Those who regularly buy various goods on foreign Internet sites must have encountered the customs service of the country of residence. Through the hands of workers in this field of activity pass all the mail sent to the country. Customs officers examine the contents of the parcels for legality and consider the procedure for paying the corresponding fee. Such a fee is paid in the country where the goods are sent. That is, if you sent a parcel from Australia to Russia, then you will pay the tax in accordance with Russian law.
In this article we will consider the basic rules for the passage of mail through the state border of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan. And we find out what tax on parcels from abroad must be paid in each of these countries.
Some terminology
Customs clearance - a set of procedures related to the clearance of goods crossing the border. Registration of interstate shipments (mail) is carried out through IMGO (places of international mail exchange) located in the recipient's country. In Russia, there are 24 such points. All of them have varying degrees of workload, which depends on the popularity of trade and transport routes.
MPO - postal item (international), forwarded goods, package, package.
Declared value (estimated, customs) - the value of the goods being transported, appointed by the sender or established by the customs control officer. The tax on foreign parcels depends on how much the shipped goods cost.
Duty - a tax charge calculated by customs officers.
Duty-free limit - the rate of cargo at cost or weight, for which tax is not levied at the border. The limit is set in accordance with the legislation of the recipient country.
The Customs Union is a single zone consisting of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, which is a common customs territory. This means that the customs tax on parcels shipped within these countries does not take.
Customs clearance methods
Delivery of goods to the country and subsequent customs clearance of cargo can be carried out in various ways:
- Personally by the recipient. In the event that there is a need to pay an additional tax on parcels, the recipient himself deals with this issue - goes to customs, fills out the necessary documents, pays the fee and picks up the goods.
- By courier service. If the goods being forwarded comply with the established standards, all clearance will be taken over by employees of the special delivery service. If the courier is not accredited to work with IGOs, an additional fee will be charged from the client.
- Customs broker. Usually they resort to their services only in controversial cases, since the work of a broker costs a lot. Usually they charge at least 10% of the amount of the due fee (in practice, much more). Also, delivery services that do not have the right to work with MPOs (UPS, DHL, TNT and others) are forced to contact brokers. Moreover, VAT is additionally added to the amount of the duty.
- Mail operator. With this option, all questions related to customs are taken over by the Russian Post. In this case, the tax on the parcels is drawn up in the form of a regular receipt, which the recipient will pay when he picks up the goods at the department. A regular notice will be sent to your home address that he has received the package.
Fees in Belarus
Now let's talk about what tax on foreign parcels is paid by citizens of a country. Let's start with Belarus. It is in this country that the stakes are the toughest.
Since mid-April of this year, the duty-free limit in Belarus is only 22 β¬, and the weight of the item cannot exceed 10 kg. Moreover, this is the monthly rate per recipient. If the parameters of the shipment exceed the norm, you will have to pay a tax on international parcels. The duty is 30% of the amount exceeding the established limit (but not Λ 4 β¬ per 1 kg of cargo). And if the value of the goods received exceeds 1,000 β¬ - the rate increases to 60%. In addition, for the fact of customs clearance, you will have to pay an additional 5 β¬ for each parcel.
In the event that delivery is carried out by a courier service, you will have to additionally draw up a customs declaration. You can do this yourself or ask a customs broker for help. By the way, if you decide to use the services of a courier service, you should know that the tax on foreign parcels received with their help, you will pay for anything that exceeds the duty-free limit of 10 euros (instead of 22 β¬).
Until all the formalities are followed, the postal item is located at a customs point located directly at the airport.
Kazakhstan
The tax on parcels from abroad in this country is one of the most loyal. You will have to pay a fee if:
- the cost of all shipments received in one month exceeded 1 thousand euros;
- the weight of all goods that came from abroad to your name within a month exceeded 31 kg.
Kazakh customs have some features. Here you need to not only understand which packages are taxed, but also know the shipping rate for some products:
- food products - not more than 10 kg per month;
- cosmetics - maximum 3 pieces of one kind;
- caviar (sturgeon or salmon) - not more than 250 grams;
- sports equipment, prams, household appliances and some other goods - 1 pc. per person;
- bedding, shoes, clothes, toys, bicycles, kitchen and household utensils - a maximum of 2 pieces of one type of product;
- jewelry - 6 pieces.
And most importantly - the tax on international parcels is not paid only for 1 shipment per month.
Ukrainian customs
Ukraine has a law that came into force on April 1, 2014. In accordance with it, the limit on duty-free import of goods is 150 β¬ per day (or 50 kg by weight).
In case of non-compliance with the norm, the parcel tax is 10% of the excess of the limit, to which 20% VAT and clearance fee (about 2 euros) are added. If the parcel weighs more than 100 kg or its total value exceeds 10,000 β¬, the cost of insurance and delivery of goods will be added to all the above.
All of the above, for clarity, can be placed in the table:
Parcel cost Λ 150 β¬ Weight Λ 50 kg | Parcel cost Λ150 β¬, but Λ 10 000 β¬ Weight Λ50 but Λ 100 kg | Parcel cost Λ 10 000 β¬ Weight Λ 100 kg |
| The customs duty for one person once a day is 0%. | The duty is 10% of excess + 20% VAT + fee for paperwork | 10% of excess + 20% VAT + fee for paperwork + insurance + delivery |
In Ukraine, there are also requirements for the contents of parcels:
- products - no more than 10 kg per 1 parcel;
- electronic equipment or communications - maximum 2 pieces;
- other norms.
If you do not follow the rules, the parcel may be recognized as commercial, and payment rates will be completely different.
How to pay tax at Russian customs
In Russia today, the tax on parcels from abroad is the same as in Kazakhstan:
- monthly limit - 1 000 β¬;
- weight - no more than 31 kg.
For excess of standards a fee of 30% for the surplus is charged. In this case, the amount may not be lower than 4 β¬ / kg of excess weight.
Example:
- A package weighs 30 kg and costs 2300 β¬. The duty will be: (2300 - 1000) * 30% = 1200 * 0.3 = 360 β¬.
- Departure weighs 40 kg and costs 380 β¬. The duty will be: (40 - 31) * 4 = 36 β¬.
If both the cost and the weight of the postal item do not fit into the norm, the duty is calculated in two ways, after which a large amount is presented for payment.
Exceptions to the Rules
All of the above is true for the transfer of personal goods. However, there is a group of products that do not fall within this definition. These include:
- gaming machines;
- medical equipment;
- ICE (engines);
- furniture for medical purposes (couches, massage tables and more);
- tanning salons;
- equipment for photo laboratories;
- other goods, the full list of which can be found on the website of the FCS.
In addition, a special scheme pays a fee for the so-called indivisible goods. A special scheme applies here: duty + VAT + excise duty. To calculate the amount of such a payment, you need to additionally find out the HS code of a specific product.
Can the rules be circumvented?
If youβre used to buying quite a lot of goods abroad, and you donβt want to pay the package tax, you can try to circumvent existing standards. If the cost of goods does not fit the limit, the parcel should be divided into two or three smaller ones. It should be remembered that the interval between shipments should be more than 30 days.
There is another option: break the package into several parts, and send each of them to different people. Parcels can be sent not to your address, but at the place of residence of a friend or relative. Just remember to warn them about it. After all, they will have to pick up the shipment.
If you live in Belarus and have already chosen your limit of 22 β¬ per month, you can do so. Find a friend / relative in Russia or Kazakhstan, where the duty-free limit on the import of goods is much higher. Ask them to order a package of no more than β¬ 1,000 in their name (of course, give them money for this). When they receive the package, they will be able to send it to you for free in Belarus. Since these three countries are members of the Customs Union, there is no fee for shipping goods between them.
What awaits us in the near future
For some time now, there has been persistent talk in Russia that the duty-free import rate should be tightened. There are several options for this:
- pay 15 β¬ for parcels, the cost of which is more than 22, but less than 150 β¬, with a weight of not more than 10 kg;
- for goods more expensive and heavier than the above, it is proposed to pay 15 β¬ + 30% of the customs value.
Other suggestions sound. For example, tighten the rules to the standards adopted in Belarus. So far, all this is talk. However, no one guarantees that the rules will be changed soon.
Shopaholic tips
Since you now know for sure whether packages from AliExpress, E-Bay and other trading floors are taxed, you should adjust the schedule of your purchases.
If you nevertheless decided to purchase goods abroad, the cost or weight of which exceeds the established limits, choose delivery by regular mail. In this case, you will only pay the fee. If courier services or brokers are involved in the shipment, the amount of the overpayment will increase significantly.
You should not order a lot of goods of the same type, if you can not prove their non-commercial purpose. For example, if you have five children, then 8 identical shirts of different sizes can still be explained somehow. But 15 footballs clearly demonstrate the commercial purpose of the parcel.