From July will we pay VAT twice for many non-EU purchases?!
Hi everyone! I’m trying to figure out how extra-EU purchases work from July 1st and it seems to me that Ebay is trying to... minimize the whole thing.
Practical example: if today I buy an item from a Japanese seller on Ebay, I automatically pay VAT on the item and shipping.
BUT, so that I don’t have to pay VAT again (+ postal fees) upon delivery, the Japanese seller on the ELECTRONIC customs declaration (please note: electronic, as required by the EU) must include the IOSS code provided by Ebay. Otherwise I’ll pay again!
Now, if the shipment is NOT sent with expensive couriers already enabled for the IOSS system, but with the regular airmail of the Japanese postal service, the seller will have no way to fill out an ELECTRONIC customs declaration. So it’s practically certain that I’ll pay VAT again (+ postal fees) when the package arrives.
Can anyone prove me wrong?
Is it right that Ebay makes us pay VAT for extra-EU purchases even if only one (tiny?) part of shipments can have an ELECTRONIC customs declaration, without which the buyer pays VAT twice?
I think this is unfair to buyers, and a problem for those selling from outside the EU.
la-casa-dellusato
·2 years agoGood morning, I haven't followed the matter very closely, but regarding my case of purchase with reduced VAT at 4% under Law 104 for a phone that costs 390 euros, how does it work? In any case, I'll contact eBay soon, but an answer could help
sika700
·2 years agoIt doesn't work on ebay... unless a specific seller offers it to you with a special listing... obviously only Italian sellers, but here we were talking about purchases from outside the EU.
Kind regards.
ax13769
·2 years agoIn January 2024, years after the entry into force of the IOSS regulation/system, I note that eBay has adapted by charging VAT, and non-EU sellers too, clearly showing the IOSS code on the packages. The customs agency has invested our money in a super IOSS/OSS portal, but Poste Italiane and FexEx continue to demand "customs clearance" fees without providing an invoice or a receipt that would at least make it possible to ask for a refund for double taxation. The critical issue seems to be in sorting: the carrier does not "read" the IOSS reference on the packages, out of ignorance or negligence, and sends the parcel to customs, where again, instead of correcting course, they squeeze out another round. The combo of shortsighted protectionism and inefficient systems is deadly. eBay should leave the option to pay VAT at origin or at destination. But Poste Italiane and other still-medieval couriers that don't even give you a valid supporting document should be burned alive.
sika700
·2 years agoYou're making a huge mess of things: VAT is one thing and customs clearance fees are another.
So make sure you inform yourself properly about the different charges (VAT, customs fees, carrier charges, duties), then come back and comment.
Kind regards.
nc_ddd
·2 years agoI see sooooo much confusion
To clear everything up
When you buy something from outside the EU, you have to pay:
On eBay (and on other sites that use IOSS) you pay the VAT directly to the site for orders under 150€
Thanks to IOSS, since you pay the VAT to the site, the courier will NO LONGER HAVE TO CLEAR THE GOODS
So: for orders under 150€ YOU PAY NOTHING ON TOP OF WHAT YOU ALREADY PAID TO EBAY
Obviously most couriers couldn’t care less about this and make you pay anyway.
The only solution is to write a certified email and request a full refund of what you paid the courier
taanipu
·3 years agoGood morning everyone!
I've been an eBay buyer for years, in fact you could say I'm a longtime buyer since I've been buying here since at least 2002, or maybe it would be better to say I was buying because thanks to this new regulation for purchases outside the EU I'm seriously thinking of giving up eBay. I'm a private individual without a VAT number who has always only bought vintage second-hand items for my own collections (except for a few rare cases, but these were always small things) and I find it really absurd and unfair to now have to pay customs duties and VAT for old, vintage and second-hand items. I would like to know how I go about importing this type of item, and then there are so many "smart alecks" who do so-called dropshipping without even registering for a VAT number and without paying any taxes! It would be more fair if eBay checked what people are buying before applying customs duties and VAT, as well as seriously checking those who do undeclared dropshipping!
Have a good day.
sika700
·3 years agoGood morning,
it's not eBay that applies customs... eBay doesn't sell anything, it's the European community that wants to discourage imports from outside the EU.
If you manage to identify who is doing "abusive" dropshipping, the first thing is to avoid buying and you can also report the listing:
https://www.ebay.it/help/policies/member-behavior-policies/segnala-un-oggetto-un%E2%80%99inserzione?id=4739&st=3&pos=2&query=Segnala%20un%20oggetto%20o%20un%E2%80%99inserzione&intent=segnalare&lucenceai=lucenceai&docId=HELP1399
Kind regards.
taanipu
·3 years agoYes but then it’s up to the EU to check who and what is being bought and for eBay to maybe create a separate lane for private individuals buying from other private individuals. I never buy anything online that’s already available in physical stores, and I use online shopping only for things I can’t find in stores, like second-hand vintage items. I’d like to know WHY if I buy an old toy from the 90s, not only is it no longer in production, but it’s even got an opened package, what the hell kind of import would I be making????? And even if it weren’t opened, what import would it be anyway with just one product?
Kind regards.
marioelegio
·3 years agoThe EU does not carry out any kind of checks because all goods entering the EU customs territory are subject to taxation. So there is no point in making distinctions between goods, buyers, and sellers.
Even if you disagree, I don't think it is easy to change this rule....... https://www.consilium.europa.eu/it/council-eu/decision-making/ordinary-legislative-procedure/
hi
mario
heavenwelkin
·3 years agoYou’re moving money through a sale of goods, regardless of whether they are new, used, or vintage.
You pay taxes on the money you are moving from one country to another.
Because if that vintage item is yours and a relative sends it to you, there is the possibility of filling out a special customs declaration stating that it is not an economic/commercial transaction, and there you go, you either don’t pay taxes on that item or you pay them in a minimal amount.
Obviously you can’t do this when you shop online and pay by credit card, because it would never occur to any sane seller to make false declarations (that’s a criminal offense) for the sole and exclusive purpose of saving you money.
Kind regards.
sika700
·3 years agoYou’re importing an "old toy from the 90s... with... the packaging open"... and to import, you don’t need large volumes of goods... to import, you just need to buy even a simple "flea" from any non-EU seller.
Kind regards.
marioelegio
·3 years agoEbay has nothing to do with it.
As of 01/07/2021 any goods (new or used) that for any reason whatsoever (even if it is a gift that has not been paid for) enter the EU are subject to payment of VAT, any duties and customs charges.
There are no lawful ways to buy in non-EU countries and not pay these costs.
hi
mario
Anonymous User
·3 years agobasically we pay VAT and eBay, which will put it in a safe that it'll open for New Year's Eve dinner, and
then we pay the VAT again at customs.
sika700
·3 years agoWriting without knowing...
If you prove to ebay, with documents in hand, that you paid VAT twice, ebay refunds it to you!!
Did you know??
heavenwelkin
·3 years agoeBay also gives private individuals the possibility to sell used items all over the world.
The seller must put a code on the outside of the package (provided by eBay) ABN#xxxxxxxxxxx CODE: PAID
Even BETTER would be to print and include in the customs documentation also the ORDER NUMBER provided by eBay, where you can see the cost of the item, shipping costs and import costs already collected by eBay.
If the seller OMITS to provide this information, the package will be processed "as taxable" with VAT and customs charges to be COLLECTED upon receipt of the item.
As sika700 told you, if this happens to you and you have documentation PROVING the double payment of customs charges, contact eBay and attach the requested documentation, you will certainly receive a refund.
Best regards.
lucabravi
·4 years agoA package worth $30 + about $7 of VAT already paid to eBay arrived today from Japan. To the postman I had to pay €13... there’s definitely something wrong with all this, and it was also clearly indicated on the package that the VAT had already been paid (VAT paid: IOSS - xxxxxxx (by xxxxxxx I mean the IOSS code))
sika700
·4 years agoLet’s try to explain it again, evidently it’s still not very clear:
for imports from outside the EU there are 4 taxes and charges:
- VAT
- duties
- customs fees
- carrier charges
On eBay you will pay the VAT, while upon delivery you will pay duties, customs fees and carrier charges.
So what’s wrong with all this.. if not being aware of it?
Best regards.
cecrstiu-95
·4 years agoHi sika700,
I could be wrong, but by customs charges I mean VAT and any duty (if the value of the goods is over 150 Eur). So the items for import should only be 2 (I’ll use the example of buying a record from the US):
Customs charges: VAT + any duty
Postal fees
I think everything else is additional VAT that doesn’t take into account the value of the invoice attached to the package.
In theory, every time we receive a record from outside the EU worth under 150 eur, we should only pay 2 / 5 Eur to the mail carrier, in the case of a “normal” shipment, meaning delivery by Poste Italiane.
Am I right?
sika700
·4 years agoHello,
customs charges (also called by some couriers cash-out charge) are the taxes or fees that the courier incurs to pay customs duties (duties + VAT) to the relevant authorities, obviously paid by the customer.
Then there is customs clearance or commonly called carrier charges, for example Poste Italiane has its own tariff table:
Customs clearance rates for goods and postal items from abroad - Poste Italiane
Then of course there are the duties and VAT, so that's four levies...
Kind regards.
maffe.stefa
·4 years agoForgive me, but I don't think what you wrote is entirely correct.
you said: "customs charges (also called by some couriers disbursement fee) are the taxes or fees that the courier incurs to pay customs duties (duties + VAT) to the relevant authorities, obviously paid by the customer"
But right here, in my opinion, you're mistaken; let's set duties aside for a moment. The VAT is paid by the marketplace where the transaction took place, not by the courier, so there are no additional costs to bear.
Not to mention that customs clearance costs are not due when the VAT has already been paid upfront through the marketplace, so Italian post doesn't even charge you the customs clearance costs shown in the table you linked.
Trust me, you've got a bit confused; there are millions of Amazon and Aliexpress shipments that come directly from China and no one is asked to pay a single cent more upon delivery if everything was paid at the time of purchase. Here, ebay and the sellers clearly have a problem managing transactions and shipments.
taanipu
·3 years agoYou mentioned China, and for some obscure reason it's here on eBay and elsewhere, even though it's outside the EU, with no additional customs costs, no VAT, nothing! From Japan, which isn't that geographically far away, you pay customs and duties, while from China you don't. I’d like someone to explain to me why China enjoys this privileged situation, if that’s what you can call it.
heavenwelkin
·3 years agoUntil 2021 it was like that; currently, orders coming from China also require payment of VAT and other import costs.
Best regards.