I just got my Pulse Rifle bag from Matt Noble... And had to pay £28 for the privilege of Parcelforce witholding it and covering customs charges.

It seems that the limit for a gift is now £36, as opposed to the £38 it was not so long ago.

So be warned!
You're best if you want to be safe for an item around the limit to state the value in pounds, not dollars.

Oh yeah, and the bag is awesome!

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MSgt, UKCM 42nd Reg., 1st Batt. : Hadrian's Wall. UKCM

Wasteland Workshop
Props, cosplay pieces, upcycled ornamentation, and miscellanea;
For the discerning survivor of the apocalypse.
Steve Fletcher : Maker, Scavenger, and Junksmith.
linktr.ee/wastelandworkshop

We talked about those charges in the original bag thread here.

Harry

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http://www.facebook.com/TheHHACA - @TheHHACA

Indeed - But I for one hadn't noticed the fact that £2 has been knocked off the previous "no charge" limit since the last time I imported anything around that price.

Moot point with the bags, since they're worth more, but I wanted to warn anyone who thinks that putting a value of £38 will result in no fees... Or working out the equivalent dollar value for the same reason.

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MSgt, UKCM 42nd Reg., 1st Batt. : Hadrian's Wall. UKCM

Wasteland Workshop
Props, cosplay pieces, upcycled ornamentation, and miscellanea;
For the discerning survivor of the apocalypse.
Steve Fletcher : Maker, Scavenger, and Junksmith.
linktr.ee/wastelandworkshop

AFAIK its been £36 for a long time now.

SAS

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Alan T. Alien
1st Lt Smith, SA "Sidewinder"
A13/TQ1.4.19720EX CMA
Founder of UKCM 13th Regt. 1st Batt. Freebooters
Founder of Special Armaments Section (Heavy Weapons)
"People don't understand. people like me"

Given where I'm not allowed to say I work, I should really have known

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MSgt, UKCM 42nd Reg., 1st Batt. : Hadrian's Wall. UKCM

Wasteland Workshop
Props, cosplay pieces, upcycled ornamentation, and miscellanea;
For the discerning survivor of the apocalypse.
Steve Fletcher : Maker, Scavenger, and Junksmith.
linktr.ee/wastelandworkshop

So when bringing in my "Novelty Gift Drug-Mule Wombats", should I state the Purchase Price was £36, or the Street Value?

Actually, serious question;
Is the Value of anything the "what I paid for it" or the "what it's worth" since a 1970s piece of plastic crap could be worth feck-all except to those who really want it for making Belt Tools?

It's whatever you state it is on the form, to be honest.

The main problem is you can only insure an item against loss for the amount stated on the customs declaration form.

Annoyingly, I just bought an item from another forum for US$55... For it to be under the limit for charges, the value would have to be stated as US$49.
The seller's not comfortable insureing it for less than I paid - But I'd be more than happy risking a US$5 loss if the item did go missing, since I'm all but guaranteed a VAT + Parcelfarce of at least four times that amount!

In the past I've been able to get a refund from Customs for a toy I bought - The seller left the pricetag on it, so I got humped for charges based upon the original price, when I'd actually paid far less for the goods.

_________________
MSgt, UKCM 42nd Reg., 1st Batt. : Hadrian's Wall. UKCM

Wasteland Workshop
Props, cosplay pieces, upcycled ornamentation, and miscellanea;
For the discerning survivor of the apocalypse.
Steve Fletcher : Maker, Scavenger, and Junksmith.
linktr.ee/wastelandworkshop