LTT Store tax when stuff being sent to UK

[DonCarlos]

Hi guys and gals,

 

Long time video watcher, first time poster.

 

I did some searches on the forum and I couldn't find an answer to this question, so here I am asking it.

 

I am after a few bits and bobs from the LTT store and I was wondering if anyone had any knowledge of the taxes on products to the UK? I am after an alphabet book and little CPU pillow (so $35 worth of product...might throw a beanie in as well...).

 

Any help or a point in the right direction would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

 

DC

[minibois]

2 minutes ago, DonCarlos said:

I am after a few bits and bobs from the LTT store and I was wondering if anyone had any knowledge of the taxes on products to the UK? I am after an alphabet book and little CPU pillow (so $35 worth of product...might throw a beanie in as well...).

This seems like a good source to checkout: https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/tax-and-duty

Quote

VAT
VAT is charged on all goods (except for gifts worth £39 or less) sent from:

• outside the UK to Great Britain
• outside the UK and the EU to Northern Ireland

VAT is not charged on goods that are gifts worth £39 or less.

 

You pay VAT when you buy the goods or to the delivery company before you receive them. If you have to pay VAT to the delivery company, it’s charged on the total package value, including:

• the value of the goods
• postage, packaging and insurance
• any duty you owe

35 USD is around 30 GBP, so it depends on what the beanie adds in terms of value, if you have to pay VAT or not.

 

Customs duty is discussed further down on the page, but as far as I read there, it's only applicable for orders over 135 GBP in value.

[DonCarlos]

3 minutes ago, minibois said:

This seems like a good source to checkout: https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/tax-and-duty

35 USD is around 30 GBP, so it depends on what the beanie adds in terms of value, if you have to pay VAT or not.

 

Customs duty is discussed further down on the page, but as far as I read there, it's only applicable for orders over 135 GBP in value.

Thank you for the reply.

 

So is that something you have had done or just looked at the .gov website?

Only asking because I've been stung from ordering from the USA before, even though it wasn't something expensive. Not sure if Canada is different?

 

I'm not trying to be cheap, just making sure I am not going to get stung on this  

[minibois]

8 minutes ago, DonCarlos said:

is that something you have had done or just looked at the .gov website?

I'm not from the UK, so my post only comprises of the information I found on that government website.

At the moment I only have limited experience with ordering items from outside of the EU, having only done it a handful times. All those times, the value was below the VAT (local equivalent) threshold, so I don't have experience with that either.

 

You can wait a while, maybe someone from the UK with experience ordering from LTTStore.com can chime in with their experience(s).

[DonCarlos]

2 minutes ago, minibois said:

I'm not from the UK, so my post only comprises of the information I found on that government website.

At the moment I only have limited experience with ordering items from outside of the EU, having only done it a handful times. All those times, the value was below the VAT (local equivalent) threshold, so I don't have experience with that either.

 

You can wait a while, maybe someone from the UK with experience ordering from LTTStore.com can chime in with their experience(s).

I see...

 

Rather than wait, I will put the order through and use myself as a human Guiney pig.

 

*insert 5 minute gap here*

 

Order put through sans the beanie to ensure product costs are under £35. With postage it has come to £34.74 (British Green Queens) so it's right up there, butting heads with the government mandated limit if you include the postage. I will post (in this thread) of any demands for tax payments from Boris and his band of merry plums so other Brits that might be wanting to order to the UK can be more informed on what to expect.

 

Thanks for your help again, minibois, very much appreciated.

[porina]

I haven't ordered from lttstore, but following is my general observations of importing into the UK in the past:

It's safest to assume you will have to pay something than not, unless you're 100% sure the items are completely exempt from all additional charges. The thresholds are usually low enough you're not likely to remain under all of them.

If you have to pay, it will start at 20% for VAT, and there might be other duties depending on the item.

If you have to pay, expect the delivering company to charge you a fee for that. This is usually the bit that hurts more than the tax. They say it is to cover the admin to work out what to charge, process it and pass it onto the government, but when this fee is often higher than moving a physical item thousands of miles around the world, you have to wonder if they're just using it as a captive revenue source.

This wont apply to lttstore or other reputable sellers, but less reputable ones might intentionally declare a low or zero value to avoid taxation on receiving. Suffice to say the tax man wont be happy if they find out. It is common for packages from China to be marked down even if you don't ask them to. 

[minibois]

14 minutes ago, DonCarlos said:

Rather than wait, I will put the order through and use myself as a human Guiney pig.

 

*insert 5 minute gap here*

 

Order put through sans the beanie to ensure product costs are under £35. With postage it has come to £34.74 (British Green Queens) so it's right up there, butting heads with the government mandated limit if you include the postage. I will post (in this thread) of any demands for tax payments from Boris and his band of merry plums so other Brits that might be wanting to order to the UK can be more informed on what to expect.

 

Thanks for your help again, minibois, very much appreciated.

Would love to hear the result!

By the way, a mate of mine from somewhere else in Europe showed a screenshot of the track & trace website, which said "Item has reached country of destination" and "NL" (Netherlands), while he is not from NL. 

After contacting LTTStore support, it turns out all their shipments for Europe go through the Netherlands and the track & trace doesn't give further detail when traveling within Europe.

 

Of course I might've gotten some details wrong, they may have changed their service and it may work differently in the UK vs. mainland Europe, but just keep that in mind if the track & trace shows that specific "Arrived in country of destination" "NL" thing.

[IntMD]

I ordered 3 tshirts with a free shipping promo they did last year which came to USD60. I didnt have to pay anything extra, but I guess it depends if customs can be bothered or not.

[DonCarlos]

Update; my package is in Switzerland! It should be with me within the next week...

[j.son19]

Hopefully it will get through customs border ok as I know that Brexit has really messed up imports/exports at the ports

[demonix00]

On 2/9/2021 at 11:15 PM, DonCarlos said:

I see...

 

Rather than wait, I will put the order through and use myself as a human Guiney pig.

 

*insert 5 minute gap here*

 

Order put through sans the beanie to ensure product costs are under £35. With postage it has come to £34.74 (British Green Queens) so it's right up there, butting heads with the government mandated limit if you include the postage. I will post (in this thread) of any demands for tax payments from Boris and his band of merry plums so other Brits that might be wanting to order to the UK can be more informed on what to expect.

 

Thanks for your help again, minibois, very much appreciated.

The information provided previously is inaccurate as of the start of the year things changed where the place you buy from regardless of the country has collect the VAT instead of it having to be paid upon delivery.

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/changes-to-vat-treatment-of-overseas-goods-sold-to-customers-from-1-january-2021/changes-to-vat-treatment-of-overseas-goods-sold-to-customers-from-1-january-2021

[Bmiest]

So without doing the proper research this is my case in Belgium:

 

I bought 

 

LTT Insulated Water Bottle - 40oz (1.18L)Stealth	1	$29.99 USD

Scroll for more items 

Cost summary

Description	Price
Total	USD $44.98 USD
Subtotal	$29.99 USD
Shipping	$14.99 USD

 

 

I got the notification today that I need to clear the package for 34.29EUR with our post office which roughly translates to 41,63USD

I bought a bottom line 86,61USD water bottle.

Don't be me , do proper tax/customs research.

 

(it's a cool bottle tho)

 

 

[DonCarlos]

On 2/26/2021 at 9:20 AM, Bmiest said:

So without doing the proper research this is my case in Belgium:

 

I bought 

 

LTT Insulated Water Bottle - 40oz (1.18L)Stealth	1	$29.99 USD

Scroll for more items 

Cost summary

Description	Price
Total	USD $44.98 USD
Subtotal	$29.99 USD
Shipping	$14.99 USD

 

 

I got the notification today that I need to clear the package for 34.29EUR with our post office which roughly translates to 41,63USD

I bought a bottom line 86,61USD water bottle.

Don't be me , do proper tax/customs research.

 

(it's a cool bottle tho)

 

 

Well I look forward to being done over for my order then. Thanks for the heads up

[DonCarlos]

OK so my delivery turned up today; pillow and book.

 

Lets get the first thing out of the way; both products are excellent. My son to be is a few months away but I literally cannot wait to talk about the ABC's of gaming with him, even if he doesn't understand right away. And the little cushion is adorable...I look forward to him dribbling all over that and likely worse.

 

Delivery - I paid for 28 days delivery and it arrived in 24, which given the state of the post in EU and UK land at the moment is a minor miracle. Bmiest, I think you got unlucky as I had no additional charges at all. So the package arrived and given to Lady Carlos as I was out, no questions asked. So maybe the new rules work when it comes to UK import?

 

Anyway, this is something for all those who wish to order from LLT store. It will be dispatched quickly, it will be packaged well and the products themselves are of the utmost quality. Would order again.

 

Thanks to all that have posted in this thread; very much appreciated.

 

Cheers,

DC

[Vipermk2]

Just bought a one of the larger Northern lights Mousepads so will update once arrives in the UK. Also got a bit of discount because of Honey

 

 

[Blackraccoon]

Got my mouse mat today 28th August, ordered it on the 6th August. 

Good quality mat  well made, very pleased.

 

[mike3231]

On 8/28/2021 at 12:26 PM, Blackraccoon said:

Got my mouse mat today 28th August, ordered it on the 6th August. 

Good quality mat  well made, very pleased.

 

That looks awesome, man

I'm thinking of getting one as well, similar size to yours. Were you hit with any customs charges or did you just pay the $49.18 as your screenshot shows?

[Vipermk2]

20 hours ago, mike3231 said:

That looks awesome, man

I'm thinking of getting one as well, similar size to yours. Were you hit with any customs charges or did you just pay the $49.18 as your screenshot shows?

Mine hasn't arrived yet but will post the additional cost as soon as it does.

[Meaker]

In terms of VAT you will be charged 20% on the total order value including shipping and then a handling fee on top if you have not pre-paid VAT.

[Vipermk2]

On 8/28/2021 at 10:50 AM, Vipermk2 said:

Just bought a one of the larger Northern lights Mousepads so will update once arrives in the UK. Also got a bit of discount because of Honey

 

 

Ok here's a surprise, the mousepad has arrived today and I have not been charged any extra, Bonus So I paid $49.18 or £37.45 and that's it, no extra to pay.

[Rene Bernhagen]

I've paid additional 13€ for an european import fee called "Einfuhrabgaben". Now I am a little bit mad because I don't understand why I've paid another $18,62 for taxes with the order... I hope the deskpads are worth its money

But I think I won't order again something on lttstore.com because taxes plus import fees are too much

[Rene Bernhagen]

On 9/14/2021 at 7:08 PM, Rene Bernhagen said:

I've paid additional 13€ for an european import fee called "Einfuhrabgaben". Now I am a little bit mad because I don't understand why I've paid another $18,62 for taxes with the order... I hope the deskpads are worth its money

But I think I won't order again something on lttstore.com because taxes plus import fees are too much

Yesterday I wrote an email to their customers support und today I got a refund about the $18,62 for taxes So, $25 for shipping and 13€ for import fees is much money but it's okay and a excusable amount of shipping costs I think. 

[tikker]

On 9/14/2021 at 4:51 PM, Vipermk2 said:

Ok here's a surprise, the mousepad has arrived today and I have not been charged any extra, Bonus So I paid $49.18 or £37.45 and that's it, no extra to pay.

Inb4 an invoice is underway Happened to me to a UK shipment to the Netherlands the other day. They chose FedEX for some reason and delivered to my house, which they never do because import duties and taxes are typically paid at the post office. A few days later I got the invoice in the mail.

On 9/14/2021 at 7:08 PM, Rene Bernhagen said:

I've paid additional 13€ for an european import fee called "Einfuhrabgaben". Now I am a little bit mad because I don't understand why I've paid another $18,62 for taxes with the order...

Taxes and import fees are different things. Germany's VAT is 19% according to Google, which is exactly the quoted $18.62. I'm not surprised you had to pay additional import fees, as it doesn't seem LMG charged you those. Here in NL first you pay import fees, then you pay the usual 21% VAT over (product price + shipping + fees). The final invoice will thus be import fees + tax_rate * (product price + shipping + import fee).

 

I've never had duties paid for in advance, but it's not always picked up correctly by customs that taxes have been paid for, and as such they can charge double. In that case you can get it refunded usually. That doesn't seem to be your case, so unless I misunderstand something you got lucky with the taxes refunded