Import Camera Stuff

Stevedevil

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I have just read an article with regards to the " grey imports " that we currently see on certain web sites.

The article states that if you import / buy an overseas ( Japan etc ) Camera / Lens etc, then when you try to export it yourself, by getting on a Plane / Boat etc for a holiday, when you return the item will be due TAX by Customs & Excise as they can use the last TWO digits of serial number to show its been imported, and if you dont produce the relevant paperwork to the Customs, they will impound all your equipment, not just the piece in question.

Now I know that people out there must buy from these sources as they are Cheaper.

Has anyone any views on this

Steve
 
I've carried lots of camera equipment across lots of borders and have never had it inspected for anything having to do with customs/tax etc.
 
I never herd about that but I do know there is no US Warranty on it so any problems would have to be delt thru the place you got it from. Or where it was made which could be 1/2 way around the world
 
They will not impound it there and then I don't think..... If you do import from holiday just don't carry the new box etc. and post yourself the manual/warranty card.

I have imported most of my gear and have all the boxes and warranty cards at home. I can easily go home and pick up the paperwork and pass on anything they need.

I paid import duty and VAT on my camera when it arrived from Canada. Now I get most of my gear from a guy called Ian Kerr (kerso). He lives in the states and imports to his sister in the UK. he offeres very (i mean VERY) competitve prices in the UK.

Almost all my gear is bought from Ian.

Check this thread......

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=64418&highlight=kerso

40 pages of superb service!
 
Since you are in the UK, you are confusing things there with things here. The gray market business relates to Nikon USA which will not service Nikon products imported into the U.S. by anyone other than themselves. So gray market Nikon products have to be sent to another country for service.

Nikon in the UK doesn't behave that way - or at least they didn't a few years ago when I looked into it. They will service any Nikon requipment regardless of who imported it. I once sent a US "gray market" camera to the UK for service. I sent another one once to Japan. Finally, I stopped buying grey market Nikon equipment when I got membership in NPS. Then I could get service in a couple of days from Nikon USA. That was a better arrangment.

All Nikons are imported everywhere except, of course, in Japan or another country of origin. That has nothing to do with anything relative to customs. It just has a big effect on service if you live in the U.S.
 
one of my canons could be a grey import (shows some symptoms: like a cheaply photocopied German manual) ... but I do not care, since it works fine and Canon Germany cares for it as if it was their own child :)
 
My original quote was that when you are buying equipment from overseas where the ad clearly states NO TAX, then when we receive it into UK then we have to pay DUTY on the item as it does not fall within the Duty Free area

Therefore when you receive this equipment if you do not pay the duty then any receipt you may have will not show UK DUTY PAID stamped on it, therefore when you leave / return to the country they can now tell by the serial number if this lense has been sold NO TAX, so then you will need to either plead on your knees to the Customs, or provide a receipt for them to calculate any tax due, if you can not do this they will impound all of your equipment.

Steve
 
My original quote was that when you are buying equipment from overseas where the ad clearly states NO TAX, then when we receive it into UK then we have to pay DUTY on the item as it does not fall within the Duty Free area

true

Therefore when you receive this equipment if you do not pay the duty then any receipt you may have will not show UK DUTY PAID stamped on it,

true

therefore when you leave / return to the country they can now tell by the serial number if this lense has been sold NO TAX, so then you will need to either plead on your knees to the Customs, or provide a receipt for them to calculate any tax due, if you can not do this they will impound all of your equipment.

partially true ... but only if it is un-used equipment still in the box.

If not, then you could have bought it second hand in the UK without any receipt. They cannot tell the difference here.

This is my understanding of it.
I am not a lawyer or customs officer though. So I might be wrong.
 
digital cameras brought into the UK are currently not subject to import duty. VAT at the standard rate is payable though.

Most of my gear was bought in the US. B&H to be specific. I then had it shipped to a friend in San Francisco i was meeting up with and therefore avoided NY state tax. With the pound being strong and no sales tax i saved around £1200 on what i was buying.

As someone suggested, i sent all the packaging home to myself and only had the camera. When in customs i figured that an individual with one camera and a couple of lenses wasn't a prime target for duty. i sailed through with no problems.
 
I should have said - Duty and VAT are 2 different things.
Certain items are liable for both duty and VAT to be paid.
Others only require VAT to be paid or duty.

a few items do not require any duty or VAT but they're few and far between.

When paying the duty AND VAT it can sometimes make items more expensive abroad than buying in the UK.
 
When paying the duty AND VAT it can sometimes make items more expensive abroad than buying in the UK.


this holds not only for the UK.

recently I sold a second-hand film scanner via Ebay to a Swiss. He then had to pay duty and vat on it!! made it more expensive for the poor fellow than buying a new one in his country ....
 
I think the message to New Photographers is Please Buy From Reputable Suppliers, as we are as spending Thousands on camera gear and it may cost a bit more, but at least you wont get hit with a " Stealth Tax " somewhere down the line.

I Think its a MUST KNOW market out there, and if some buyers look at this forum then the extra few £ or $ will sure be worth it!!!
 

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