Japanese figures

[brettnj]

Since I'm here, for any newer members who do not know...

Please PM if you'd like me to add your address to my mailing list. I have several sources in Japan and I am now selling directly to over 100 US and international buyers with shipping from Japan (or the US if you prefer).

I can get virtually anything from Yahoo Auctions Japan, Japanese websites, and certain museums, other scientific or exhibit venues, and brick and mortar stores. I virtually always sell for less, sometimes more than 90% less, than other US/eBay sellers. And I have hundreds of figures in my own inventory in the US.

I also almost always sell figures I've listed on eBay for at least 10% less directly than I do on the site, and sometimes with a considerably greater savings since those I list on eBay are often spares I've bought for myself to make better money after getting all of my buyers far better deals.

The list is used to conduct business but mostly to announce new releases of Kaiyodo and related modern and prehistoric animal figures, YAJ finds of potential interest, etc.

If you are interested, I'll start by sending you a paste detailing how I work.

Thanks.
Brett

[Killekor]

I have a question: if I order a Japanese figure from you, should I pay custom fees? I'm in Europe.

Thanks in advance!
Killekor

[RobinGoodfellow]

I have a question: if I order a Japanese figure from you, should I pay custom fees? I'm in Europe.

Thanks in advance!
Killekor

Customs fees are a complex subject.
It doesn't depend on the sender.
Theoretically every item you bought from a not EU Country has to be taxed by Customs.
The amount depends on Country you're in.
In my Country (Italy), for a private sender, an item valued less than 45 euro cannot be taxed.
But if Customs thinks that sender isn't a private but a commercial company, an item valued more than 22 euro needs to be taxed (the decision about private sender/commercial company depends totally on Customs and not on what you could say about it..).
More expensive items are taxed with IVA (22%) + Customs fee (between 4 and 6 %).
Original item value is calculated WITH shipping price (..and this is simply insane from my point of view..).
But, if you're lucky, you could also receive an expensive item without any tax (maybe because Customs is so busy with work, ignoring a private expedition).
As I said, Customs fees are a complicated subject... 

Personally I do a simply count upon every purchase from a not EU Country: 26% more than original price with shipping.
If it's less, then I'm lucky 

[brettnj]

We will send your orders to best accommodate your customs situation, but you'd have to learn what the rules for your country are and then tell us. We have buyers in many European countries.

Happy to answer anything I can.

Thanks for asking (And thanks, RGF, for providing the info.).
Brett

[stegosauria]

In Europe there are around 50 countries so a little hard to help you without more info. So I can only say that you should check out your country's post's website and I can tell my experinces (in Hungary).

It looks like the Italian fees are similar to Hungarian fees (they count the shipping too, the taxfree limits are the same, except the VAT which is 27%, the highest in Europe)- probably based on some common Europian Union rule.

If I got a private package from abroad the post just delivered it. My first package from E (Brett's contact in Japan) was the exception. I had to fill out a form the post provided (a list about the contents, the prices and the package is a gift- I don't know a private package why couldn't be simply private) and I had to write a statement (this package is a gift from E -I had to ask her full name and address for this-, the contents and prices again). I rounded the prices (it would have been too suspicious if I wrote the exact prices) but the total value was the same as was written on the package. I sent the filled out form and the statement via email to the post. The whole process was around a month (lot of waiting) and I had to pay 27%VAT plus handling fee to eventually got the package. So it was quite similar to an order (just with a statement instead of an invoice and a caption of PayPal transaction) because they noticed the value on the package (and that was between 45 and 150 euros in value).

So that was my experience. If you will have trouble with how you should proceed you should ask help from your parents (just to be sure, that everything is right).

[Killekor]

Thank you all for the answers! You've all been really useful.
Custom fees are really a nightmare for collectors.

Killekor

[Shonisaurus]

S @stegosauria That happened to me. No one escapes from European tariff rates and if you cheat them, it is worse that they keep your package for as long as they deem appropriate. You have to be transparent when buying figures from Japan or another non-EU nation.

What surprised me is that once I bought a smilodon from Play Visions for about 50 or 60 euros and I had to pay a tariff, they did not keep me fortunately. Sometimes customs agents at their own discretion impose tax rates on packages that do not exceed 150 euros purchased outside the EU, for me that is not correct but it is like the saying "lentils or eat them or leave them", that is, you pay it and they give it to you or you refuse to pay it and then they send it back to the seller.

My advice although it is more expensive to buy the figures through the system of global shipments especially if they are from Japan, China, USA to give three examples.

[brettnj]

Killekor, as Manuel/Shonisaur noted, one option is to buy via from us and then have us ship via eBay from the US (after my source in Japan includes your items in a shipment to me) and use its global shipping option. He buys from me that way. It is far more expensive to ship that way (and you're also paying for the items to ship from Japan to me), but that is his preference.

On the other hand, I ship to at least one other Italian buyer, and he has never, that I can remember, mentioned any difficulty with customs.

Perhaps he'll see this and post re: his experiences here.

Brett

[RobinGoodfellow]

On the other hand, I ship to at least one other Italian buyer, and he has never, that I can remember, mentioned any difficulty with customs.

Perhaps he'll see this and post re: his experiences here.

Brett

..probably you're talking about me..
As I wrote on reply#2, a buyer needs to know Customs rules: that's all.
There is nothing a seller can do against them.
I never experienced troubles with Customs.
I have just to wait and pay what they ask.
Unfortunately buying not-Eu items could be expensive.
Sad but true.

[stegosauria]

@Shonisaurus I had to think about what to write into the form because it was a paid private package- it wasn't an order or via ebay, and there wasn't an invoice, so it simply didn't fit into the order category. This is why I went with the gift package category. And I had to pay for it either way at the post.

Good luck Killekor! If you're lucky the postman probably will just deliver it. If not- put away some money for it.

[Shonisaurus]

S @stegosauria It is the same thing that happened to me I chose with Brett and Emiko to sell me a lot of Favorite Soft Model to complete my collection (it included all the dinosaurs of Favorite dinosaurs and prehistoric animals new classic range) and prehistoric fish (existing in the now, fortunately), if I remember correctly and bought it as a gift package we put a price on my request much cheaper than it was 300 euros to avoid taxes and customs fees and that is the reason that in all July 2018 I had the package withheld for more than a month and I had to pay tariff rates although I filled in my case in adtpostals of the postal group the corresponding information including the invoice I sent to format to avoid paying taxes.

That is one of the reasons why I now buy all of their products from Brett by the global shipping method in my case is much more expensive but safer because the customs fees are included and do not hold me back the package eternally metaphorically speaking. Mine was also a private package paid and purchased through the gift payment.

[Killekor]

Killekor, as Manuel/Shonisaur noted, one option is to buy via from us and then have us ship via eBay from the US (after my source in Japan includes your items in a shipment to me) and use its global shipping option. He buys from me that way. It is far more expensive to ship that way (and you're also paying for the items to ship from Japan to me), but that is his preference.

On the other hand, I ship to at least one other Italian buyer, and he has never, that I can remember, mentioned any difficulty with customs.

Perhaps he'll see this and post re: his experiences here.

Brett

Thanks for the option, @brettnj ! At this point I prefear to order directly from Japan and hope to not pay custom fees. If there's something I don't want is to pay enormous shipping fees. Thanks again!

@Shonisaurus
Good luck Killekor! If you're lucky the postman probably will just deliver it. If not- put away some money for it.

Thank you! When I'll get some figures from America or Asia I'll be prepared.

Killekor

[brettnj]

To clarify, we ship virtually all orders directly from Japan. I just offer the option to ship from the US when it makes sense for certain buyers.
Brett