Importing fees within the EU and abroad

I am based in Slovenia, which is a member state of the European Union, and am about to start dropshipping. However, I have a few questions and need them answered before doing any business.

Currently I am a sole trader, and am not registered for the VAT.

I would like to sell products, imported from China, onto markets of the European Union member states, also to Slovenia, and also abroad, to the USA, Canada, Australia, Russia, etc.

What is with taxes (VAT) and customs? If I understand the dropshipping process correctly, the buyer pays customs?

Should I decide to also dropship technical products like smart watches, tablet computers, maybe also mobile phones (save for the iPhone, etc.), etc., what’s with the certificates like CE, RoHS, etc.?

Is it better to choose suppliers which are already based within the EU?

Are there any other obstacles that one has to be careful of?

Thank you and best regards,
David

Hi David,

Any applicable taxes on products you are sending or having sent will always be the responsibility of the customer, not you as the seller. As the seller, you are responsible for your own and your business taxes to your own local tax authority.

I can't really comment on what products to drop-ship, that really comes down to you doing your research to identify your markets. In regards to Euro certs, I can't advise on that at all as I have no expertise in that market myself.

As for choosing the location of suppliers, shipping times is always a concern for customers. Most people want what they want and want it quickly, so long shipping times can impact on a drop-shipping business model. My advice would be to look for suppliers either close to your markets or ones that offer quick shipping times as my first option.

Cheers

Marc, thank you for your answers.

fudjj wrote:Any applicable taxes on products you are sending or having sent will always be the responsibility of the customer, not you as the seller. As the seller, you are responsible for your own and your business taxes to your own local tax authority.

I have to set up a meeting with my accountant and ask how exactly this goes as I am currently not registered for the VAT, meaning the prices I set are final and do not have to pay anything extra, but to a certain amount, of course.

fudjj wrote:I can't really comment on what products to drop-ship, that really comes down to you doing your research to identify your markets. In regards to Euro certs, I can't advise on that at all as I have no expertise in that market myself.

I've already found some interesting niches and products to sell.

Certification requirements are quite strict and everyone selling items has to make sure that all the requirements are met.

fudjj wrote:As for choosing the location of suppliers, shipping times is always a concern for customers. Most people want what they want and want it quickly, so long shipping times can impact on a drop-shipping business model. My advice would be to look for suppliers either close to your markets or ones that offer quick shipping times as my first option.

Yes, shipping time has to be as short as possible, so therefore I'll probably be looking for suppliers as near as possible. I don't want potential buyers go away if it takes to long.

Best regards,
David

Another question just came up...
Does SaleHOO have an option of searching for suppliers in certain countries, continents, etc.?

Hi David, looks like you're ticking all the right boxes :)

In regards to the directory search, it's by region only, not be specific country. For example, Europe would be the closest you could get for your area.

Cheers