VAT question
https://pentaxphotogallery.com/artists/barrieforbes
https://www.flickr.com/photos/189482630@N03/
It could give problems should you need to make use of the guarantee - they could be seen as grey imports and the guarantee be annulled.
You can bring 390 pounds worth of goods into the country duty free from Canada.
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/customs/arriving/arrivingnoneu.htm
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/customs/post/index.htm
And more on their excellent website.
Buying in Canada and having it shipped direct will certainly attract VAT and duty if over the very low limit.
If your family buy it and ship it to you, then HMRC may charge VAT if the rules and exemptions are not met.
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/customs/post/sending.htm
There are specific forms to fill in and proof that it is yours and will be re-exported may be needed.
K20D, *istD, MZ-S, Super-A, ME Super, MX
DA* 16-50, DA* 50-135, DA* 300,
DA 50-200, FA 24-90, FA 20-35,
M 400-600, A 50 f1.4, A 28 f2.8, A 70-210, M 35-80, M 50 f1.7
A x2S teleconverter and a few others ...
https://pentaxphotogallery.com/artists/barrieforbes
https://www.flickr.com/photos/189482630@N03/
Even if your family send it you may end up paying. They have to fill in a customs declaration after all.
It could give problems should you need to make use of the guarantee - they could be seen as grey imports and the guarantee be annulled.
You can bring 390 pounds worth of goods into the country duty free from Canada.
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/customs/arriving/arrivingnoneu.htm
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/customs/post/index.htm
And more on their excellent website.
The £390 only applies if the goods are with the person when going through customs - and normally only applies to UK/EU citizens bring goods back or non EU citizens bringing in items as gifts or for sale or consumption, their personal items (to be re-exported) are free from duty/tax.
K20D, *istD, MZ-S, Super-A, ME Super, MX
DA* 16-50, DA* 50-135, DA* 300,
DA 50-200, FA 24-90, FA 20-35,
M 400-600, A 50 f1.4, A 28 f2.8, A 70-210, M 35-80, M 50 f1.7
A x2S teleconverter and a few others ...
My argument would be that the item belongs to him and you don't pay vat and duty on things you own. He would have an invoice to prove ownership
I have taken high value items abroad previously and have had to either use a "Carnet de passage" which uses a bank guarantee or pay duty and reclaim it on leaving teh country. Overseas colleagues visiting the UK have also had to do the same with items when coming into the UK.
They are not necessarily doubting ownership but too often visitors will come to the UK and sell or leave items behind as gifts.
K20D, *istD, MZ-S, Super-A, ME Super, MX
DA* 16-50, DA* 50-135, DA* 300,
DA 50-200, FA 24-90, FA 20-35,
M 400-600, A 50 f1.4, A 28 f2.8, A 70-210, M 35-80, M 50 f1.7
A x2S teleconverter and a few others ...
My argument would be that the item belongs to him and you don't pay vat and duty on things you own. He would have an invoice to prove ownership
I have taken high value items abroad previously and have had to either use a "Carnet de passage" which uses a bank guarantee or pay duty and reclaim it on leaving teh country. Overseas colleagues visiting the UK have also had to do the same with items when coming into the UK.
They are not necessarily doubting ownership but too often visitors will come to the UK and sell or leave items behind as gifts.
I can see what you mean, but does it apply all the time and in every country. I'm thinking of all the times you go abroad with camera bodies etc. of high value.
https://pentaxphotogallery.com/artists/barrieforbes
https://www.flickr.com/photos/189482630@N03/
Goods imported from outside the EU for temporary use in the UK
If you are moving to the UK for a specified period of time, for example a student coming to study, you can claim relief from tax and duty known as Temporary Import (TI) relief on goods for your period of stay in the EC up to a maximum of 24 months.
To claim, goods must be imported for a specific use and intended for re-export from the UK within a specified time.
Link to all the legalspeak.
However the chances of getting caught importing something when you fly back from Canada are very small. You could just buy things and bring them in. Don't do this with Sigma lenses - they will want proof of customs clearance if you need to have them repaired, but Pentax are more lenient.
Posting them will involve customs payments I believe even if you are a temporary resident.
I would be bit concerned about getting them back into Canada at the end of your stay without having to pay duty on them again.
I have had similar requests in other countries too.
The systems are not perfect and HMRC have a duty to recover as much tax and duty as they legally can - if they did not, we would pay extra income tax.
Take an example of how it could be abused.
If Whelmed was a friend of mine, I could ask him to purchase a lens in Canada by mail order and have it delivered to his home address. the receipt and everything will show the home details. I pay him cash so no transaction is traceable.
Whelmed's parents open the package and lens box, and repack it in a "used" way. They then post it to him with the exemption forms so teh UK authorities do not charge VAT.
I get a lens at Canadian prices with no UK VAT and just a small posting fee.
Or next time he goes home, Whelmed leaves all of his existing lenses here and buys new in Canada. He returns here to continue his studies and brings his personal set of lenses with him, all nicely packed. He pays no duty and I pay cash for a full set of Limited lenses and a couple of DA*300s. So, to ensure HMRC collect duty & VAT they are within their rights to charge it on import and refund it on export.
Ultimately, Whelmed should call HMRC and give them the full facts and they will email a definitive statement which he can use on import/export of the lenses.
K20D, *istD, MZ-S, Super-A, ME Super, MX
DA* 16-50, DA* 50-135, DA* 300,
DA 50-200, FA 24-90, FA 20-35,
M 400-600, A 50 f1.4, A 28 f2.8, A 70-210, M 35-80, M 50 f1.7
A x2S teleconverter and a few others ...
The most annoying part about importing into the EU is not the duty, but the levies that UPS or DHL or Royal Fail impose for the "trouble" of dealing with customs formalities.
I'd actually go around a different way. Go find the appropriate the Duty rate and then check out the amount payable. If it's small, it won't be collected. However, the VAT (also on the shipping costs!) is payable.
I've been requested to prove what something is, what its value is (which is damned near impossible because of its scarcity) and just generally jerked around. TNT were very good, UPS charged very high brokerage fees and Canadapost stuff gets intercepted every time.
Don't be tempted to price something down, as the written numbers will be the ones that are counted should you need to claim on insurance, too.
Wait til they visit or you visit them.
Bret
my kit: K3, K5, K-01, DA 18-55, D-FA50 macro, Siggy 30/1.4, 100-300/f4, 70-200/2.8, Samsung 12-24/f4, Tamron 17-50, and lots of other bits.
You will probably find them helpful and knowledgable.
“We must avoid however, snapping away, shooting quickly and without thought, overloading ourselves with unnecessary images that clutter our memory and diminish the clarity of the whole.” - Henri Cartier-Bresson -
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567 posts
14 years
Alright, with that out of the way, I'm living in the UK but I'm a Canadian. I'm doing a PhD here, and as such I'm poor as piss and always looking for ways to save money. I see my family between 1-2 times a year, and prices for Pentax Lenses are, to put it mildly, slightly cheaper in Canada.
Now - how does that work for me? I'm allowed to bring things in here given the knowledge that they will leave with me and that I do not sell them. That is, if I purchased something in Canada and brought it here for my own personal use, should that mean that I'm exempt from paying import tax on it? So the next question is this ... if I purchased something from a dealer and had them ship it to me in the UK - would this same rule apply?