Current shipping methods to EU

[Iemand91]

If I understand correctly; @EMPIRETECANDY has 2 shipping methods to the EU.
A regular "fast' way and a slower "tax free" way.

I usually received the packages with FedEx and that must have been the 'fast' way since shipping time was mostly less than a week.
As for extra import costs; if and when I would get them (mail through post from local Dutch FedEx); the extra costs for 1 camera were always like €10 or less.

With the 10th Anniversary lottery last July I won a prize that was sent out through PostNL. That also took about a week until it arrived at Dutch customs.
It spent 5 weeks there until it was sent back on September 3. Tracking said "undeliverable item" and I haven't heard a thing since. (whether if it arrived backed with Andy)
Tracking information (when it was sent to my adress) showed it as a bulk shipment; and while it was at the Dutch customs, PostNL couldn't tell me anything since it was still in bulk form at Dutch customs.

Well, what do you know, with the last lottery I won again! Twice! Don't know how I got that lucky here.
Today I got an email that shipping through standard channels to the EU may result in signifcant customs duties and to avoid those costs, I got recommended going for the tax-free method for a fee of €40.


So now I'm lost. Fast shipping was always a great experience, extra import cost were minimal.
I'm guessing the PostNL method was the slower 'tax free' method but that experience sucked for the both of us; I got no prize and don't know whether Andy has received it back.
Even if the tax-free method works; the extra costs wouldn't make sense since import costs have always been signifcantly less.

So any people here from the EU who have experience with either shipping methods and or @EMPIRETECANDY could give us some info about the current shipping methods to Europe?
Has shipping changed recently?

 

[duplo]

This is a complex situation caused by fedex and EU laws.

You always have to pay import tax aka VAT which is 21% in NL. Then you have to pay fedex a handling fee for custom service.

First problem is that fedex is between you and customs as an agent. So you cant talk to customs yourself. Fedex uses the value which is on the package/documents.

Another problem might be that you dont have an invoice/payment. So you might end up in a situation where you cant import anything if your local customs dont believe the value on the documents. They will ask fedex to send proof. Then they will contact you to get these information. Most time they cant because they dont have your email address. Even if you dont have any payment proof, so you cant import anything.

here in germany its always possible to contact the customs which fedex uses for import and deal with them directly without these idiots from fedex.

Once they ask fedex for payment proof, i sent everything to fedex but they didnt forward it to customs in cologne. Fedex support told me that customs dont release the package. So i called customs and emailed them the missing documents directly and they released the package within 30min.

Fedex is OK if customs believe the value on documents. DHL always ask for payment proof, its much harder and slower.


"Tax free" simply means a company inside the EU import the good with a fake value + fake invoice and forward it to you. You cant import anything to EU without paying customs. This is not the US ;-).

Few years ago there was a railway from china to russia through hungary and poland. This was real tax free. German customs stopped any package from hungary after a while and start custom clearance again.

 

[Iemand91]

This is a complex situation caused by fedex and EU laws.

You always have to pay import tax aka VAT which is 21% in NL. Then you have to pay fedex a handling fee for custom service.

Yes. I don't have recent examples, but I have one FedEx invoice from 2023 and it was €3,74 TAX and €5 advance payment commission for a total extra cost of €8,74.

First problem is that fedex is between you and customs as an agent. So you cant talk to customs yourself. Fedex uses the value which is on the package/documents.

Another problem might be that you dont have an invoice/payment. So you might end up in a situation where you cant import anything if your local customs dont believe the value on the documents. They will ask fedex to send proof. Then they will contact you to get these information. Most time they cant because they dont have your email address. Even if you dont have any payment proof, so you cant import anything.

I have never experienced it like that. Granted, it was always a single item (1 camera) but every single time my item arrived in less than a week from @EMPIRETECANDY and maybe a week or so later the FedEx invoice came with the extra import costs. Pay them online and it's done.

here in germany its always possible to contact the customs which fedex uses for import and deal with them directly without these idiots from fedex.

Once they ask fedex for payment proof, i sent everything to fedex but they didnt forward it to customs in cologne. Fedex support told me that customs dont release the package. So i called customs and emailed them the missing documents directly and they released the package within 30min.

Fedex is OK if customs believe the value on documents. DHL always ask for payment proof, its much harder and slower.

Andy has always send his stuff with FedEx and a few times with DHL. Never had that experience.

"Tax free" simply means a company inside the EU import the good with a fake value + fake invoice and forward it to you. You cant import anything to EU without paying customs. This is not the US ;-).

Oh I know!

Few years ago there was a railway from china to russia through hungary and poland. This was real tax free. German customs stopped any package from hungary after a while and start custom clearance again.

There was also the one stop shop that started from July 1, 2021 that changed things.

But I'm eager to hear from @EMPIRETECANDY what his current shipping methods are so we Europeans can make a calculated choice.
If his slower shipping method is €40 extra but has the disadvantages we've experienced with PostNL, I don't want to touch it.
The item was lost in shipping and never arrived. Sent back to Andy but haven't heard anything since (no tracking update and nothing from Andy whether he received it back).
So that shipping method sucked for the both of us.
(With the added negative thing the item was a prize and I feel bad about contacting/bothering Andy about it since he has actual paying customers/orders to work on)

I think it's best I would just use the fast shipping and pay the less then €10 import costs afterwards.

 

[duplo]

It seems that you dont understand customs.

It has nothing to do with fedex. If your local customs say they want a payment proof because they dont believe the value on the documents, fedex can do nothing. Even worse, if the clearance process takes too long they will charge you extra storage fees.

Sometimes they believe the fake value sometimes not.

With the other package. You have to contact the customs at the airport where fedex import. They know what happened. If you contact fedex, you are lost.

 

[Iemand91]

It seems that you dont understand customs.

It has nothing to do with fedex. If your local customs say they want a payment proof because they dont believe the value on the documents, fedex can do nothing. Even worse, if the clearance process takes too long they will charge you extra storage fees.

Sometimes they believe the fake value sometimes not.

With the other package. You have to contact the customs at the airport where fedex import. They know what happened. If you contact fedex, you are lost.

I think we're talking past each other.
I'm not talking about the link between shipping companies (DHL/FedEx/PostNL) and local customs, I'm talking about the actual shipping methods since Andy specifically mentions 2 different ways.
The fast way (which he mentions may result in signifcant customs duties) and the slow 'tax free' method.
I would just like to know what the actual difference are for us on the receiving side.

I presume i've always had the fast method and now this one time through PostNL was the slower method.