The Australian Government is going to impose the GST 10% on all over seas transactions

[marakorpa]

The Australian Government is going to impose the GST at 10% on all overseas trading in Ebay.  This looks like we will soon have a 15%GST before the next elections.

It also means that Australian buyers will not only be paying the exhorbinate postage costs that come out of the US and the UK but as these are services we will also be paying 10% more to cover GST.

A simple example is thus: An item selling at $20au with the usual UK postage at around $35.00au will now cost another 55 cents.  A lot of us are bypassing UK and US items now, with the next impost Ebay is going to struggle holding on to the market. IMO.

[lyndal1838]

The 10% GST is the least of our worries.   The problem is going to be how much it is going to cost to collect the GST.

At the moment items over $1000 do attract the GST but by the time it is collected the amount you are actually paying is between 25 and 40% of the cost of the item.

And it is still not going to stop people from buying from overseas.  

I bought some stationary items last week and paid $23.00 odd.  The same item retails here in Officeworks for over $51.00

Even if I had to pay double the amount it would still be cheaper for me to get it from overseas.

[saarzi]

Where are you buying things from the UK and US that have such expensive postage costs?  Ebay?   lol

I buy a lot of things from the US and UK (not on Ebay), and usually post is free, or minimal (probably absorbed into the business). If someone chooses to pay high postage costs, because they chose not to look around, thats their choice.

Also, I dont understand how to government is going to actually implement this - I havent heard that part of it - has anyone else heard how its actually going to happen?  Clearly they cant force billions of overseas websites to collect GST...... are they going to make the credit card / paypal etc companies collect it for overseas purchases? (which would be hilariously lame and pointless)

[harley_babes_hoard]

"What it effectively means is that we're going to have taxation officials travel around the world and visiting these companies and asking them to register for GST purposes."

Mr Hockey said only foreign companies with an annual GST turnover of $75,000 or more would be affected, and the measure could apply before July 2017 if possible.

He said further work was needed to estimate how much tax would be raised, but said revenue would outweigh enforcement costs and compliance would rise over time.

"There is now a growing global consensus where the vendors of goods and services overseas will willingly apply consumption taxes to their goods and services sold into a particular jurisdiction," he said.

"In relation to digital products, it's easy to identify a number of those companies such as Netflix or Facebook or others."

It's going to cost a shipload when you have officials travelling overseas to try and force these companies into it. A reporter asked Joe Hockey what happens if all these businesses just say no, his answer was that they couldn't make them but global pressure would encourage them to.

[saarzi]

""What it effectively means is that we're going to have taxation officials travel around the world and visiting these companies and asking them to register for GST purposes.""

hahaha

There HAS TO BE something Im missing... OR, they are going to need to employ the population of Australia to get around to these millions of companies, and it might only take them 50 years.

He said those that are "selling into Australia" - how has that been defined?  He must mean only those with some sort of presence here that arent technically required to currently pay GST. Or, they will censor / block those who dont participate? (also pointless, even if they did have the manpower, because it doesnt work anyway).

The easiest way would be to have Credit card companies collect it - but even then, people will just transfer money to overseas services like Skrill and avoid the GST altogether.

I think at the end of the day, the amount of companies involved is going to be miniscule, and most people dont need to worry.  It seems to be yet another time filler for the government, a bit like "censoring" the internet (that was hilarious too).

[harley_babes_hoard]

yes but to have our credit card companies or australia post collect is going to cost even more. Can you imagine the man power it's going to take for AP or customs to police this. The cost will far outweigh the revenue raised IMO, that's why they are trying to get OS business to do it for them.

The whole thing is a joke.

[lyndal1838]

And how many overseas companies would fit the criteria to need to be registered for GST.....probably about the same number as here in Australia.

There are still plenty of smaller online sellers who will not even need to collect the GST.  And as for ebay, only the very large sellers will need to collect the GST and they already do it.

I just don't see that it is going to be as effective as they say (or is it wishful thinking to appease the likes of Hardly Normal?)

[toysandthings12]

lol, I liked the idea of centralised collection points and u pay ur GST when u pick up.

But all this is planned for July 2017.

Plenty of time for free trade agreements to demand it

gets removed....

But as you say, 10% gst on something thats half the price wont make much

price difference. If it does then u are just chasing too much discount.

More interesting is the increasing postage costs out of the UK n US.

China seems free freight still.

or near enough.

Lately I found some freight companies r refusing rechargeable batteries

in their air shipments, not just Lipo but Nicd n Nimh as well.

Tho they do deals to allow mobile phone n laptop batteries still...

Of course, most peeps just dont bother to mention batteries in parcels.

[davewil1964]

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@marakorpa wrote:

The Australian Government is going to impose the GST at 10% on all overseas trading in Ebay.  This looks like we will soon have a 15%GST before the next elections.

It also means that Australian buyers will not only be paying the exhorbinate postage costs that come out of the US and the UK but as these are services we will also be paying 10% more to cover GST.

A simple example is thus: An item selling at $20au with the usual UK postage at around $35.00au will now cost another 55 cents.  A lot of us are bypassing UK and US items now, with the next impost Ebay is going to struggle holding on to the market. IMO.

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Try $5.50

And this relates to a 15% GST how?

I compete against Pommie sellers who seem (even with relative currency devaluations) to still be able to send books for my postage cost, so I am all for it.

[phorum_junkie*]

 Presumably the GST on lower priced goods will be collected the same way it is collected now on imports over $1,000. In other words the carrier, be it AP or a courier company will be responsible for collecting it from the buyer when they deliver the parcel. This is how it has been done for many, many years in the UK and I am sure many other countries as well.