To import or not

[michel]

Gotta get more clever .. never been  slugged duties and gst and  'assessment' charge on parts before... bit of a lottery and did today $500.00

buying off PP and other O/S sites just had the convenience factor neutered 

 

[CoSo]

Sorry to hear. I think the government wants to crack down on imported goods so this sort of thing may get more prevalent in the future unfortunately until you just have to factor in paying the GST and fees as part of the online cost as standard. 

 

[Ozvino]

Gotta get more clever .. never been  slugged duties and gst and  'assessment' charge on parts before... bit of a lottery and did today $500.00

buying off PP and other O/S sites just had the convenience factor neutered 

 

assume you stated actual value and it was over $1000?

[Mike D'Silva]

WHEN buying from pelican for example, is the $1000 aud limit including the freight charge?

Or is it, $1000 aud for just the items themselves... 

[SimonN]

Ouch! Not good news, but it does imply you bought a fair amount in one go. I have tried not to exceed the $1000 but if they change the rules so that everything is liable for GST, it is going to screw all of us. The problem isn't just the cost but also the availability. 

[9r]

Bugger... we all maybe need to look a bit closer at the 'postage vs value of goods equation' as it now has got potentially a lot harder with your experience Michel ☹️️

[KGB]

Gotta get more clever .. never been  slugged duties and gst and  'assessment' charge on parts before... bit of a lottery and did today $500.00

buying off PP and other O/S sites just had the convenience factor neutered 

 

Doesn't make sense.  Either over $1k or it contained smokes and booze, or other no no's...

If it came by a courier company and they charged you, then fight them on the beaches, as they are notorious for these shenanigans.

[Blue964]

You might like to look in to using a US based re-poster. Mine repackages ordered goods so they don't look like purchased items or include invoices etc. they will also split up items for me and post separately so no single postage item has more than $1000 worth of items. I've been using one for the past 12 mths and my high priced goods have all avoided taxes etc.

[Plugger2]

Gotta get more clever .. never been  slugged duties and gst and  'assessment' charge on parts before... bit of a lottery and did today $500.00

buying off PP and other O/S sites just had the convenience factor neutered 

 

What did you buy? Can you break down the $500 into duties, gst and "assessment charge" for us, to get a better idea of what's going on?

The old $1000 limit included goods+shipping. There was talk of that being abolished so that *any* amount is potentially gst assessable -- has that happened yet?

[YellowDieselGolf]

Who do you use Blue964?  It sounds like a great idea.  

[michel]

2 different pelican orders (924turbo and 944turbo) that one appears to have been delayed and they ended up doing me a 'favour' and bundling them 

And @KGB you're comment is correct , FedEx got their fingers all over this. Interested to understand your remark, I'm assuming your saying they are gouging somehow?

Was already smarting at the xchange rate on purchase value, then the absurd shipping, and now the kerching moment as I was reading out my card details today...

The assessment charge was $83.00. Import duty $127.00 , the remainder $282.00 tax.

@Mike D'Silva oz govt consider combined freight and goods cost taxable.  

Up till now I've had plenty of O/s imports that have been over the threshold, sail through including PP orders. My numbers came up ..

Though for future orders  I will now organise a reshipper service @Blue964 who are you using, will spend more time with my nose in the PET and perhaps borrow @smit2100 's ordering algorithm 

Often I'll use local retail such as AH BWA etc where possible (except my local dealer) or at least give it a crack, just sometimes for larger orders pp and the others have made it simple shopping.

 

 

 

[Blue964]

Who do you use Blue964?  It sounds like a great idea.  

when you order your stuff from the US you get it delivered directly to the re-post service--the one I use is based just outside of Chicago. When the goods arrive at the re-poster they contact me to let me know they have received it and ask me if I have any specific delivery instructions for on forwarding to me. I usually get them to unpack the stuff from the original packaging and repack it more efficiently to save space and in some instances split the stuff up and send separately. I also ask them to remove all invoices and related paperwork as I'm told this is one of the things customs look for. I also tell them what delivery service (e.g fed ex air) I want them to use and then they onsend to me. I really only use the re-post service when I purchase goods for more than $1k and bulky items. They tend to repack pretty efficiently and well so delivery costs are usually cheaper as well. They do charge a fee for their services but it is significantly less then any taxes you'll get slugged with and often you save significantly of delivery costs. There are plenty of good providers based in the US and several that specifically service AU and NZ. Do a google search. Will send you details of my re-poster soon.

[Plugger2]

If the GST was $282, then the combined goods + shipping came to $2820?

I'm surprised you got charged 5% duty, as the US/Aus FTA is supposed to eliminate duty for (most) goods coming from the USA. You may have to apply to customs for the rebate though. I had to do this when my son imported a custom guitar from the USA.

[Blue964]

i use www.ustooz.com

might be worthwhile looking at some of the other providers as their services and costs can vary a bit. i have found the service offered by ustooz to be pretty bloody good.

[sandy468]

If the GST was $282, then the combined goods + shipping came to $2820?

I'm surprised you got charged 5% duty, as the US/Aus FTA is supposed to eliminate duty for (most) goods coming from the USA. You may have to apply to customs for the rebate though. I had to do this when my son imported a custom guitar from the USA.

And you are charged GST on the duty, that's a tax on a tax, Supposedly paying tax on a tax in any circumstance doesn't occur (and nor should it) but with importing it does. I gave up trying to chase that old chestnut many times with customs years back, importing from Thailand, Korea, China, England and USA

[TrevMcRev]

If the GST was $282, then the combined goods + shipping came to $2820?

I'm surprised you got charged 5% duty, as the US/Aus FTA is supposed to eliminate duty for (most) goods coming from the USA. You may have to apply to customs for the rebate though. I had to do this when my son imported a custom guitar from the USA.

The US/AUS FTA is for US originating goods, not just goods being shipped from the US.

So that would be a no to german car parts, but a possible yet to US made aftermarket parts.

Michel you've done well if you've never been charged it before on orders over $1000AUD, if commercial invoiced as such.

Fedex/UPS/DHL normally catch that every time for me, which is almost weekly.  But to a business they match company name to ABN so maybe stricter...

[Ozvino]

My parts supplier is an idiot - he can't do arithmetic very well and every order despite the contents ends up being between $750 & $900 including the freight. He also forgets to include the correct pricing on the manifest every time and always ends up emailing me the correct paperwork. He just won't learn. 

The risk is insurance but he uses DHL and they have been very reliable - touch wood never a loss.

You have his details Michel.....

[michel]

I do Dave and was in discussion on a haul of parts, though something got lost in translation. 

As above and as ive done laboriously times past, is to go through the process of researching and detailing my parts needs and then shopping around multiple suppliers to try and find all the parts needed.

Its a flaneurs pleasure in a flea market, mostly tedious on an Internet parts hunt on poor to poorer websites  

cop it sweet this time 

 

 

[Ozvino]

I do Dave and was in discussion on a haul of parts, though something got lost in translation. 

As above and as ive done laboriously times past, is to go through the process of researching and detailing my parts needs and then shopping around multiple suppliers to try and find all the parts needed.

Its a flaneurs pleasure in a flea market, mostly tedious on an Internet parts hunt on poor to poorer websites  

cop it sweet this time 

 

 

Yeah I hear you. We have been pretty lucky to go this long without a Tarif crackdown so we can't really complain - I don't mind paying tax I just wish they would spend it more wisely

The guy I connected you with in my opinion is the best supplier outside of Porsche itself - at times he gets access to new old stock, often treasure chest type items. Last year he had 6 x 928 S4 spoilers new, Porsche found them in a warehouse and passed them across to him. He has constantly had good pricing and whilst it takes time and it's not your traditional online purchase experience his honesty and dedication can't be surpassed.

Cheers

Dave

[Plugger2]

The US/AUS FTA is for US originating goods, not just goods being shipped from the US.

So that would be a no to german car parts, but a possible yet to US made aftermarket parts.

Michel you've done well if you've never been charged it before on orders over $1000AUD, if commercial invoiced as such.

Fedex/UPS/DHL normally catch that every time for me, which is almost weekly.  But to a business they match company name to ABN so maybe stricter...

That's true in theory, but in practice, I think you'll find if it's new, described as "auto parts", and being sent from the US, customs won't investigate item by item.

[symsy]

So who is the pick of shippers gang??  Recent experiences and repacking? Thanks