When you get International orders?

[Trace Rinaldi]

I like many makers have sent knives all over the world, and most times customers want me to mark the packages as being "Gifts". I know several Countries tack on HEAVY taxes to the buyer, but can you get into any trouble for repeatedly doing this? Any insight would be greatly appreciated..

Take Care
Trace Rinaldi
http://www.thrblades.com

 

[george tichbourne]

The responsibility rests on the foreign national importing the goods. After all they are in the country being defrauded and are available for arrest, the exporter isn't.

In Canada a proceedure is in place to screen material coming from suspicious sources including gifts (anything over 38 grams is allowed to be opened). Regardless of the customs documents the contents may be reassessed or reclassified at the customs officer's discretion.

If it really is a gift, gift wrap, birthday card with personal message etc there should be no problem. Put a copy of the invoice in the parcel and suspicious customs agents will likely reclassify the item.

Parcels coming into Canada from the US do not attract duty but customs forms preparation charges apply on courrier shipments and some mail shipments. The courrier customs charges can reach $40 to make out a form saying the because of free trade no duties are due.

Don't forget to label the product with country of origin, I go to the local Business Depot and purchase Made In Canada stickers for all my international shipments.

------------------
george
www.tichbourneknives.com
sales@tichbourneknives.com

 

[Roger Gregory]

I am in one of those countries which charges ludicrously high taxes on fine knives from Canada and the USA.

First of all, Her Majesty's Customs & Excise take the price of the knife, add the shipping cost to it, apply 9% (or it may be 8.5%) Duty to that, then 17.5% Tax to the total. That is painful.

I have never asked a maker to tell lies on the package and nor would I. Much as it pains me to pay the Excise man I just regard it as one of the penalties of international trade. If a knife has been honestly labelled as to price and type of goods and it slips through, lucky me. If not, I've already calculated the painful part ahead of its arrival.

Of course it's always something for $100 that gets through untouched and something for $300 that doesn't....

Roger