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I'm thinking about buying a guitar from a Japanese store and having it shipped here to the US. I know that there will be the issue of import taxes and stuff like that, but what I want to know is how and when they collect it and how they calculate it. So if anyone has done this before or knows about it, your help is appreciated.
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AFAIK there's no tax if you're shipping from Japan to US. Don't know about duties.
In Europe it goes like this:
package value+shipping cost +duty % +tax %. Then minus package value+shipping cost ofcourse and you get exactly how much more you have to pay. You can *cheat* here a bit if you can manage to convince the custums that the package is worth less than you paid. You can do that by aranging with seller to put up an ebay auction with lower price and you buy it now and you enclose the printed auction in the package etc...
Hope that helps. -
I dunno if it will help you to do that, because usually the customs also want to see the paypal records of how much you paid, and you can't edit those... at least this is how it goes where I live.Comment
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send in two instalmentsOriginally posted by Erez
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Also, don't forget that undervaluing an item will result in reduced insurance cover...Popular is not the same as good
Rare is not the same as valuable
Worth is what someone will pay, not what you want to getComment
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They write the price of the package before sending.I don't know what's the limit for America but make sure the seller tells a lower price than the real value,to the shipping company.and if there's a paper that says"this package is a gift to x from y ,and hasn't been charged with any kind of payment blabla....."
they probably won't get import taxes from you.I wish my hair-color was EDS :/Comment
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I hate to dig this up, but how does it work if I were to buy the guitar in person in Japan and bring it over myself?Comment
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being that i work in freight forwarding...
if you buy it in person, and bring over, you would still need to declare it when you enter the US. if you don't and get caught, (most airports have US Customs and Border Protection people in the transition from International Flights->General Area of airports), you COULD be charged with fraud.
If you are interested in importing into the US, fire me a PM. I could probably get you the exact amount of duty owed to Customs, provided you give me the commercial value. Heck, I could probably even arrange the flight from Japan to the States! :pComment
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I've done this three times with brand new guitars with no problems, not counting the number of times that I brought my own guitars through. Every time was through LAX and no customs agent ever even lifted an eyebrow when I was going through with my huge guitar box. To be safe though, I did remove hangtags and other things that would make the guitar look new so I could always claim that I was just taveling with my guitar.Originally posted by MetalGrasshopperComment
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I did my research, heres info for anyone interested:
Importing an Electric Guitar from Japan:
8.7% Duty on value of guitar + $25 Merchandise Processing Fee
Flying in from Japan with a guitar:
You are allowed to bring in a total of $800 dollars worth of goods duty free. Anything above that you would need to pay 10% of the remaining balance. So a JacksonStars worth $1600 would be 1600-800(duty free) = 800. 800 * 10% = $80.
PM me if you guys have any more questions.Comment
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Are you sure tht the latter is on the "balance"? In europe you have your duty free amount, but if you go over you´re paying duties on the full item price and not just what was over....Originally posted by illuminaComment
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Well, my cubicle neighbor, a licensed Customs Broker, says so :oComment
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Hmmm. I've bought 2 guitars from Japan - one was $975 and the other over $1300 - and never got any notice about having to pay any sort of Customs fees.
If they're not smart enough to tell me they're holding it til I pay the Customs, I'm not dumb enough to volunteer it :ROTF:I want to depart this world the same way I arrived; screaming and covered in someone else's blood
The most human thing we can do is comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.
My Blog: http://newcenstein.comComment
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well, to be honest, its hit and miss. (like much of the federal government).
Yes, things can come through with no problems at all. Yes, sometimes Customs will check. if thats the case, thats the road I can help you with
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