Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

Hi all,

I'm just a lurker, but I've had a lot of useful information from these boards. I'd like to pay back that help, and have written a spreadsheet ready reckoner, that gives you an idea of how much you'd have to pay in duty and charges next time you order your undies at Marks and Sparks :p

It's just something I've written in my own time, and in no way affiliated to Customs. Me and DH use it when we're deciding whether to buy items here, or to order from overseas.

There's a link to it here, if that doesn't work for you, flick me a pm and I'll send it to you.

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

I've never paid duty charges on anything I've ordered online from the UK, guess I've just been lucky so far!

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

Apparently they're about to reduce the threshold for paying duty from over $400 to $60 and will be charging duty based on NZ list price, not what you paid for the goods.

Should be, er, fun.

They can also open the package to look at the goods and assign what they think the correct value is to the goods then charge you duty on that. I know someone who bought some furniture in Aus for a couple of hundred dollars (way less than their normal price) but customs assessed them at what they thought and he ended up paying more in duty than the goods cost.

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

I still get shirts from the uk.......just keep oders less than £100 a go............never had a problem?


:thumbsup:

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

is that right:thumbdown:

Never knew that, surely that can't be legal:thumbdown:

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

They opened and inspected some car parts I got from UK - no charges there.
But I got charged duty and GST on a bigger value package of second-hand parts (500 pounds worth).

They charge the GST and duty on the postage as well as the goods value too. Postage was 150 quid in this case, 30kg package.
How is that fair when the postage is a service paid for overseas, and you have already paid tax at source?

I've mentioned this before but I got another package opened by Aussie customs on its way from UK. It contained a mug, and my dad had put "pot" as the description.

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

Sorry forgot to say before wandering off into discussion mode:

Nice work on the spreadsheet, really useful tool, thanks for sharing it :)

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

How is this fair? Do they honestly charge duty on postage!!!:thumbdown:

What ever next, making paper boys and girls pay tax:frown:

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

Thank you, being a dweeb is useful at times!

They only charge duty on the cost of the item itself, but charge GST on top of everything. I do like how they're open with the duty rates though, back in the UK, we were looking at importing a watch for DH, but HMRC don't publish their rates, so we couldn't calculate what the final cost would be. Here we can make an informed decision, which is why I wrote the spreadsheet in the first place.

I've made a version that works with older Excel (xls) if anyone would like it, here.

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

Any GST is payable on the landed cost be it posted or goods in a container, standard rule. Unless you get the immigrants personal goods exception you would pay GST on your container contents and its shipping charge too.

If they didn't there would rapidly be a scam in "cheap goods expensively shipped" to reduce the GST charge on import....

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

I'm just about to ship some second-hand car parts over. Should be interesting to see how much they screw me on duty.

I paid 500 quid and declared that as the value, description second-hand car parts.
New price would be about 1100 quid, and local NZ new price would be over $3k.
Oh and delivery was 135 quid.

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

More car parts?? That Skoda must be really unreliable! :p

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

Cue Skoda jokes....

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

Upgrades! :D

Never had a problem with it in 8 years :D

Customs have held my parcel for 5 days before calling me to ask what my customs clearance code was. Had to fill in a form to apply for one which takes another 1-2 days.

I still don't know how much GST they'll be charging me.

Re: Calculating duty charges on internet shopping
 

I think the $60 refers to the total of duty and GST payable, NOT the value of the goods imported.

http://www.customs.govt.nz/inprivate...s/default.aspx

Basically it says that duty and GST are payable on all imported goods, but Customs and Excise don't bother to collect it if the total payable is under $60 (except for tobacco and alcohol)

Working backwards that would appear to mean that you wouldn't have to pay on anything costing less than about $225.