Philatelic Items Free Of US Customs Duty

Hello all,

Just wanted to run this by the forum and see if others had a different experience.

I am buying some FDCs from a German seller and was looking to find out if there are any US customs duties imposed on them. Research led me to the International Trade Commission Harmonized Tariff Schedule https://hts.usitc.gov. It appears that both stamps and FDCs are free of import customs duties. Has that been your experience buying from overseas? I am quoting the sections below related to philatelic items.

4907.00.00 Unused postage, revenue or similar stamps of current or new issue in the country in which they have, or will have, a recognized face value; stamp-impressed paper; banknotes; check forms; stock, share or bond certificates and similar documents of title ----- Free

9704.00.00 Postage or revenue stamps, stamp-postmarks, first-day covers, postal stationery (stamped paper) and the like, used or unused, other than those of heading 4907 ----- Free

I have never paid duties on anything philatelic from overseas and I am talking cartons of goods.

I have never paid duties on anything philatelic. Though admittedly I don't make a lot of expensive purchases internationally....

There is no duty for stamps coming into the U.S.

Other countries like the UK do have a VAT that is charged when they enter the country.

So the policy is not universal.

Thank you for weighing in, glad to know your experience confirms this. My only experience with this was a package of unused stamps I received from Europe that was opened and re-taped by CBP a while back and I was not asked to pay anything.

Unfortunately, new Universal Postal Union regulations adapted at the start of the year prohibit sending items of value by USPS First Class Mail International. Nonconforming items, if found, may just vanish. It is too soon to be sure how frequently First Class mail is checked. New foreign buyers with no previous purchases will pay $14 postage and have a customs form attached to the package. Buyers in some countries will have to pay outrageous ebay Global Shipping fees, if ebay ever allows selective GSP.

The UK applies VAT to non-EU commercial items valued at over £15, and gifts valued at over £39, although some goods are zero-rated for VAT.

My experience of purchasing things from the USA and Canada is that even if they are liable for Value added tax or duty it isn't usually collected by the mailman (The duty is paid to the mailman) usually no one has assessed the package and even if they have the mailman will bother collecting about 1 in 3 times. once the postman knocked on the door I had the cash ready in my hand and he just pushed the parcel into my hand said "i'm in a hurry" and ran back down my drive. A frind reckons they collect duty more often in his area.

I just paid duty on a Palo album shipped from Chicago, so not as lucky here in Canada...

I have no problem paying tax for items sent to me in Canada,

What I do have a very serious problem with is Europeans listing stuff VAT included but when it is sold to a non VAT country, they do not delete that from the purchase and 17% is a lot. ebay sellers do a lot of this creativity and put that into their pocket.

Dutchman1948: most ebay sellers in Europe aren't VAT registered, even if they are ebay Business Sellers. There's no VAT to pay by private sellers or business sellers with annual sales under the VAT registration thresholds. And for the minority who are VAT registered, philatelic products have various VAT schemes: Margin Scheme for Second Hand Goods (VAT only due on the net profit for each item), Global Accounting (which most stamp dealers use) and charging VAT separately on each invoice. Unfortunately, ebay's Seller Hubs don't automatically allow for these variations. If you buy something from a VAT-registered ebay business seller and their details show that they show VAT separately on invoices, you can request a manually adjusted invoice for the net price without VAT. Most dealers don't use this scheme and most of them won't want to issue the manual invoice unless the different in VAT is significant. Hope that helps, Steve Taylor Surbiton, England www.stephentaylor.co.uk

cfrphoto,

So are you saying First Class Mail International can be opened and "censored" in this way? And would that be here, there, or both?

I had experience similar to that of bobeid about two months ago when I received a purchase coming from Canada to the US by first class mail which had been opened and then taped back together by Customs. No duty was requested of me, but the envelope was clearly opened.

The seller told me this happens - she figures Customs is looking for prescription drugs or something not duty-free. The irritant for her is the risk that when they cavalierly slice the end of the envelope open, it might well slice the philatelic goods. In this case the cut was made a good 1/2 inch in from the end of the envelope and cut through the plastic wrapper and glassine envelope within about 1/4 inch of the block I'd bought.

I have not had experience with Customs opening first class mail from Europe however. Perhaps two dozen letters from all over in the last year - none opened.

jleb1979,

Did this envelope have a customs declaration form attached?

The US de minimis threshold is currently $800. While customs may open a First Class letter, would they also enforce the UPU restriction against sending merchandise in first class mail? From the United States, merchandise is not allowed in a First Class International letter. Apparently, in the UK, merchandise up to £20 is allowed. Perhaps someone from the UK could confirm this.

Modern_who -- I do not have a firm memory of it. It's been two, maybe three months and I no longer have the envelope, but it's possible there was a form on the envelope.
I assume you suggest that the presence of the form on the first class letter provoked the slashing, so to speak....