|
 |
| | | Author: | bricketycricket  | | Posted: | Oct 1, 2021 17:04 | | Subject: | Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 157 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| Hello,
I ordered something from the US and the UK recently and paid VAT at checkout.
Then when the package arrived I was told to pay VAT again. My country's customs
told me that once it passes customs that they cannot do anything about it and
either I pay VAT again or the package gets sent back and that I can use the customs
reciept to get a refund from bricklink and ebay. The UK order was on Ebay and
they responded by issuing a refund after I provided proof of overpayment. Well
after contacting bricklink I got the following resonse:
"
Thank you for your reply and we are sorry to hear that.
Unfortunately, there are two reasons why VAT cannot be refunded by us.
Firstly, this was an error on the seller's side for not including the IOSS
number together with the package as per instructions on the site and the communication
we send out prior to these marketplace changes coming into effect.
Secondly, we unfortunately do not have the tools for it. We do not handle transactions,
it is done by PayPal.
We apologize for the inconvenience.
Thank you for your understanding."
Now I don't know what to do. Should I contact the seller and ask her to refund
me the VAT or should I take it to paypal? I feel kind of bad since I think it
was her first international order and I kind of convinced her to ship to me and
I don't want it to come from her pocket while paypal, bricklink or the taxman
make an unjust profit. Has anyone else been in a similar situation and if so
did they manage to resolve it?
Man the way if these new EU regulations are implemented is a nightmare and now
I as a buyer who has done nothing wrong have to waste time with this.
|
|
|
| | | | | |
| | | | | Author: | Emporiosa | | Posted: | Oct 1, 2021 18:04 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 70 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| | | Now I don't know what to do. Should I contact the seller and ask her to refund
me the VAT or should I take it to paypal? I feel kind of bad since I think it
was her first international order and I kind of convinced her to ship to me and
I don't want it to come from her pocket while paypal, bricklink or the taxman
make an unjust profit. Has anyone else been in a similar situation and if so
did they manage to resolve it?
Man the way if these new EU regulations are implemented is a nightmare and now
I as a buyer who has done nothing wrong have to waste time with this.
|
It may not be that the seller missed the IOSS #, and isn't really fantastic
to hear that BrickLink would assume so. The reason I say that is that I, on several
occasions, have paid tax when purchasing from LEGO and they shipped from Denmark.
Then, when it passed through customs, Canadian customs missed the attached invoice
and tax info and charged me taxes again (and I have to pay it to have the package
released). This wasn't LEGO's fault at all, and in many cases, I think
the same thing will happen with BrickLink seller selling overseas.
When that happens, Canadian customs requires proof that taxes were paid (which
I can easily do by providing my LEGO receipt for). Similarly for BrickLink, I
would hope that your customs would accept the receipt from your order which shows
VAT paid. The seller isn't pocketing the money, so if your country's
customs will not provide the refund, the only other person who is holding the
extra tax is BrickLink - not the seller. I would definitely try again with your
country's customs though.
|
|
|
| | | | | |
| | | | | Author: | Reki_Lobsheek | | Posted: | Oct 1, 2021 18:28 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 61 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| see my post on this:
https://www.bricklink.com/message.asp?ID=1304307
I have placed an order with an American seller myself just now and I have asked
upfront to add the invoice to the customs declaration with proof of payment of
VAT.
But if the shipping company fails to add the IOSS nr to the customs declaration
it's not even the seller's fault.
Do know this is being discussed as we speak at the European Commission level
(as many thousands of people have already experienced this and a lot of the postal
and courrier services have their help desks drowned in complaints). Hopefully
something permanent will be done about this.
Of course, on the other hand: they know well enough that few people will let
their packages be sent back as there's a treshold of €150 (meaning the VAT
amount will never be much higher than 20-25€).
Erikk
|
|
|
| | | | | |
| | | | | Author: | yorbrick | | Posted: | Oct 2, 2021 00:34 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 54 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| In Problem, bricketycricket writes:
| | Hello,
I ordered something from the US and the UK recently and paid VAT at checkout.
Then when the package arrived I was told to pay VAT again. My country's customs
told me that once it passes customs that they cannot do anything about it and
either I pay VAT again or the package gets sent back and that I can use the customs
reciept to get a refund from bricklink and ebay. The UK order was on Ebay and
they responded by issuing a refund after I provided proof of overpayment. Well
after contacting bricklink I got the following resonse:
"
Thank you for your reply and we are sorry to hear that.
Unfortunately, there are two reasons why VAT cannot be refunded by us.
Firstly, this was an error on the seller's side for not including the IOSS
number together with the package as per instructions on the site and the communication
we send out prior to these marketplace changes coming into effect.
Secondly, we unfortunately do not have the tools for it. We do not handle transactions,
it is done by PayPal.
We apologize for the inconvenience.
Thank you for your understanding."
Now I don't know what to do. Should I contact the seller and ask her to refund
me the VAT or should I take it to paypal? I feel kind of bad since I think it
was her first international order and I kind of convinced her to ship to me and
I don't want it to come from her pocket while paypal, bricklink or the taxman
make an unjust profit. Has anyone else been in a similar situation and if so
did they manage to resolve it?
Man the way if these new EU regulations are implemented is a nightmare and now
I as a buyer who has done nothing wrong have to waste time with this.
|
Presumably you have the package. Was the IOSS info clearly displayed? If not,
the seller is at fault. If it is their first international sale, they need to
learn how to do it properly before selling more international orders.
|
|
|
| | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | Author: | leopard37 | | Posted: | Oct 29, 2021 17:53 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 33 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| In Problem, yorbrick writes:
| | In Problem, bricketycricket writes:
| | Hello,
I ordered something from the US and the UK recently and paid VAT at checkout.
Then when the package arrived I was told to pay VAT again. My country's customs
told me that once it passes customs that they cannot do anything about it and
either I pay VAT again or the package gets sent back and that I can use the customs
reciept to get a refund from bricklink and ebay. The UK order was on Ebay and
they responded by issuing a refund after I provided proof of overpayment. Well
after contacting bricklink I got the following resonse:
"
Thank you for your reply and we are sorry to hear that.
Unfortunately, there are two reasons why VAT cannot be refunded by us.
Firstly, this was an error on the seller's side for not including the IOSS
number together with the package as per instructions on the site and the communication
we send out prior to these marketplace changes coming into effect.
Secondly, we unfortunately do not have the tools for it. We do not handle transactions,
it is done by PayPal.
We apologize for the inconvenience.
Thank you for your understanding."
Now I don't know what to do. Should I contact the seller and ask her to refund
me the VAT or should I take it to paypal? I feel kind of bad since I think it
was her first international order and I kind of convinced her to ship to me and
I don't want it to come from her pocket while paypal, bricklink or the taxman
make an unjust profit. Has anyone else been in a similar situation and if so
did they manage to resolve it?
Man the way if these new EU regulations are implemented is a nightmare and now
I as a buyer who has done nothing wrong have to waste time with this.
|
Presumably you have the package. Was the IOSS info clearly displayed? If not,
the seller is at fault. If it is their first international sale, they need to
learn how to do it properly before selling more international orders.
|
Bricklink's instructions say to not include the IOSS number on the package!!!
|
|
|
| | | | | |
| | | | | Author: | bobnikolov | | Posted: | Oct 2, 2021 01:36 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 70 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| In Problem, bricketycricket writes:
| | Hello,
I ordered something from the US and the UK recently and paid VAT at checkout.
Then when the package arrived I was told to pay VAT again. My country's customs
told me that once it passes customs that they cannot do anything about it and
either I pay VAT again or the package gets sent back and that I can use the customs
reciept to get a refund from bricklink and ebay. The UK order was on Ebay and
they responded by issuing a refund after I provided proof of overpayment. Well
after contacting bricklink I got the following resonse:
"
Thank you for your reply and we are sorry to hear that.
Unfortunately, there are two reasons why VAT cannot be refunded by us.
Firstly, this was an error on the seller's side for not including the IOSS
number together with the package as per instructions on the site and the communication
we send out prior to these marketplace changes coming into effect.
Secondly, we unfortunately do not have the tools for it. We do not handle transactions,
it is done by PayPal.
We apologize for the inconvenience.
Thank you for your understanding."
Now I don't know what to do. Should I contact the seller and ask her to refund
me the VAT or should I take it to paypal? I feel kind of bad since I think it
was her first international order and I kind of convinced her to ship to me and
I don't want it to come from her pocket while paypal, bricklink or the taxman
make an unjust profit. Has anyone else been in a similar situation and if so
did they manage to resolve it?
Man the way if these new EU regulations are implemented is a nightmare and now
I as a buyer who has done nothing wrong have to waste time with this.
|
This happens to me too. The package has all documents which clarify the VAT is
already paid. Finally i paid the VAT twice, also taxes for manifest. The value
was not something much so i decided to move forward but decided not to buy outside
from EU for now
|
|
|
| | | | | |
| | | | | Author: | Teup | | Posted: | Oct 2, 2021 04:58 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 63 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| In Problem, bricketycricket writes:
| | Hello,
I ordered something from the US and the UK recently and paid VAT at checkout.
Then when the package arrived I was told to pay VAT again. My country's customs
told me that once it passes customs that they cannot do anything about it and
either I pay VAT again or the package gets sent back and that I can use the customs
reciept to get a refund from bricklink and ebay. The UK order was on Ebay and
they responded by issuing a refund after I provided proof of overpayment. Well
after contacting bricklink I got the following resonse:
"
Thank you for your reply and we are sorry to hear that.
Unfortunately, there are two reasons why VAT cannot be refunded by us.
Firstly, this was an error on the seller's side for not including the IOSS
number together with the package as per instructions on the site and the communication
we send out prior to these marketplace changes coming into effect.
Secondly, we unfortunately do not have the tools for it. We do not handle transactions,
it is done by PayPal.
We apologize for the inconvenience.
Thank you for your understanding."
Now I don't know what to do. Should I contact the seller and ask her to refund
me the VAT or should I take it to paypal? I feel kind of bad since I think it
was her first international order and I kind of convinced her to ship to me and
I don't want it to come from her pocket while paypal, bricklink or the taxman
make an unjust profit. Has anyone else been in a similar situation and if so
did they manage to resolve it?
Man the way if these new EU regulations are implemented is a nightmare and now
I as a buyer who has done nothing wrong have to waste time with this.
|
IMO the seller should pay up. It was their mistake. It is the seller's responsibility
to ship correctly, and it includes this. If sellers don't know about it,
they shouldn't be shipping to the EU.
Hopefully the seller will realise this, refund your extra costs and improve their
shipping procedure.
|
|
|
| | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | Author: | bricketycricket | | Posted: | Oct 3, 2021 04:32 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 59 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| I have contacted the seller and in the end she decided to refund me, even though
I asked her if we should try to take it to paypal and for them to refund me.
In this case it was she who forgot to mention the IOSS number, but on my order
from the UK on ebay the seller said he followed procedure correctly (and I believe
him since he is very active on ebay) with the IOSS number and still I got charged
again. Luckily on ebay all I had to do was send them proof of package being in
my posession and post office reciept for the 2nd VAT payment and they said they
will refund me within 20 days. So IMO this new EU system even after 3 months
is still very shoddily implemented with lots of problems and I will be refraining
from making any out of EU orders for the time being and I guess many sellers
will refuse to ship to the EU. If the EU goal was to pressure people to buy from
only within the block then hands down they did a good job.
|
|
|
| | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | Author: | woodelf | | Posted: | Oct 29, 2021 16:52 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 56 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| In Problem, Teup writes:
| | IMO the seller should pay up. It was their mistake. It is the seller's responsibility
to ship correctly, and it includes this. If sellers don't know about it,
they shouldn't be shipping to the EU.
Hopefully the seller will realise this, refund your extra costs and improve their
shipping procedure.
|
Can you clarify what "ship correctly" means, exactly? Now I'm worried I've
been causing problems for my recipients, though none have complained to me.
When I receive an EU purchase, there's a note that says "An order receipt,
along with your customs invoice, should be included on your parcel for efficient
processing at the customs office." Since normally with international mail from
the US, all documents other than the customs form (which is part of the mailing
label) are put inside the parcel, that's what I've been doing.
But now I'm wondering if by "on" they mean it should be taped to the outside
of the package? Does it need to be removable? Should it be taped on in such
a way that it's not casually readable, or precisely so that it can
be read without removing it? Do I need to get some of those little clear adhesive
document pouches?
And the Bricklink instructions say that the IOSS number should never be written
on the package, but then also say to write the IOSS number on the customs form...which
is taped to the outside of the package, for all the world to read. I kinda feel
like whoever wrote those instructions has never actually mailed something international
from the US (or, at least, not in the last ~decade, since the forms went electronic).
|
|
|
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | Author: | SylvainLS | | Posted: | Oct 29, 2021 17:45 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 37 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| In Problem, woodelf writes:
| | […]
When I receive an EU purchase, there's a note that says "An order receipt,
along with your customs invoice, should be included on your parcel for efficient
processing at the customs office." Since normally with international mail from
the US, all documents other than the customs form (which is part of the mailing
label) are put inside the parcel, that's what I've been doing.
But now I'm wondering if by "on" they mean it should be taped to the outside
of the package? Does it need to be removable? Should it be taped on in such
a way that it's not casually readable, or precisely so that it can
be read without removing it? Do I need to get some of those little clear adhesive
document pouches?
|
It needs to be readable by the customs agents, so on the outside.
And the buyer already received their copy of the invoice from BL.
(Note that some buyers have had problems even when the document was on the outside
 )
| | And the Bricklink instructions say that the IOSS number should never be written
on the package, but then also say to write the IOSS number on the customs form...which
is taped to the outside of the package, for all the world to read. I kinda feel
like whoever wrote those instructions has never actually mailed something international
from the US (or, at least, not in the last ~decade, since the forms went electronic).
|
Custom forms are an international standard, so it’s not only from the US. And
the EU & UK should know how they work as they are requiring them.
I think that secrecy thing is just a way to say that if BL’s IOSS is misused
/ abused, it’ll be BL’s fault, without any recourse.
I also think it’s actually because they thought things should be electronic now
that made the application of the laws difficult: if all was actually sent electronically,
the IOSS could be kept “secret,” but there’s still paperwork, especially for
small packages… and small packages are the ones that need the IOSS.
So, it’s more like “oopsies… well, just have them put the IOSS on the customs
form.”
|
|
|
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | Author: | Reki_Lobsheek | | Posted: | Oct 29, 2021 18:07 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 35 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| In Problem, SylvainLS writes:
| |
It needs to be readable by the customs agents, so on the outside.
And the buyer already received their copy of the invoice from BL.
(Note that some buyers have had problems even when the document was on the outside
)
|
Just to chip in here: Customs has very rarely something to do with the fact that
you're being charged VAT twice. It is the agent declaring your parcel that
is at fault.
From personal experience (see my previous post in this thread) I can say now
that Belgian Post is extremely unprofessional in handling these kind of shipments
and I think that goes for most postal services of the EU member states as far
as I hear from similar tales.
Writing an IOSS nr on a package does not help at all. The info of your package
is all digitalized, meaning the IOSS nr included. If the company declaring your
parcel doesn't have a proper working IT-system to handle IOSS nrs (as is
the case with Belgian Post) you will get screwed every time. I firmly believe
most postal services just see a package coming from outside of the EU and they
automatically charge VAT. Then, and only AFTER VAT has been paid by the recipient,
they will present (= declare) your package to Customs.
I also had to pay VAT twice on my US order which I will try to get reimbursed
for by Belgian Post but fat chance I'll ever see that money back.
By my estimation already milions of Euros have been paid all over Europe in double
VAT which will ultimately lead to what they (the politicians) wanted in the first
place: to discourage people to buy outside of the EU.
For me personally I can say that it works: buying Lego outside of the EU will
only happen when there is really, REALLY no store at all to pruchase from in
the EU. It's just not worth the extra cost anymore unless they'd be offering
an extremely rare item at half price of what EU sellers would be asking.
To end on a positive note: you'll have better chances when asking your seller
to use a courrier like DHL or Fedex or the likes instead of the postal system.
Erikk
|
|
|
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | Author: | SylvainLS | | Posted: | Oct 29, 2021 18:40 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 29 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| In Problem, Erkiles writes:
| | […]
Just to chip in here: Customs has very rarely something to do with the fact that
you're being charged VAT twice. It is the agent declaring your parcel that
is at fault.
From personal experience (see my previous post in this thread) I can say now
that Belgian Post is extremely unprofessional in handling these kind of shipments
and I think that goes for most postal services of the EU member states as far
as I hear from similar tales.
Writing an IOSS nr on a package does not help at all. The info of your package
is all digitalized, meaning the IOSS nr included. If the company declaring your
parcel doesn't have a proper working IT-system to handle IOSS nrs (as is
the case with Belgian Post) you will get screwed every time. I firmly believe
most postal services just see a package coming from outside of the EU and they
automatically charge VAT. Then, and only AFTER VAT has been paid by the recipient,
they will present (= declare) your package to Customs.
|
Ah, thanks for that explanation Erikk. A light bulb just went on in my head:
I never reflected on who actually presented the package to Customs but it’s indeed
logical it’s the recipient-postal services who does as they are the ones who
charge you for it.
| | I also had to pay VAT twice on my US order which I will try to get reimbursed
for by Belgian Post but fat chance I'll ever see that money back.
By my estimation already milions of Euros have been paid all over Europe in double
VAT which will ultimately lead to what they (the politicians) wanted in the first
place: to discourage people to buy outside of the EU.
|
Nah, they wanted people to buy more inside of EU.
Tomato, tomato (or “Bonnet blanc, blanc bonnet” in French) 
| | For me personally I can say that it works: buying Lego outside of the EU will
only happen when there is really, REALLY no store at all to pruchase from in
the EU. It's just not worth the extra cost anymore unless they'd be offering
an extremely rare item at half price of what EU sellers would be asking.
|
Well, paying double VAT is sure more trouble now but, unless the order was below
€22 or you were lucky, you already had to pay VAT once and the postal services’
hefty fee.
So buying out of EU has always been more expensive than the Price Guide says.
| | To end on a positive note: you'll have better chances when asking your seller
to use a courrier like DHL or Fedex or the likes instead of the postal system.
Erikk
|
|
|
|
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | Author: | woodelf | | Posted: | Oct 29, 2021 19:43 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 49 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| In Problem, SylvainLS writes:
| | In Problem, woodelf writes:
| | […]
When I receive an EU purchase, there's a note that says "An order receipt,
along with your customs invoice, should be included on your parcel for efficient
processing at the customs office." Since normally with international mail from
the US, all documents other than the customs form (which is part of the mailing
label) are put inside the parcel, that's what I've been doing.
But now I'm wondering if by "on" they mean it should be taped to the outside
of the package? Does it need to be removable? Should it be taped on in such
a way that it's not casually readable, or precisely so that it can
be read without removing it? Do I need to get some of those little clear adhesive
document pouches?
|
It needs to be readable by the customs agents, so on the outside.
And the buyer already received their copy of the invoice from BL.
(Note that some buyers have had problems even when the document was on the outside
)
| | And the Bricklink instructions say that the IOSS number should never be written
on the package, but then also say to write the IOSS number on the customs form...which
is taped to the outside of the package, for all the world to read. I kinda feel
like whoever wrote those instructions has never actually mailed something international
from the US (or, at least, not in the last ~decade, since the forms went electronic).
|
Custom forms are an international standard, so it’s not only from the US. And
the EU & UK should know how they work as they are requiring them.
I think that secrecy thing is just a way to say that if BL’s IOSS is misused
/ abused, it’ll be BL’s fault, without any recourse.
I also think it’s actually because they thought things should be electronic now
that made the application of the laws difficult: if all was actually sent electronically,
the IOSS could be kept “secret,” but there’s still paperwork, especially for
small packages… and small packages are the ones that need the IOSS.
So, it’s more like “oopsies… well, just have them put the IOSS on the customs
form.”
|
I should clarify my comments about the customs forms:
Yes, the content in them is standardized, but the actual format of the forms
varies somewhat (comparing customs forms on packages I've received from various
European and E Asian countries, with the forms in the US).
But, specifically, I've encountered two types:
- carbonless handwritten paper forms
- printed as part of the address label
Most of the international shipments I've received, right up until the present
(well, I think the last international thing I received was pre-pandemic), have
had one of those carbonless forms tucked into a clear document pouch on the outside
of the package. So the details of the form aren't visible unless you open
the pouch, take the customs form out, and unfold it.
US customs forms used to be like that, too, and they're still available.
If you fill one of those out, they'll usually fold it so that you can see
that it's a customs form, but can't read the part that tells you what's
in the package, and stick it into a clear adhesive document pouch on the outside
of the package.
But most of the time now, the customs information when you mail from the US is
just part of the address label, so everything on the customs form is just printed
right on the outside of the package, right next to the "to" and "from" and postage
info. But there's no "VAT ID" section on the CN-22 (I just looked at some
saved labels from recent shipments for my other business). And I've been
shipping International First Class, but that still involves a CN-22, and there's
no "Importer's reference" field, either, so I really don't know what
the Bricklink instructions (https://www.bricklink.com/help.asp?helpID=2517#ioss
) are referring to? Nor have I been skipping over any fields on the customs form
when inputting the info online, so I don't see how this could be a case of
the info being recorded and transmitted online, just not printed on the package.
I redacted the personal info and barcodes on a recent label so you can see what
I have to work with here in the US. Note that the CN-22 is the left third of
the postage label.
The instructions in that Bricklink help file make me think they're picturing
the old carbon-copy customs forms that you can't use if you're buying
your postage electronically, and Post Offices don't even necessarily keep
in stock anymore.
(Also, technically there's no such thing as "International First-Class" when
mailing from the US; the proper terms are "First-Class Mail International" and
"First-Class Package International Service", further making me wonder if those
instructions were put together to reflect the reality on the ground in the US?
Or just written by someone who isn't focused on details, and figures that
we all know what they mean? Which: fair enough—I do. But I still can't input
details into fields that don't exist on the form.)
|
|
|
|
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | Author: | Teup | | Posted: | Oct 29, 2021 18:20 | | Subject: | Re: Double charged VAT | | Viewed: | 33 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| In Problem, woodelf writes:
| | In Problem, Teup writes:
| | IMO the seller should pay up. It was their mistake. It is the seller's responsibility
to ship correctly, and it includes this. If sellers don't know about it,
they shouldn't be shipping to the EU.
Hopefully the seller will realise this, refund your extra costs and improve their
shipping procedure.
|
Can you clarify what "ship correctly" means, exactly? Now I'm worried I've
been causing problems for my recipients, though none have complained to me.
When I receive an EU purchase, there's a note that says "An order receipt,
along with your customs invoice, should be included on your parcel for efficient
processing at the customs office." Since normally with international mail from
the US, all documents other than the customs form (which is part of the mailing
label) are put inside the parcel, that's what I've been doing.
But now I'm wondering if by "on" they mean it should be taped to the outside
of the package? Does it need to be removable? Should it be taped on in such
a way that it's not casually readable, or precisely so that it can
be read without removing it? Do I need to get some of those little clear adhesive
document pouches?
And the Bricklink instructions say that the IOSS number should never be written
on the package, but then also say to write the IOSS number on the customs form...which
is taped to the outside of the package, for all the world to read. I kinda feel
like whoever wrote those instructions has never actually mailed something international
from the US (or, at least, not in the last ~decade, since the forms went electronic).
|
Good questions really, as Sylvain said I think yes, it should be on the outside.
However, 1. Many orders are shipped in padded envelopes, I guess they might as
well open those? and 2. The customs forms have a specification for what kind
of shipment it is and, if commercial, whether it contains an invoice. You would
think that if it's written in the official fields, visible on the outside
of the shipment, that there's an invoice inside, they should open the package
and refer to it first before deciding to tag on VAT (if that is at all how it
works..). Otherwise, what's even the point of having to specify that information.
Anyway this is just my speculation, I am not sure either and therefore I've
discontinued shipping to the UK for orders where BL handles the VAT. Besides,
I don't have a printer anyway 
|
|
|
|
|
|
Slovenia
Canada, Ontario
Belgium, Brussels
United Kingdom, England
Bulgaria, Sofia City
Netherlands, Utrecht
USA, Minnesota
France, Nouvelle-Aquitaine