The Energon Pub

megatran wrote:

Emerje wrote:

megatran wrote:

Emerje wrote:How do you all in other countries handle your duties?

Emerje

How does Australia handle things currently? Australia Post has (temporarily) stopped shipments above US$100 to the US. Haha.

No, I mean when you import something from outside the country, do you pay a lump sum or percentage duty?

Emerje

We have a 10% GST (goods & service tax) on goods & services in Oz. The same applies to imports.

Some overseas retailers try to pull a shifty & add the 10% GST to shipping cost too!

That sure sounds nice. I'd much rather pay and extra $2.50 on a $25 figure from Japan than $80. It isn't really fair that companies pay 15% while individuals (in this instance) pay 300%.

Emerje

Emerje wrote:

megatran wrote:

Emerje wrote:

megatran wrote:

Emerje wrote:How do you all in other countries handle your duties?

Emerje

How does Australia handle things currently? Australia Post has (temporarily) stopped shipments above US$100 to the US. Haha.

No, I mean when you import something from outside the country, do you pay a lump sum or percentage duty?

Emerje

We have a 10% GST (goods & service tax) on goods & services in Oz. The same applies to imports.

Some overseas retailers try to pull a shifty & add the 10% GST to shipping cost too!

That sure sounds nice. I'd much rather pay and extra $2.50 on a $25 figure from Japan than $80. It isn't really fair that companies pay 15% while individuals (in this instance) pay 300%.

Emerje

Well, that doesn't make a whole lot of sense charging fixed $80 no matter the value of the import goods.

megatran wrote:

Emerje wrote:

megatran wrote:

Emerje wrote:

megatran wrote:

Emerje wrote:How do you all in other countries handle your duties?

Emerje

How does Australia handle things currently? Australia Post has (temporarily) stopped shipments above US$100 to the US. Haha.

No, I mean when you import something from outside the country, do you pay a lump sum or percentage duty?

Emerje

We have a 10% GST (goods & service tax) on goods & services in Oz. The same applies to imports.

Some overseas retailers try to pull a shifty & add the 10% GST to shipping cost too!

That sure sounds nice. I'd much rather pay and extra $2.50 on a $25 figure from Japan than $80. It isn't really fair that companies pay 15% while individuals (in this instance) pay 300%.

Emerje

Well, that doesn't make a whole lot of sense charging fixed $80 no matter the value of the import goods.

It's a deterrent to force us to buy from US stores instead of overseas. And if US stores don't sell something that's not their problem, it's ours. And it's not just Transformers fans or anime figure fans that are taking it hard, there's a whole set of model builders and precision crafters that get their tools and materials from Japan that are taking a hit here.

And yet, for some things it's still cheaper to pay the extra $80 than to pay the domestic price, like ML Ultra Magnus who I'll be shipping with other stuff. Buying in bulk is going to be more important than ever, no more buying from Amazon Japan and their refusal to bundle pre-orders.

Emerje