Srajan, read about the import troubles with your latest Chinese DAC sample. As someone never having imported hifi gear from abroad to know the ropes, how are value declarations and related border-crossing fees usually handled? Just thought I'd ask someone with obvious experience in the matter. Thanks, Jeremy
Low-balling value is the oldest trick in that book and customs are obviously hip to it. Their default response to undervalued suspicions is to demand proof of purchase aka PoP. They want to see a cc or wire-transfer transaction receipt to show them what you paid for the item. If you live in Ireland, you then pay 23% off that; plus marginal handling fees. Some web shops include all those fees in the original transaction and when such shipments show up for customs clearance, they get whisked right through. As a reviewer, my situation differs. I can't provide proof of purchase. When Irish customs challenge the value declaration the shipper made, I have to explain the short-term loaner nature of the shipment then get the sender involved since customs won't simply take my word for it. That usually does the trick. In this instance the customs inspector got it in his head that the shipment is a nearly €3K component when in fact it retails at €700. Will he admit his mistake and clear it based on the included commercial invoice? Will he dig in his heels because he believes he is being scammed? Impossible to predict. But this is peculiar to loans not outright purchases. If you purchase from a credible online reseller—say for example Audiophonics.fr which I've used a lot—you prepay VAT at checkout and that's the end of it. If you order from outside your country's trade union, proof of payment is the mechanism whereby your domestic customs establishes the amount of VAT to be levied on your shipment should they challenge the original declared value. What prompts the latter I've not been able to ascertain. Some big heavy stuff from 1st-world origins makes it through like greased lightning; some small lightweight stuff from cheap-goods countries gets treated like lepers. In short, it's a crapshoot. But again, this is specific to commercial samples and the constantly changing regulations around them. Outright purchases can be easily verified so there's really nothing to it if the vendor conforms to regulations. Srajan
