Retention of a purchase by customs
Summary: The discussion centers on a problem related to customs holding up a purchase. idafe60 starts the topic without providing any additional details, and clonixbcn responds, but does not add any specific information to the matter either.
I bought an item for less than €150 in the United Kingdom and I’ve just received a registered notice from Correos Customs saying that they have the purchase held and that I have 5 days to send them proof of purchase or invoice and proof of payment.
On the other hand, they tell me that there are platforms (I think eBay will be one of them) where VAT is settled at source and AETA is informed beforehand, which will make the process easier.
Please, can you tell me what I should do? How am I supposed to proceed?
Thank you very much.
clonixbcn
·5 months agoHi. I’m in a similar situation. The theory is that EBay is enrolled in the IOSS system, for products costing less than €150, so when you pay for the purchase, EBay charges the cost of the product plus VAT and issues an invoice that you have available. Then the carrier does their job and they will deliver your package to the post office or by another means WITH NO ADDITIONAL CHARGE, neither VAT nor customs handling. In practice this system sometimes fails, and when the package arrives at customs, customs has no notification of the VAT having been paid in advance, so an agent (Correos generally) steps in and will carry out the corresponding declaration and VAT payment process. Then when you go to collect your package, you’ll find that you have two charges to pay, the VAT and the postal handling fee (approx. €7) And yes, you will have paid VAT twice. I’m not completely clear on it, but most of the time, the one responsible for the mess is EBay, and you’ll have to claim from them the VAT you paid a second time and the customs handling cost. Many times EBay refunds that claimed VAT after you provide them with the invoice that Correos will give you.
Best regards.