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View Full Version : Calendar shipping to Europe (Germany, maybe Spain)



Halaku
2016-11-02, 04:22 PM
Hi!

Does anybody in Germany want to order together the new calendar, to save in the shipping costs?
I checked the prices: For 1 person is 21.6, From 2 to 5 people the cost per person is somehow constant, (about 10 dollars) and from 6 on it starts to get some more saving (for 10 people you get for example about 6 dollars each).

So I think the easiest is to get it in pairs to reduce the confusion..

(If anybody from Spain is also interested, I am coming back in Christmas to visit, but if it does not arrive in time it would get a bit trickier to send)

Anybody in? :smallsmile:

ChristianSt
2016-11-03, 01:16 PM
I wouldn't mind pooling together - it would be even better for people living in close proximity (so you don't need shipping), though I'm not aware of any Playgrounders in my area (Nürnberg) :-/

Edit: More than 7 or so in one order could also be problematic due to possible additional import fees (at least if I understand the import regulations correctly...)

Morquard
2016-11-04, 05:07 AM
Yes, would be interesting to know if VAT and all is properly declared on the package or if we'd have to pay that once it gets imported, or any other fees we should know about.

Sending it on its way within Germany is probably also not super cheap, so it might not actually safe too much money after all.

Halaku
2016-11-04, 06:23 AM
Well, I just checked the sizes and the problem is that it is a bit to broad to fit in the normal envelope, otherwise it would cost 1.5 euros through Deutsche Post. Today I will stop at the post office and ask what options do we have and the prices for the calendar's dimensions

I really dont know how taxes work in Germany, but I would not expect a big deal over ordering a few calendars... I guess?

Anyway, it would of course be much easier for people living in the same area (anybody in Bremen, by chance??) xD



I'm not aware of any Playgrounders in my area (Nürnberg) :-/


Too late for that, but I was living in Erlangen until March :smallbiggrin:

Halaku
2016-11-04, 02:29 PM
I asked in the post office and, the answer is.. I am not sure :smallbiggrin:

The problem is that the calendar is sliiiighty too large (30.45 cm according to my inch converter), so it ALMOST fits in the normal categories.. in which case it should be less than 2 euros. Otherwise, around 4 and change.

In any case, it looks like the most profitable is to get it in pairs, so, if anybody is interested, we could get to it. I volunteer to take care of sending the second calendar, if necessary :smallsmile:

ChristianSt
2016-11-04, 05:37 PM
According to the German Zoll (http://www.zoll.de/DE/Privatpersonen/Postsendungen-Internetbestellungen/Sendungen-aus-einem-Nicht-EU-Staat/Zoll-und-Steuern/Internetbestellungen/internetbestellungen_node.html):

above 22€ you have to pay normal VAT. I'm not sure if the calendar will have to pay 19% VAT
above 150€ you have pay import duties on top of VAT. I have no clue what that will be, since I haven't dealt with it myself, but it looks to be rather complicated... [and calculating current prices even 7 calendars + shipping could hit that threshold]

Morquard
2016-11-04, 07:16 PM
Those are the same numbers I found out. I'm not sure if shipping costs are included in the price to determine if you reach 150€ or not.

Halaku
2016-11-05, 04:53 AM
According to the zoll page, you pay the tax also for the sending, but if the total tax is smaller than 5 euros, there is no need to pay anything.

And, according to amazon
https://www.amazon.de/gp/help/customer/display.html?ie=UTF8&nodeId=200223930

books pay 7% VAT (calendars are books, right?), so the order of two calendars (55 dollars) would pay around 3.8 dollars < 5 euros -> No taxes

That's my interpretation, anyway

ChristianSt
2016-11-05, 11:18 AM
Honestly I have no clue. From what I found online (http://www.boersenverein.de/de/portal/glossar/157963?glossar=M&wort=293344) calendars are 19% (and from how I read your link it evens says the same). Maybe you can/have to argue at customs which VAT gets applied, but since I can't say for sure that the cheaper one gets applied (and I do not expect it), I don't want to plan too optimistic ;-).

But I guess no matter which VAT you have to pay, whether you order 1 or 2 calendars doesn't really affect customs payment. (since 7% => no payment 1 or 2; 19% => VAT for 1 or 2)

Halaku
2016-11-05, 05:08 PM
Well.. that sucks. As you said, it does not change much.. it is still cheaper to order 2, but it means 5 euros more per calendar.

Does anybody know how the VAT from something you order online is paid?

ChristianSt
2016-11-06, 04:21 PM
Does anybody know how the VAT from something you order online is paid?

Most often you have to go to the customs office and pay there (well, I guess you can be lucky that it will go through customs without being halted) - in recent times I had some things that I had to pay at delivery via DHL.

Morquard
2016-11-06, 04:36 PM
I think it depends. If they have to open the package to see what's inside, you'll have to go there, they ask you to open it. If they can access the invoice from the outside somehow, they might just do the latter.

Once (long ago), they actually called me, and I was able to send them the invoice via email, and I had to pay them later.

Onyavar
2016-11-06, 08:47 PM
I think we had a similar thread last year. The problem is (afair): the more you order, the more you pay. There is no breakeven. At a certain number of calendars, you cross package thresholds (pay more) or cross customs thresholds (pay more and spend more time at their office explaining your affairs to them; there are also holding fees and deadlines), not to mention your significant organization and repackaging costs (lose lots of time+energy to save 0.64 € or some such - or not!).
Also, if someone in the group wants any other products as well... See arguments above, multiply with 3.

Sad but true in my experience: It's more efficient to fly ten calendars/books in ten packages across the atlantic than ship them together. Blame the system.

Halaku
2016-11-08, 05:10 PM
well... this sucks

Every year I think about getting the calendar, and every year I give up because of the shipping costs.. :smallfrown:

I still think it is worth it to ship them in pairs, but the savings are not as good as I thought at the beginning. Life is hard xD