Parcel Question

Hi,

I am not sure if I should post it on here.

My family send me a box of clothing.
It's a gift, with only a few clothing.
I am not sure what else they put in there.
I had recieved snacks and clothing before and never got a notice like this.
Though today I got a parcel force letter telling me to pay import VAT and clearance fee before they can give me the package.  This is the first time I got such a thing.

Is there a way to avoid this fee?

What did your family put on the customs form when they sent it?

I asked and I think they wrote the items costing over £100.
Maybe that's why.

If next time they send me a package, what should they put on the form would be best?

They need to make sure they mark it as gift and keep the value down

If they send you clothing again, make sure they remove the tags, mark "gift" on the customs form and declare a low value for the items.

I've never paid customs on gifts like that before in the UK, only on items I've purchased online from the US. I do eBay a lot, and I always mark "gift", remove any price tags and declare a low value to avoid buyers paying any duty on the items.

Hi,

I'd just like to point out that purposely or deliberately declaring a lower value than the goods are actually worth to avoid duties and taxes is illegal.

Here's a link to read on the HMRC website, you can always give them a call to ask questions etc about exemptions and allowances.

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/customs/tax-and-duty.htm

Cheers, DtM! West London & Slough UK!

As a baseball card collector, I buy a lot from ebay and other auction sites and dealers in the US. I learned many years ago the need to keep the value of items down below a certain level in order to avoid these charges.

There's no need to lie about value at all. Just ensure that the item in question is worth a modest amount - up to about $40 is the rule of thumb that I use. If its more than that, its best to ask the sender (or advise your friends/relatives) to split the goods into multiple packages. It might cost a bit extra in postage, but worth it.