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That is if you don’t get caught at customs… you’ll have to pay at least the VAT on the value of your purchase and possible a duty as well. So if you want to do
by dogma1138 4y ago
That is if you don’t get caught at customs… you’ll have to pay at least the VAT on the value of your purchase and possible a duty as well.
So if you want to do it legally you’ll have to add 20-25% to the price which no longer makes it very appealing.
- sumedh 4y ago> That is if you don’t get caught at customs Do you still have to pay if the Mac is out of the box and you have used it?
- pjmlp 4y agoWhen I lived in Switzerland, some clever people thought about that, as it used to have lower taxes for electronics. It so happens that there are databases used by the customs agents that can trace back serial numbers to countries and purchase locations. So trying to make up a story on a random control can turn out pretty bad.
- walterbell 4y agoEach country has a database that tracks import fee payment history by OEM serial number of laptops and other electronic devices, based on shipments to other countries?
- pjmlp 4y agoI don't know how it actually works, rather an Interpol kind of database where products serial numbers are tracked in some way. Being caught on lies where we actually bought our phones or cameras, while being controlled on the French/Swiss border wasn't that out of the ordinary.
- walterbell 4y agoWas that necessary on every border crossing, e.g. showing copies of import fee payment receipts for each device? Sounds like a lot of overhead.
- pjmlp 4y agoA matter of luck when talking to the customs agents. Most of the time not at all, and then you get that one that wants to show off or had a bad day.
- dogma1138 4y agoAccording to the the law yes.
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- bomewish 4y agoJust take it out of the box and put it in your carryon, making it your 'work laptop' right? How would you risk being caught at customs?
- dogma1138 4y agoHow to get past customs isn’t the problem, however it’s still tax evasion. You can also buy a house much quicker in Europe if you find a way not to pay 50% of your income in tax… oh and that Porsche now looks quite affordable too..
- qwytw 4y ago> however it’s still tax evasion Not it's not. What are you even talking about? Buying goods for personal consumption/usage and bringing them into is perfectly legal..
- illiarian 4y agoThe probability of getting caught is low. Unless you're bringing back several boxes. Unpack, put it in your backpack, boom it's your personal item.
- dogma1138 4y agoAgain this isn’t about the probability it’s about the legality, saying that things are cheaper when you avoid tax is like saying water is wet.
- qwytw 4y ago> The probability of getting caught is low Why would it be illegal if you just bought a single laptop for personal usage?
- dogma1138 4y agoBecause you are avoiding tax, if you get caught you’ll pay the duty and a fine.
- jlangenauer 4y agoBecause you need to pay VAT on imports into the country above a certain value (which is much less than the cost of a Macbook).