eBay charging for import charges when voucher was supposed to make it under $1000 AUD

[negan]

Ok, originally the item was $925 USD, the seller made a counter-offer to me of $825 USD, I accepted.

I then used a 10% off discount code to make it $742.5 which when converted to AUD currency should be approx $935.82 + shipping.

When I went to checkout, surprise surprise, there were import charged.

The only reason I bought this item was so that with the 10% off voucher would make it below $1000 AUD so there would be no import charged.

After multipled minutes on the phone to non-Australian eBay customer service agents, they are claiming that the voucher is off the total price. They do not understand no matter how many times I explained or spoke slowly that the voucher should have been taken off from the item price which would then be low enough to have no import charges.

Some other forums have said that shipping costs attributes to import charges too, but I have bought other items over $1000 AUD from eBay internationally and never paid import charges with charges calculated from shipping and have had word from customs as well that it is only the value of the item taken into account, not shipping costs.

Someone tell me if i'm wrong here.

Also tell me if i'm right.

still waiting for eBay to tell me the final conclusion though still pretty sure they don't actually understand the problem i'm telling them.

[padi*0409]

If it is coming through the Global Shipping Program then all they see is the original price you paid not the price less discount (that is paid back to you by eBay and the seller will receive the full amount), so yes it looks to me as though you will have to pay the import charges.

[kopenhagen5]

Import charges are payable on item plus shipping.

If the combined total is over 1000 then import duties are payable.

[lyndal1838]

Can you post the item number here please?

If the item is coming via the GSP it may be that you are not paying import charges, just the very high shipping costs.

Is there a separate enrty on the invoice saying Customs charges?

[brerrabbit585]

A voucher only means that ebay pays part of the price and you pay the rest. The total price or value of the item is still exactly the same as it would be if you didn't use a voucher, it's just that you don't pay for all of it, someone else does (ebay). So yes, the value (price) is still over $1,000.

[brerrabbit585]

The seller gets the original price and they have no way of knowing whether you paid for all of it or only part of it. All they know is that they received the full price and that's what they put on the customs declaration, so when it hits customs you'll have to pay the fees.

It's been a few years (about 13) since I first looked into customs duty and the deal was that you paid customs duty on the item value but then you paid GST as well and it was on the item value + postage.

[thecradlemob]

Yes we are being scammed. This is NOT GST. I am well aware of the rules and details of that. The charge is listed down the page below postal information so is easy to miss. It hasn’t been charged for items I’ve bought from the UK or China. One item in the USA I looked at was new. The other was a non working secondhand watch. Both items are, as examples only:

Ebay item number ‪131174222680‬. New.

EBay item number ‪183043783724‬. Not new.

I asked both sellers about this charge and their only explanation was that they use the eBay global shipping program. The ‘import charges’ demanded are higher than the GST’s 10%, which also applies. I’ve asked eBay and got nowhere. I have the online chat transcript from that waste of time. They specifically blamed and referred me to Austrade: eBay actually sent me a (irrelevant) link to use. Austrade have in turn said it’s nothing to do with them and that I must get onto Home Affairs, formerly known as Border Force or Customs. Home Affairs website info says that postal imports under $1,000 are NOT SUBJECT TO ANY IMPORT TAX/DUTY etc apart from our newly added GST. As an example, item ‪183043783724‬ was (under yesterday’s exchange rate) a total of $77.35 before GST was added but was quoted as requiring an ‘import charge’ of $11.44. As I am sick to death of being gouged I am a tad irritated.
I am currently nagging Home Affairs AKA Border Force AKA Customs and suggest every person possible does the same.

[k1ooo-slr-sales]

@thecradlemountainmob

on the USA Global Shipping items, the seller is sending them to a USA address in Erlanger KY.  This means that eBay are not collecting the GST, Pitney Bowes are.  Pitney Bowes, being a logistics company, have procedures in place for the forwarding of international parcels.  For collecting the GST and preparing the paperwork they charge the buyer, who is the one contracting PB to forward their parcel.  They also include have an additional charge that is itemised as an Import Charge.

You will probably have more luck getting answers through contacting PB than anyone here in Australia, if you can work out how to contact them!

If you can organise your own forwarding provider then you may have more chance of paying less than what PB charges, but you may also reduce/lose your buyer protections as eBay have a commercial arrangement with PB that protects buyer protections for those who use GSP/PB.

[lyndal1838]

If the item is coming by Global Shipping the GST is collected by Pitney Bowes and they add a hefty charge for collecting it.

It is all lumped together as Import Charges.

I think it is a rort.....Australian businesses are not allowed to charge for collection the GST but PB seems to be exempt just because they are American.  Pitney Bowes already charge an arm and a leg to run the Global Shipping.....the collection of GST should be included in that.

[digital*ghost]

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@lyndal1838 wrote:

I think it is a rort.....Australian businesses are not allowed to charge for collection the GST but PB seems to be exempt just because they are American.  Pitney Bowes already charge an arm and a leg to run the Global Shipping.....the collection of GST should be included in that.

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I haven't done the math, but this might explain why PB are charging an extra amount, since they would technically be classed as a redeliverer:

"Special rules for re-deliverers calculating GST
If you are a re-deliverer, the GST you charge will be:

10% of the amount paid by the customer for the goods, plus
1/11th of the amount the customer pays for your services to get the goods to Australia. As a re-deliverer, GST applies to all of your services, including international transport services and insurance for the transport of the goods."

https://www.ato.gov.au/business/international-tax-for-business/gst-on-low-value-imported-goods/who-c...