Buying from Hong Kong Advice

Hi all

I am interested in buying items from Hong Kong though ebay. One particular seller Digital Rev is always selling items on there. Has anyone used these Honk Kong sellers ?? Whats your advice. Some say no import tax etc.. but I find that hard to believe ??

Pete

I know someone here in Holland who regularly buys from Hong Kong. He has a regular contact there, who is well known in Dutch photographic circles. To overcome import duties and VAT things are sent via DHL and labelled as repairs. Just once was he phoned up by customs about a lens and he said yes it was sent there for repair and is now coming back. No problem. I am surprised the customs men don't react but they don't.
I would be more nervous of doing this personally, but maybe I am a wimp.

I have bought a few things. They've always arrived. This week I ordered a wide-angle attachment for my video camera on 20th, and it arrived on 25th.

If the item costs less than £28.00, there is no VAT charge.

G

I've been buying loads of photographic items this year from Hong Kong eBay sellers, all with no serious problems at all, and I've not had to pay one penny of duty.

Most of my items were just very small accessories that would've be under the limit anyway, but one was a lens that would have been well over. The seller kindly and naughtily put "Gift, £10" on the customs declaration. (I won't reveal the seller's identity for his and his customer's sake).

You may be less lucky if customs opens your package to check the contents. Remember in that case (in UK) there would be 17.5% VAT and an £8 Royal Mail handling charge to pay in addition to the duty. (Duty rate depends on exact type of goods). Could still be worth it, though. Would have been for the lens I bought.

Pete,
Hong Kong prices usually appear to be very good at first. Check the small print for delivery charges. There could be duty and/or VAT to pay on imported items.

Might I suggest that cheating HM Customs out of duty and/or VAT is perhaps not the best course of action for somebody wishing to have a career in the police force.

Regards,

I have a friend who makes quite frequent trips out to Hong Kong, and I was considering asking him to buy a lens for me out there and bring it back. I don't think there would be any customs problems with bringing one lens, but does anyone know if the pentax warranty that would come with out would be valid in the UK? I'm quite keen on buying from Hong Kong (DA 16-45 for £170) but realise that things can go wrong and it would be a pain to have to send it back to Hong Kong for repair.

Re Digital Rev, don't take it for granted that you won't get hit for import duty Their feedback says it all...

Not very kind if customs open the package and decide to prosecute you. As the importer you would be liable, not the sender.

....I expect I would just be charged for the duty rather than be prosecuted for a one-off £120 import.

I didn't ask for the customs form to be falsified and I had no knowledge that it was going to be.

ignorance is no defence in the eyes of the law, not saying you would be prosecuted, I don't know, but you would certainly be the liable party.

For this reason I never buy anything pricey from those Hong Kong sellers

I think the risk of prosecution is very low indeed for such one-off purchases of about £100.

I recently bought something from the USA, $160 total inc. p&p and when it arrived the package was marked Contents: documents Value $10. I didn’t ask for it to be labelled as such and was expecting that I may get charged import duty.

One thing that would worry me about mislabelling the value of a package is – what happens if the package gets damaged or lost, would labelling say $1000 worth of lenses as Gift $10 limit what could be claimed back from the carriers? Would the liability for the loss fall on the shipper?