Please help - VAT and Customs on import of coin from Germany

[Bixley]

Can anyone give me a bit of guidance. I recently bought two gold 20 mark coins from a dealer called Kunker who are part of the MA shops network. It was agreed with the seller that the two coins would be sent separately for security reasons. One has been delivered by Royal Mail without any problems. 

However, the second coin has been held by Royal mail pending payment of charges. These charges are: Import VAT £94.65, Customs Duty £9.28 and Handling Fee £8 giving a total charge of £111.92.

According to HMRC Vat Notice 701/21A, investment gold is exempt from VAT and this coin falls into that category being a gold Saxony 20 mark dated 1905.

Is there anybody with a similar experience who can advise if am I correct in thinking that I should pay the charges and then attempt to reclaim them using Form BOR286. Or is the best bet to return the item to the seller?

Thanks for any help, Bixley

 

 

 

[RDHC]

I also bought a gold coin from Kunker after the post-Brexit rules came in and had to pay extra, probably the VAT but I may be wrong. I then reclaimed it, which was tedious because I had to copy all the sale details from Kunker and and then obtain all the import details from the courier (not Royal Mail but DHL or whoever) and then apply to HMRC, but it was successful. I certainly did not have to pay two lots of charges - Royal Mail are being stupid or ignorant here. The handling charge of Royal Mail is unavoidable, I fear, but at least you got one coin under the radar. I suppose that it depends on how much you want the coin whether you go through this process or return it. Kunker are a good firm, I would add.

[Petra]

You don’t have a choice. If you don’t pay you don’t get your coin. You have

to pay then claim what can can back

[BackyardBullion]

Pay and claim back. 

[dicker]

1 hour ago, BackyardBullion said:

Pay and claim back. 

Agreed

[dicker]

You can revel in the thought that it will cost HMRC more to process the reclaim than the original tax.

[Fadeingstar]

I have had this before all you can do is pay to get your items and then claim the funds back which is not the quickest process in the world.

[dicker]

15 minutes ago, Fadeingstar said:

I have had this before all you can do is pay to get your items and then claim the funds back which is not the quickest process in the world.

Try withholding tax reclaims on stock dividends in Italy where you are. It an Italian resident. Claims are now running at around 9 years…..

[LawrenceChard]

4 hours ago, Bixley said:

Can anyone give me a bit of guidance. I recently bought two gold 20 mark coins from a dealer called Kunker who are part of the MA shops network. It was agreed with the seller that the two coins would be sent separately for security reasons. One has been delivered by Royal Mail without any problems. 

However, the second coin has been held by Royal mail pending payment of charges. These charges are: Import VAT £94.65, Customs Duty £9.28 and Handling Fee £8 giving a total charge of £111.92.

According to HMRC Vat Notice 701/21A, investment gold is exempt from VAT and this coin falls into that category being a gold Saxony 20 mark dated 1905.

Is there anybody with a similar experience who can advise if am I correct in thinking that I should pay the charges and then attempt to reclaim them using Form BOR286. Or is the best bet to return the item to the seller?

Thanks for any help, Bixley

 

As the other responses suggest, this is very common.

Kunker should have shown it as investment gold on any customs label they provided.

It is worth asking them what they suggest, as they will have encountered the problem before, andit may help them to prventit in future.

Otherwise I think most of the other comments are right.

Good luck with it.

Don't forget to post your progress and results here, for all to benefit from your experience.

😎

[Bixley]

Thank you for your advice everyone. I have been in contact with Kunker and they say that they have never encountered this before. They also say they filled in the form correctly although on box containing the coin I did receive it says the contents are ‘Collecters Item’. The space for the ‘HS tariff number’  is blank. Can anyone explain what the HS number is. Could the lack of a number be the problem?

[jultorsk]

5 hours ago, Bixley said:

Thank you for your advice everyone. I have been in contact with Kunker and they say that they have never encountered this before. They also say they filled in the form correctly although on box containing the coin I did receive it says the contents are ‘Collecters Item’. The space for the ‘HS tariff number’  is blank. Can anyone explain what the HS number is. Could the lack of a number be the problem?

See https://www.allgoldcoins.co.uk/pages/vat-exemption-eu-sales-information

That HTS code should work both ways (UK -> EU and EU -> UK) - I've heard sometimes the Customs at least on EU side needs to be helped to remember about the VAT exemption, though. It's not that commonly encountered I suppose...🤷‍♂️😉

[RDHC]

Somewhat off-topic, but perhaps interesting to a few of you, the range of these 20 mark gold coins gives an extraordinary glimpse into the lost world of tiny German principalities and their bearded rulers (and a few city states, notably Hamburg) before WW I. Just looked up some of the examples available on the MA-Shops. I had not even heard of Schaumburg-Lippe and I'm supposed to be a historian, but its ruler issued gold coins. Some are very, very rare e.g. one from Saxony-Meiningen (not the big Saxony) is for sale at 22,900 euros, admittedly in almost perfect condition. Each coin contained a bit less  fine gold than a sovereign.

[Bixley]

I have collected the coin and paid the duty. I have filled in form BOR286 to claim back the duty. I will give further updates to the form when there is anything further to report. I am incensed that the Royal Mail handling fee is non refundable. If HMRC have calculated the VAT rate incorrectly then it seems to me only fair that HMRC should repay that money to me and recompense Royal mail for their work. But I guess life isn't fair. 

[Bixley]

9 hours ago, RDHC said:

Somewhat off-topic, but perhaps interesting to a few of you, the range of these 20 mark gold coins gives an extraordinary glimpse into the lost world of tiny German principalities and their bearded rulers (and a few city states, notably Hamburg) before WW I. Just looked up some of the examples available on the MA-Shops. I had not even heard of Schaumburg-Lippe and I'm supposed to be a historian, but its ruler issued gold coins. Some are very, very rare e.g. one from Saxony-Meiningen (not the big Saxony) is for sale at 22,900 euros, admittedly in almost perfect condition. Each coin contained a bit less  fine gold than a sovereign.

I haven't got anything as exotic as a 20 Mark of Schaumberg-Lippe but a modest collection of less rare types. 

[RDHC]

4 minutes ago, Bixley said:

I haven't got anything as exotic as a 20 Mark of Schaumberg-Lippe but a modest collection of less rare types. 

Very nice collection.