Do I have to pay customs VAT when sending personal belongings to UK via Air Mail?

[sellingmystuff]

Hi,

Do I need to pay customs VAT, excise or duty when I send personal belongings back to the UK? I've had a good look on the HMRC website and I can't find a definitive answer.

I'll be sending used books that I've owned for more than 12 months, so I'd hope that I don't have to pay anything, but it seems to be a minefield.

What should I write on the customs forms? I'd prefer not to lie and write 'gift', but is there the option to write 'personal belongings'? Some of my books would indvidually be worth up to £100, so not sure if I'd even benefit from describing them as gifts.

Also, does anyone have any recommendations regarding using FedEx, UPS, TNT, DHL? I intend to use some of the flat rate 25kg boxes, so any feedback on those would be gratefully received. FedEx seems to be the cheapest, but they also seem to have a lot of negative press. Any recent experiences?

As always, thanks very much for any advice. I really appreciate it.

[longballlarry]

I wanted to send a about 70kg box, around 150cm squared, back to the UK, with some personal items when we relocate shortly back home. I had various quotes, but air freight was around 200,000 baht with companies such as DHL, and others that were suggested to me on this site. I'm sure someone will now tell you a better company, but to tell the truth it was all a bit of a hassle and too expensive.

In the end we broke the stuff down into 4 x 18kg packages and paid just over 30,000bt for the lot ( about 7500bt per box) with EMS at the post office. This was the faster of the freight services they provide, and you can track the packages online. 3 boxes arrived at my dads house in the UK after 5 days. The other box arrived after 9days.

http://emsplanet.com/thai_mail_tracking

[sellingmystuff]

Thanks, I'm in a similar situation and was looking at sending 275kgs via Sea Freight, but I've been having such a nightmare with that I'm probably just going to send the most important stuff, about 75kgs worth via Air.

Did you have to pay customs, VAT, etc. when your stuff arrived in the UK? Can you remember what you wrote on the customs form?

Cheers!

[longballlarry]

No, no customs or fees ( unless it was included in the price paid at the post office ) . I think we just wrote 'personal items on the ticket they attach to each box at the PO' . All pretty straightforward really. One box arrived 4 days later than the others so maybe that was checked at some point, but nothing contentious in any of the boxes, just irreplaceable personal stuff we didn't want to sell, so we had no trouble.

[puipuitom]

When you cannot send it as carton boxes via the post office as longballlarry describes, and no direct hurry, try a freight forwarder, who send less container loads (LCL) by seafreight around. Might last 6-10 weeks, but a LOT cheaper as courrier service or any other air transport.

You have to make a pro forma invoice, mentioning: private stuff, long time in own possession, with a present value. Of course the UK and any other will look different to a model March 2014 4k TV as to several years old furniture.

[sellingmystuff]

Thanks, puipuitom, I've been trying to arrange LCL shipping, but it's been a nightmare. Companies seem either unable or unwilling to give me firm prices, so it's been near impossible to get anywhere with that.

I was advised to get quotes for FOB shipping as the costs are clear from the beginning, but the only firm price (complete for both Thai and UK door to door delivery) I've been able to get was over 30,000 baht. The actual freight and delivery is only about a third of that, the rest is handling fees, customs clearance, various documentation, etc., etc.

It doesn't seem very good value for the small amount I had required (1 cubic metre), though I'd be more than happy if someone could provide a shiiping company who could do it for less than that price.

If I could LCL for 20,000 I'd jump on it, but so far haven't been able to, hence I'm leaning more to sending a smaller amount via Air now...

[iamariva1957]

I have to say that although I know all too well that personal items like books can mean much more to a person than they really should, sending them back home so that you can have them with you sounds a bit silly. Their weight and the cost of sending them... well you can get new copies online (ebooks) for far less. A Kindle from Amazon costs around $200 and it will store far more than just the titles you want to have and the books range in price from $10 to $30 depending.

As for your question regarding UK Customs...no you will not have to pay VAT or Custom's duty. For, simply put, what you are sending are used items that have been in your possession for your own use and so not to be resold. They are 'used' and therefore have No Commercial Value (NCV). This by the way is the way you should mark any custom's slip when sending them. If the UK folks don't see it that way... complain bitterly and appeal (I did that a few years ago and it worked a treat... went there and opened the box and showed them the 'used clothes' that I had sent back to myself. It was a pain to do... but well worth the smile I had on my face I got from showing 'them' that they were being dumb!).

But be aware that sending anything via EMT from Thailand is not cheap. Sending by Fed Ex or DHL will be even more though. Using another shipping company will not save you much either. That is unless you have enough to fill a small container which will give you a better price break down vs weight. But that is a hassle and not recommended unless you have to (due to the Custom's requirements, export costs, shipping costs, delivery issues, etc).

I know that leaving things behind is never easy as some things have emotional attachments. But it is really easy to replace them at the other end for a better cost and saves you the headache of arranging shipping and the hoping that they will actually arrive. Frankly The Royal Mail (UK) has a history of 'misplacing things' as it is.

So give the books to a library or donate them to a school. They will serve a far better purpose that way then the cost you will have to incur sending them to yourself.

[lucifer666]

I have sent many packages to the UK ( small items, E.G= T-Shirts, Records ( my brother collects vynil ) Sim cards, silk ties. I have always marked them as a gift. I have only ever had one go missing.