Anyone ever buy a guitar from Europe or the UK?

[beatcomber]

Not a guitar, but last year I purchased some hifi speakers from a dealer in the UK, and the cost with shipping was around $1400. A few weeks after I received them, FedEx sent me a bill for the duty, around $25.

[gitarro]

Originally Posted by palsed

I had a Lowden shipped from Europe. I didn’t pay VAT but paid about 8% import fee once it cleared customs. 8% is cheaper then my local sales tax!

Ye that is another good thing about buying from Europe- vat is not applicable to buyers outside the European Union. In fact vat is usually part of the purchase price that is advertised very often by guitar shops on their websites when they are in Europe.

[Mad Rose]

Bought a Martin SPOM-16 from the UK. Shipoed overnight & no tax was incurred...

[Earl49]

My only direct purchases from overseas have been Emerald carbon fiber guitars from Ireland. No taxes or duties. There was a story about two years ago in the CF room where a fellow was charged import duty by US Customs, but that seemed to be a bureaucratic mistake. He appealed the charge but we never heard the outcome. I recall that this occurred right at the end of the year or at the beginning of a new year, so someone might have thought that Ireland was no longer on the "no duty" list as of the New Year (2017 or 2018 to aid in your search).

[Malcolm Kindnes]

Originally Posted by elstongunn

Looking at Moloney Music. They offer shipping by something called "Courier Post" for 39 euros. Sounds too good to be true.

Ciaran Moloney is a very nice man and easy to deal with, if he offers something I'm sure it will be OK. The issue of taxes and import duty is nothing to do with him, they will be levied at your end. He or I could tell you the cost of importing into Ireland but not the other way round.

I imagine your taxes etc vary from state to state.

[Wade Hampton]

Malcolm in Ireland wrote:

Originally Posted by Malcolm Kindnes

I imagine your taxes etc vary from state to state.

No, anything in terms of tariffs or import duties would be federal. I don't think the states impose import duties - that's the responsibility of the feds.

The states in the US are only slightly more jumped up versions of the counties you have in Ireland; all matters to do with international trade come under the jurisdiction of the federal government.


whm

[Deft Tungsman]

Man, you people are lucky!! If you import a guitar to France from outside the EU, even if you buy it second-hand from a private individual, you will pay another 25% in customs duties and VAT. The only upside is that it puts a huge damper on one’s GAS.

[beatcomber]

Originally Posted by gitarro

Ye that is another good thing about buying from Europe- vat is not applicable to buyers outside the European Union. In fact vat is usually part of the purchase price that is advertised very often by guitar shops on their websites when they are in Europe.

That's right! When I purchased my British-made hifi speakers from a UK dealer (referenced upthread), the price they had listed on their website was already a very good deal vs. purchasing them in the USA. I was pleasantly surprised to see the base price drop substantially after I entered my shipping address on the order screen.

[Parlorman]

I bought a vintage guitar, (my Larson/Stetson) from Australia. It arrived in less than a week and I paid no duties. My Probett R3 was made in England. When I imported it, it sat in the customs shed at FedEx for about a month because the paperwork got separated from the guitar. That was a major PITA.

[Malcolm Kindnes]

Originally Posted by Deft Tungsman

Man, you people are lucky!! If you import a guitar to France from outside the EU, even if you buy it second-hand from a private individual, you will pay another 25% in customs duties and VAT. The only upside is that it puts a huge damper on one’s GAS.

Exactly the same in Ireland. At least in France you have good healthcare!