Has anyone imported a guitar from the USA ?

McSwaggerty

I'm considering buying a guitar from a dealer in the USA. The dealer tells me it would be shipped by USPS global and the shipping costs would be around $90

Does anyone know roughly how much Import tax & VAT I would be expected to pay on a £500 guitar ?

Teyeplayer

It's usually a couple of % for import duty plus vat, so you end up with around 23-25% of the total cost (guitar and shipping costs) once an admin fee has been added.

Teyeplayer

Should add, this can still be cost effective if the guitar is a bargain - I once got a new pro series Gretsch duo jet for £500 which came in at under 700 imported, find prices like that in the U.K.

stickyfiddle

Yup - budget 25% and you'll be fine. Bear in mind things are a bit complex if there's any rosewood involved - you'll need the dealer to sort out CITES paperwork to make sure it doesn't get seized.

McSwaggerty

Cheers Guys. Thanks for the help with this.

Now I have just got to decide if the guitar is worth it.

Thanks.

Sporky

Add the cost of the guitar and the cost of the shipping, add 20% VAT, then 4%ish duty, then £8-20 for the clearance fees depending on the courier.

bodhi

Like this?  ((guitar price + shipping costs) * 20%) + ((guitar price + shipping costs) * 4ish%)?

Sporky

No, sequentially.

((Guitar price + shipping costs) * 1.2 * 1.04) + (£8 to £20)

Or as Mr Fiddle says, add 25% to the guitar and shipping costs, then add the clearance fee on top of that. Close enough for an estimate.

chillidoggy

Yes, I imported my SG Custom from Canada. If you visit the HMRC website, it will give you the duty rates. I seem to recall VAT was on the final total of everything.

bodhi

Sporky said:

No, sequentially.

((Guitar price + shipping costs) * 1.2 * 1.04) + (£8 to £20)

Or as Mr Fiddle says, add 25% to the guitar and shipping costs, then add the clearance fee on top of that. Close enough for an estimate.

Gotcha.  Cheers.

Bridgehouse

stickyfiddle said:

Yup - budget 25% and you'll be fine. Bear in mind things are a bit complex if there's any rosewood involved - you'll need the dealer to sort out CITES paperwork to make sure it doesn't get seized.

And if it's Braz Rosewood then it's a different kettle of CITES

Philly_Q

Don't forget you don't know what exchange rate they'll apply, so none of these calculations can be exact.