What happens with packages worth say €100 from UK after the car crash that is Brexit?

WizardDr

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Does anybody have a summary of this?

I think this is going to drive us insane.

BB - What is your view
 
A movie obsessed colleague of mine used to regularly get items delivered from the USA to our workplace.
One day a two foot tall statue of Rambo arrived. In order to sign for it, he had to pay something like €55 tax there and then. And he did.

Something similar I’d imagine if you were to order a two foot tall statue of BoJo, post Brexit, I’d imagine.
 
Last year, as an experiment, I ordered something from Iceland (the country, not the shop!) as a lesson to myself in what the reality of the UK leaving the Customs Union would mean. The purchase, delivery, etc cost me €90, then when it landed in Ireland, it was another €47 before I could receive the package...
 
Many thanks but do you think Joe and Joan Public-Screwed- Taxpayers know?

Where is Charles Weston when we need him again?
 
what value package can you import before you have to pay above taxes etc? (also is it just value of item in package or total value uk shipping costs as well )
 
Unless they're under a bush, they should... We've been hearing so much about Brexit and the duties/taxes an exit by Britain from the EU will being.

As dereko says... source from the EU. I will when the time comes.

I wonder in practice how easy it will be, the UK is physically very close to us, they speak the same language, have similar tastes/buying habits, use the same plugs etc... despite the size of the EU market, I expect it won't be as easy to source from there as we'd like. On the other side of the coin, it's a great opportunity for indigenous firms to step up.
 
Many thanks I think what is being said is that there will be VAT. It is the fixed charge that is disproportionate.

I think that with all the automation that Revenue have done that they could apply the VAT electronically to your PPS balancing and this would reduce the cost.

W
 
Source from the EU when the time comes is a good shout.
I am looking forward to the breaking of the cosy agency arrangements that meant that for some goods EU suppliers could not engage with you and directed you to the UK agent.
J
 
Many thanks I think what is being said is that there will be VAT. It is the fixed charge that is disproportionate.

I think that with all the automation that Revenue have done that they could apply the VAT electronically to your PPS balancing and this would reduce the cost.

W

Great in theory but completely impractical / unfeasible to implement in the real world.

Things that immediately jump to mind:
1. uproar from civil liberties brigade, with accusations of Big Brother wanting to keep tabs on what everyone is doing / buying;

2. a large number of people don't pay any tax and the collection process would therefore become very difficult and expensive for the State;

3. you can be guaranteed people would shout identity theft and deny having received whatever items the liability attached to (just the act of them saying it, and being entitled to a fair due process around that assertion would render the whole process very expensive and inefficient).

VAT is generally accounted for at trader level, rather than the state trying to chase millions of people for small sums, for good reason.
 
Great in theory but completely impractical / unfeasible to implement in the real world.

Things that immediately jump to mind:
1. uproar from civil liberties brigade, with accusations of Big Brother wanting to keep tabs on what everyone is doing / buying;

2. a large number of people don't pay any tax and the collection process would therefore become very difficult and expensive for the State;

3. you can be guaranteed people would shout identity theft and deny having received whatever items the liability attached to (just the act of them saying it, and being entitled to a fair due process around that assertion would render the whole process very expensive and inefficient).

VAT is generally accounted for at trader level, rather than the state trying to chase millions of people for small sums, for good reason.
With regret the intrusion of big brother will be a reality as Revenue have dozens of people trained up.
They will be applying VAT and handing over collection to a 3rdParty where it is Cash-On-Delivery so they have outsourced the service.

The use of the PPS via the balancing statement is a most practical approach though Revenue despite having advanced systems have avoided for example combining LPT and Income Tax - and avoided the tie up at great cost.

The LPT is a massive collection system and lo and behold is supposed to have every address in the country and you dismiss the suggestion that this would not be a simple process - with the address and Post-Code it could be incentivised such that having a postcode as part of the delivery allows the cost to be charged to your LPT and not have one the manual off the wall system costing extra.
 
The LPT is a massive collection system and lo and behold is supposed to have every address in the country and you dismiss the suggestion that this would not be a simple process - with the address and Post-Code it could be incentivised such that having a postcode as part of the delivery allows the cost to be charged to your LPT and not have one the manual off the wall system costing extra.

Not everyone owns property though, in fact the majority of the population doesn't. If an adult living with their parents imports a load of stuff and says nothing to their parents, mom & pop get lumped with a big bill, is that what you're saying? And you don't see any legal issues there?
 
I am looking forward to the breaking of the cosy agency arrangements that meant that for some goods EU suppliers could not engage with you and directed you to the UK agent.

That can be annoying alright, but I doubt it will change in all cases regardless of what the trade agreements are. Many of the UK companies will have legally binding agreements in guaranteeing them as the sole agents for UK and Ireland. Unless there are exit clauses that can be exercised or the red tape involved means the UK company want to give up the Irish market, we could be in for even more pain.
 
What role do you think they should be playing here?
They have chosen to issue guidance to consumers. It is poor, in that it is vague, too general and does not spell out the practical effects for consumers.
 
They have chosen to issue guidance to consumers. It is poor, in that it is vague, too general and does not spell out the practical effects for consumers.

So what is it missing? What effects are not spelled out? Just focusing on the taxes section, they state:

When you buy from a business outside the EU, you pay Value Added Tax (VAT) if the value of the items plus shipping is €22 or more. VAT must be paid on imported items at the same rate that applies in Ireland for similar goods.

You also legally have to pay import charges such as customs or excise duties on items you buy from outside the EU which are valued at €150 or more. Before ordering from outside the EU, find out what VAT and import charges you may have to pay.

What happens to taxes and charges I’ve paid if I return the item?
If you buy from outside the EU and you return the item, you may be able to claim a refund of Customs Duty and Value Added Tax (VAT). [broken link removed] provides information on how to do this.
 
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