Need some help, anybody buy a guitar from the UK?

[naranja]

It's been a while since i last posted here been busy with school. Anyway I want to buy a PRS Custom 22 in whale blue with filled in birds and stoptail, I guess its been discontinued because I can't find it on the internet with the specs i mentioned above or any of the music shops and guitar centers in and within a 50 mile radius of Chicago. I found one that is in the UK from a music shop for 3091 dollars my question is would I have to pay taxes, custom fees or fill out any paperwork. All the information at the customs website is confusing and the all the info I find is the reverse for importing to the UK. I remember there was a guy on the board here, who worked for customs and answered these type of questions Lou was part of the name, sorry cant remember its been 4 years.
Sorry for the long post, and thanks in advance for the help.

[venusandeve]

aren't prs american made? in any case, give your local customs a call, they'll be able to tell you in a nutshell. in any case, expect VAT and import royalties to be charged, as well as any administrative costs.

when importing, make sure you tell the seller to knock european VAT off the price, because it no longer applies.

[timboardman]

Either that or find a friendly European who is coming over to America and they can carry it with them on the plane and avoid all the charges.

[bclaire]

Customs can be hit or miss. I bought something recently and later on got a bill from FedEx for the customs duties... they'll pay it up front and bill you later. Not sure how others work.

You should not have to pay any VAT, which will be a significant savings. Ask them to not charge you for it- if they insist, tell them no sale unless they include the VAT refunds form so you can file and get the money back.

[Sooner]

aren't prs american made?

It appears they are: http://www.prsguitars.com/inside/index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
so there shouldn't be any customs tax... right?

[bclaire]

I don't know how exactly it works... does it apply to ALL goods bought outside the US or only non-American made goods from outside the US?

[baytamusic]

I don't know how exactly it works... does it apply to ALL goods bought outside the US or only non-American made goods from outside the US?

I'm not sure. I was thinking of buying a Matamp on UK eBay a few weeks ago and the guy said he'd mark it as a gift so I wouldn't have to pay any import fees, although he thought I wouldn't have to pay them anyways. It's all very confusing if you ask me.

[Le Chat Noir]

I used to import a lot of guitars, pedals etc from the US when we had a really strong pound vs the dollar, plus a couple of axes from Japan. Here's what I've learned from my experiences.

Country of manufacture is irrelevant, if you're buying a product from a seller outside of your own country/trade zone then you are meant to pay the applicable local tax that you would've paid on it if you bought it where you live - i.e. if I bought and imported a UK-made Orange amp from a dealer in the US, I'd be looking at an extra 20% VAT upon arrival in England. I think in the US it depends on what State you're in as to what your % is.

Another hidden cost some carriers slap on is a 'handling fee' when a customs charge is issued - I know quite a few do this. I bought 12 packs of strings from thwe US last year and it seemed a great deal, until I got hit for a 17.5% customs charge and 6.99GBP flat handling fee!

You can get lucky and customs won't bother sometimes, however recently this has happened less and less for me - I think our government here is desperate for the money and so they make sure they get what they are owed!

Marking as a 'gift' is a trick which they are obviously wise to and I have been hit for customs on 'gifts' before. Also beware of sellers saying they'll mark down the value - you'll want that guitar shipped insured, and if it arrives broken then the insurance won't pay out if they've deliberately incorrectly valued the item.

Finally, I'd be very surprised if you can't find a US-made guitar or amp far cheaper to begin with in the States than here in the UK.... we typically pay about twice what you'd pay for a new American-made amp or guitar!

[Sooner]

Country of manufacture is irrelevant, if you're buying a product from a seller outside of your own country/trade zone then you are meant to pay the applicable local tax that you would've paid on it if you bought it where you live - i.e. if I bought and imported a UK-made Orange amp from a dealer in the US, I'd be looking at an extra 20% VAT upon arrival in England. I think in the US it depends on what State you're in as to what your % is.

Be carefull not to confuse sales tax (US) or VAT tax (UK) with customs dutys for imported items. Here in the US, you typically don't have to pay sales tax something is shipped from another state than where you reside. As far as duty goes, I do believe that is dependent on the contry of origin.

I purchased something from an individual in the UK once. He marked it as a gift and I paid no tax or import duty. I don't think retail sellers would even consider doing that though.

[Le Chat Noir]

Be carefull not to confuse sales tax (US) or VAT tax (UK) with customs dutys for imported items. Here in the US, you typically don't have to pay sales tax something is shipped from another state than where you reside. As far as duty goes, I do believe that is dependent on the contry of origin.

It's the same here with regards to the EU, you don't pay sales/VAT tax if you import from an EU member, but you certainly do when importing from anywhere else.

Just consulted the HM Revenue & Customs website, it says we are liable for both customs duty and VAT on imported goods. It surprises me as I've been hit with customs charges on numerous occasions and they have all been exactly whatever the current base VAT rate is... i.e. 17.5% for the past few years, but now 20%. I've never paid more than that.

As far as customs duty % goes, on the HMRC site it says 'there are around 14,000 different classifications. The duty rate percentage for each may vary according to the country the goods come from. The average percentage is between 5 and 9 per cent, but it can be as low as 0 per cent or as high as 85 per cent.' It also states on a separate page that customs duty doesn't apply if the charge would total to less than 9GBP.

Perhaps that's why I've never been hit, as even on an 800GBP guitar it might not end up being over 9GBP if it's in the 5-9% range.

Import VAT is 'the same VAT rate that applies to similar goods that are sold in the UK' - so 20% on all normal goods, irrespective of country of origin.

Of course, none of this really applies to you guys in the US... would be worth reading up on your own import laws I suppose.