martyfen

I wonder if anyone out there has any experience with exporting. I have an old motorcycle that a guy in holland wants to buy. We have agreed a price of $10K, the issue I have is that on the documentation he wants me to list the selling price as $2500, this helps him avoid import duty. He is still going to pay me the entire amount.
When I talked to the shipping company today, they told me that putting that price on the documentation also gets me out of paying an export duty here which according to them would usually be 35% of the total selling price. My problem now is i'm torn between risking not being honest with customs and if caught having to pay the tax and any fines or just risking it. Has anyone else had any dealings like this or know of any way around. The bike is vintage. help appreciated

ottotheboar

I would ask them what is "export duty" I just googled it and came up with nothing. I send dozens of classic bikes to Europe and all I pay for my agent to present the titles to Customs and get them stamped "export approved" to be charged 35% of the value seems very odd. When the bike arrives in Holland if the Customs think the value is too low they will make him get a valuation from an approved dealer and he may be charged demurrage if it takes a while. In dealing with US Customs for me honesty is the only way to do it.

Michael

I very much doubt there is such thing as export duty when exporting from the US. That would really kill an economy.

The only time I have heard of an export duty or restrictions is in emerging markets where the government wants to protect locally produced items so that there won't be shortages in the local market. The latest instance of that was China restricting the export of rare earth metals and one of the east Asian countries restricting the export of rice.

Other than that, the only other export restrictions I know of is that many countries restrict the export of certain products for military use.

Sheepdip

Doesn't the amount you declare at export also affect the insurance? If the bike were lost or damaged during transit, you'd only get the value on the declaration?