the British Isles buying a concertina from America! Banjos and autoharps, yes - but concertinas?? Surreal ... Cheers, John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LDT Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 Then there's the very concept of someone in the British Isles buying a concertina from America! Banjos and autoharps, yes - but concertinas??Surreal ... How so? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hereward Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 Then there's the very concept of someone in the British Isles buying a concertina from America! Banjos and autoharps, yes - but concertinas??Surreal ... How so? There are so many possibilites to buy concertinas here that it does seem odd to look that far afield for one. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dana Johnson Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 This is off-topic, and is in reference Dana's comment about socialized medicine, and his assumption that medical care is socialized -- hence free, or nearly so -- in Ireland.He's wrong, and medical care isn't free here. But if I went to see a doctor the visit would cost me between €20 and €40, depending on where and when, and who I saw. If the doctor sent me to the ER that visit would be totally free - including medicine and supplies necessary in the ER. Granted, an Irish ER (in many hospitals) is not an advanced facility. But it did keep me alive. And it cost me not a penny. Contrast this to my visit to Urgent Care, a facility in Tucson, AZ, USA. Their website says: NextCare Urgent Care offers convenient walk-in medical clinics with qualified, board-certified doctors who are available during extended hours 365 days a year to treat any non-life-threatening illness or injury that needs immediate attention. NextCare is the perfect, timely health care solution for families and individuals of all ages, including those who can't get in immediately to see their primary care doctor, are visiting from out of town or are new to the area and currently don't have a doctor. Patients who do not have a life-threatening condition can save time and money by using NextCare as an alternative to the emergency room, where waiting times are on the rise. Thank you for choosing NextCare Urgent Care for your health care needs, we look forward to serving you. NextCare's compassionate, quality care extends to the following services: GENERAL MEDICAL CARE OCCUPATIONAL MEDICINE X-RAYS, LABS, VACCINES SCHOOL & SPORTS PHYSICALS ONSITE PRESCRIPTIONS MEDICAL DISCOUNT PROGRAMS I was sent a bill for this service -- which consisted of sitting in the waiting room for about two hours, having my vital signs taken, speaking to a Physician's Assistant for about 15 minutes, and being given a prescription -- which came to $265. The antibiotics cost me another $60. I do have insurance to cover everything except the antibiotics. But there are 40-60 million Americans who have absolutely no insurance and cannot afford it at current rates. Insurance for Americans costs many times more than the minimum wage of about $13,000 a year. While Ireland might not have socialized medicine as Dana might have thought, it is still miles ahead of America and its once vaunted Compassionate Conservatism. I'm glad you are being better taken care of in your new home. Hopefully things have a chance of changing here now. Dana Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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