Buying from US

[Black-Don]

There are ways round paying import taxes but for such a large purchase it would not go unnoticed in my opinon. On small items if you have a friendly seller that knows how the game is played it can be done.
Declarations such as gift, warranty/ repairs, marked under $25 can & do work.

The problem isn't import tax on small items but the customs handling charges that parcel force apply. It's not £8 + £4 as I said before but £8 if customs decide to have a look at your item and this is regargdless of whether it's a gift or anything at all.

My ka-bar got taken into customs and I didn't have to pay either import duty or vat but had to pay the £8 handling fee because it was atken out of the parcelforce chain. Import duty isn't due if the item is under £135 but Vat is due if it's more than £15 in value and not a gift or over £40 in value if it is a gift ( I think that shipping charges are included in the calculation of worth i.e. goods and services are taken into account)

http://customs.hmrc.gov.uk/channelsPortalWebApp/channelsPortalWebApp.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=pageTravel_ShowContent&id=HMCE_CL_000014&propertyType=document

I don't know why I didn't get charged vat ? Maybe the £8 is just a standard charge until the vat charges exceed this ?

[Buanán]

Anything posted via the mail doesn't attract a handling charge.

I think it only worth it if there's a significant cost difference. 

[Black-Don]

I got a cape in from US this a.m. Goods were valued about £16 but no postage charges included. Package was marked merchandise but there were no additional charges. It seems to be if something is outwith parcelforce you have a better chance of avoiding a charge and then it's just your Donald Duck whether you do or not !

[happyhooker]

Moray-as trout an about mentioned, the duty can be almost as much as the item-there are websites that you can check how much duty you will pay depending on the type of item and its cost, however, i have used two different sites and found that i payed more than they said! They give a cost but it seems pretty hit and miss as to how much you pay! eg, my last shipment was last month, converted to £, we spent 35 in Cabelas, 25 for shipping and when it got to uk, a further 20 for 'processing' and vat-through parcelforce!
That said, i baught some gear from us ebay, about £100 last year and didnt pay a penny for vat or processing!
If, like me, you have exhausted your searches within the EU, then buying from the states can be costly!

[Highlander]

Anything posted via the mail doesn't attract a handling charge

Correct, I get everything "Posted" & despite 10 years of trying I have never incurred any extra charges.
Only time I got "stung" was when my adoring sister in Canada thought she was doing me favour
& sent me a hand made reel & put on the customs declaration that it was worth $500. I paid import duty of around £40 & about £10 to the robbers that are Parcel Force for a deivery/handling charge.
A friendly customs officer at the Liverpool clearing house told me on the QT that if she had listed is as "a gift" & put the value at $25 it would have sailed through with no extra costs. I learned my lesson that day.
It is I believe a bit of a lottery, some you win some you lose.
Tight Lines

[Fishtales]

What I can remember, it's been a while, the handling charge is for collecting the custom charge and vat that the Custom Officers apply not for handling the package. Not all packages are checked either, especially if it is busy, so if your parcels are getting caught regularly then you are just unlucky

[garryh]

here is a link to a calculator for import duty and vat,although you might have to add on royal mails £8 handling charge.
http://www.dutycalculator.com/

Garry