October 31, 20232 yr I was tidying up the garage in prep for bin day and as i gathered up all the ali express bags and packages that have contributed to my garage fun of late i caught a glimpse of a customs declaration for an item i spent about £25 on inc vat etc.. and its declared value was a penny?? It didnt click till later when the bin was loaded and out front, I dont like paying vat but accept it but am a bit miffed if im charged it and its ending up in a chinese bank account and not hrmc.. Is this something anyone else has noticed or even paid attention to??
October 31, 20232 yr I would be very surprised if the 'VAT' that Aliexpress charges you actually ends up being sent to the UK TAX authorities. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce7gpz301l4o
October 31, 20232 yr It is a common practice. Chinese declare false value of products they send. They also do other stunts https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/hmrc-jim-harra-vat-mps-public-accounts-committee-b2341347.html
October 31, 20232 yr Author I was aware of the practice when we didnt pay vat as an avoidance tactic by the seller but thought that perhaps naively that the fact that it was now charged at source that the practice had stopped. Not that it was just a 20% price hike. and pop goes my bubble!!
October 31, 20232 yr Not that it was just a 20% price hike. and pop goes my bubble!! Just look at it as a 'benefit' of Brexit in that some suppliers in the far East are now probably getting 20% more for the stuff they sell.
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