Are import taxes imposed on electronics from China to US?

Hi,

Is there anyone from the USA that has imported items from China? I've been trying to find out if we have to pay duty taxes on the bluetooth headsets, digital cameras, mp3 players, etc. Any help on this subject would be appreciated.

Cheryl

I bought quite a few things from china and I never had to pay import taxes on them , I used UPS and DHL for delivery ...maybe they added the taxes into my shipping ....good question though..I would like to know myself for future references when I order a container on a ship..

Don't know about USA but in Australia it is your duty to declare to customs what you have and the value of goods. There is a certain threshold where you do not pay a duty but anything above that amount you will pay a 'duty fee'.

If you order a big amount and falsely declare the value of the items and you are caught you can face jail of up to 7 years and fines of up to $500 000.

I'd assume the US has a similar process?

If you order a big amount and falsely declare the value of the items and you are caught you can face jail of up to 7 years and fines of up to $500 000.

I'm from Australia too. Getting caught from something like that is very rare and usually never happens. They'll only start to notice if you start purchasing huge amounts and only declare it for $50 8)

Ask your supplier to declare it as a 'gift' - i usually order small quanties under $2000 so you can usually get away with duty tax

If you order in big quanties then you have to go through and declare everything to the correct amount

Thank you for all the answers. Since I don't plan to order in very large quantities at this time I guess I don't have to worry about it. I was going blind trying to figure it out looking at our gov. site on importing.

Cheryl :D

I have placed numerous orders to an overseas supplier and the tax that I have had to pay has been extremely limited. On a $10000+ value order I had to pay about $50, for example. This only applies to the U.S. and it also depends on what goods you are importing.

Other countries, includng most European countries, have to pay a VAT (value added tax) which is usually about 17.5% of the value of the goods plus the cost of shipping.

I have placed numerous orders to an overseas supplier and the tax that I have had to pay has been extremely limited. On a $10000+ value order I had to pay about $50, for example. This only applies to the U.S. and it also depends on what goods you are importing.

Other countries, includng most European countries, have to pay a VAT (value added tax) which is usually about 17.5% of the value of the goods plus the cost of shipping.

BTW why did my last post register as guest?

Yea, mine does that to sometimes, I have emailed support about it.
:)

For those of us in New Zealand, the following site breaks down import duty by common items...

I had thought about clothing, but this attracts higher import rates - 40% with GST also a factor.

Link hidden: Login to view

Use this for deciding what to import and I hope it helps...

toffee
:)

omg nz pays a lot of customs tax

I have just placed my first order from DHgate.com.

I live in New Zealand, and although the order was small (less than NZ $200) I am hoping I don't get slapped with any taxes, because I have read up on them, and yes, sadly NZ does seem to have huge taxes.

I will let you know how it go's.

Cheers,
Tom

i've made two big orders through dhgate coming to the US. I have had no duty taxes yet so it's going good for me so far.

Hey,
Recieved my order from DHgate the other day, and NO, I did not have to pay any import taxes, although this was probably because the seller declared the value at $5 USD!
A little cheeky of him, but customs didn't seem to kick up a fuss, and it saved me extra, so thanks to him.

Cheers,
Tom

In Canada, it's 18% duty rate and 6% GST. Anything under $20 does'nt have to be declared, anything under $1600 is shipped under the low value shipment program. Try and use Link hidden: Login to view for a guideline.

Is there a border tax calculator for US custom Tax? I went to the website and would have a better chance learning to read arabic. I'm wanting to dropship electronics from China/Hong Kong to my customers but I do not want my customers to have to pay any fees once the package is delivered to them....talk about bad business! So if anyone has any information can you please please email me at karmalusion@ymail.com Until then I guess if I get an order I will have it sent to me then resend to my customers...yay that should help make me a whopping $20 profit if any.

Hi Karmalusion,

Welcome to the site!

Yes, it is pretty confusing. I found an online custom duties calculator, although you will need to pay for this service, you might want to give their 3-day free trial a try just to see if they have what you need.

Link hidden: Login to view

Hope this helps.