Crazy import duties

[tek]

So I just ordered some records from Amazon UK that got shipped via DHL, and I am being slapped with duties totally almost 70% !!! That is crazy. I used to order from Amazon UK all the time and never paid duty, and in the rare chance I did it was always around 30-50%. But now it is just ridiculous, and I have to return everything back to Amazon because I refuse to pay such high duties. What a pain!! Is there any way to tell Amazon UK NOT to ship via DHL? Sometimes I order and it comes via normal post and doesn't attract duty, only last 3-4 orders have all come via DHL and been stopped at customs.

 

[Kannan]

The duty part has become erratic nowadays. Those, especially as individuals who are importing stuff have to weigh in the custom duty part which will not be in your control. Assuming 35/50 percentile may not work.

I recently ordered a pair of tweeters from Madisound and was slapped 75% duty as the officer concerned refused to accept the invoice pricing with the shipping cost.
It took me several exchange of emails with screenshots of the Madisound website of the product, and further giving an undertaking that I am ordering the pair for personal use and there are no distributors in India for the brand.
Ultimately the officer charged the duty+GST on the invoice + shipping value which worked out to about 46% including some other charges and fedex handling charges.

I must thank the Fedex guys who were handling the shipment for their coordination.

 

[The Wall]

Ya off late DHL has been fleecing customers , not only are they careless about the duties being charged on a shipment , they add some gibberish charge like handling and storage, with the final charge component ballooning well beyond the product cost, when confronted , would give the standard excuse that they are standard company charges...

 

[frend2001]

Somehow I feel that DHL, FedEx, UPS they are make big buck on this. Why, they never show any duty paid govt. Receipt.

I think EMS postal shipping is way to go.

 

[tek]

DHL told me I have to pay 10% for Education tax??? What? On top of that two gst plus shipping tax. These guys are all gone mad!

 

[liverpool_for_life]

DHL told me I have to pay 10% for Education tax???

I believe the old Education cess is gone and there is now a social welfare surcharge of 10% in its place.

 

[plasmoid]

Is this also for postal shipping or only courier companies? Also I have noticed recently, customs clearance is taking over 3-4 weeks; it used to clear in 3-4 days( Royal Mail International signed for )

 

[Vivek Batra]

I have a plan to order a big value dac in 2 to 3 days. Reading this makes me nervous very nervous. I was hoping max 42 % duty. That's ridiculous.

 

[gilfredpaul]

Planning to buy my helix hec card from amazon.de, it seems now I have to hold my purchase.

 

[sandeepmohan]

I do not understand how using EMS as a shipping provider can take out the Duty component. That is a government mandated rule. Also; this is not a India specific problem.

DHL or any other logistics provider not handing a customs duty paid receipt, over charging duty, is a problem. If they can't give you this, the money you hand over to them just ends up being unaccounted.

I live in New Zealand. We do not have Amazon (India is way better when it comes to E Commerce providers). Anything I order from Amazon comes from the USA. A $150 V Moda headset lands up at almost $300 NZD after currency conversion, import duty and customs. I have to double the figures for anything and everything I order from them. Do I have a choice of not paying duty? No.

If only our Government made the whole "ease of doing business", actually easy, we would have been in a better place.

 

[keith_correa]

One should get educated about customs duties and the associated surcharge and cess applicable. No matter who the carrier is, these are applicable. These charges are rules and anything lesser is an exception and should be attributed to good luck. Factor in the worst case scenario and hope for the best.

 

[Kannan]

I think I brought in some confusion. The officer I quoted was custom's officer who held up my package and not any officer of FedEx.
Courier companies have no say in custom's matter. They just serve aa clearing agents

 

[aeroash]

One should get educated about customs duties and the associated surcharge and cess applicable. No matter who the carrier is, these are applicable. These charges are rules and anything lesser is an exception and should be attributed to good luck. Factor in the worst-case scenario and hope for the best.

I've imported and still continue to import various articles for my business, or otherwise. From my experience, knowing the rules is good for knowledge purposes only, you can't challenge the department, especially when it comes to customs. At the end of the day it is the prerogative of the customs officer to value the goods and charge duty on it as he sees fit, he is within his rights to do so.
And there is no provision to challenge this,
(Read: not worth it) you either pay the duty or reject the goods.

Since the past three years, the officers have become extra strict, mainly because of the influx of goods imported from China being heavily undervalued or marked as gifts. This is one of the reasons articles marked 'Gifts' are also taxed now. Rules say that you can import articles of Rs.5000 or below, marked as gifts without attracting duties. But the authorities have become suspicious of importers misusing this exception.

I do not understand how using EMS as a shipping provider can take out the Duty component.

The general understanding is that nobody imports articles of high value through EMS. Most of the time the goods sent via EMS pass through the department without a hitch. In the rare case that you're taxed then it'll be as per the tax rules. No extras charges. This has been my experience.

Eyes of the officers light up when they see packages from FedEx and DHL, as they know that you've paid these services through your nose to ship something expensive, or of value.

I prefer the EMS route for all my imports, if available, not had a single unpleasant incident in 10 years. The only issue is the time it takes. The fastest I've received an article is three weeks, the slowest has been three months.

If your package is held up at the customs when you send via EMS don't even bother calling them. They'll see that it isn't something of great value and eventually send it across to your local post office, with duties to be paid, if any. They HAVE to send the goods to your post office, they cannot withhold the goods, unless the goods are illegal. The most my parcels have been withheld is 45 days.
Rejection of paying duties or refusing the parcel can only be done when the postman brings it to you, not before that, assuming you haven't contacted the Customs Dept.
Hence my suggestion is to never get in touch with them. They'll harass you and charge you exorbitant duties if you do!

Hope this helps. Cheers!

 

[keith_correa]

No! They cannot charge duty as he/she feels fit. There are duty charges laid down based on HSN codes. They may challenge the incorrectly declared HSN classification of the goods - *that* is their prerogative. I have challenged a case like this for goods that I imported for my business and came out tops. And no, it was not difficult at all. All it took was a day.
Valuation is a completely different matter altogether.

Also, there was an article in the newspapers last month or a couple of months ago reporting that the postal authorities were instructed to be extra vigilant and aa a result, strict about levying duties on articles that were brought under the "gift" route from AliExpress etc since this was misused heavily.

 

[Kannan]

And there is no provision to challenge this,
(Read: not worth it) you either pay the duty or reject the goods.

Not so. Not about the provision, but the officer's do give an opportunity for you to place your point. If you can convince them then they are also sometimes accomodative.
The usual contention is about the invoice pricing.
Officers are shrewd enough to check online for prices.

Last August, a friend had ordered a DAC off ebay at a special pricing as it was sold a demo piece, but the custom officer's still charged duty based on the pricing of the day which was much higher.

 

[aeroash]

No! They cannot charge duty as he/she feels fit. There are duty charges laid down based on HSN codes.

I'm assuming you imported these goods via an IEC for your business, in this case, I agree. But when it comes to individuals, it's a lost cause. My friend had imported an expensive bike and had to pay through his nose as duties. They included charges and surcharges that was a page long. The options he had were, to take this up legally, pay the duties, or reject the goods.

Not so. Not about the provision,

Incorrect use of word. I have put what I meant in parenthesis.

 

[Vivek Batra]

Hi Guys

Since this post is quite active, I would like to pick the minds of you guys, I am planning to order a DAC from Australia. I do not have any prior experience in importing anything. I was given a quote of A$300 as freight. Could any one please guide me how to use EMS for shipment? I was advised against using AUS POST.

In case of EMS who does the custom clearance? I need to go the cargo terminal ? Paperwork etc?

I'll be grateful if someone could clear the doubts.

Thanks a lot.

 

[aeroash]

No! They cannot charge duty as he/she feels fit. There are duty charges laid down based on HSN codes.

Let me clarify, I think I caused an unnecessary misunderstanding. I meant what I said for individuals only. For business purposes, importing is much easier and streamlined and HSN is applied correctly. When it comes to individuals importing, apart from the HSN, they classify the goods as for 'Entertainment' or 'Sport' and this classification attracts more duties.

 

[Kannan]

EMS is linked to India Post. So I guess India Post will handle the customs part after the shipment lands in India.
Normally you will be asked to pay duty at the time of the delivery at your doorsteps.

 

[Vivek Batra]

EMS is linked to India Post. So I guess India Post will handle the customs part after the shipment lands in India.
Normally you will be asked to pay duty at the time of the delivery at your doorsteps.

Who should pick the product from the origin? Origin post office or FedEx/DHL? How India Post would come in to play?