When buying old (circa 1950s) but working valves from the USA is it normal to pay VAT on the import?
When buying old (circa 1950s) but working valves from the USA is it normal to pay VAT on the import?
Location: Dagenham Essex
Posts: 11,215
I'm Allen.
Unless the valves are over 100 years old.
Current Lash Up:
TEAC VRDS 701T > Sony TAE1000ESD > Krell KSA50S > JM Labs Focal Electra 926.
Location: Suffolk
Posts: 1,998
I'm guy.
Do they have to come from the states? I have bought a few old valves from Germany (via ebay) and had no extra charges.
I've all but given up buying anything from US because Royal Mail seem to think it's a cash cow for them. They charge outlandish handling fees regardless of actual value of the goods. With import duty/VAT/Royal Mail protection racket fees then usually any reduction in purchase price is likely to be negated. The exception is OWC computing for MAC bits but you pay top dollar for international next day UPS delivery.
For sourcing hard to get NOS tubes from a trusted non US supplier you can do a lot worse than WiWi tubes (http://www.wiwitubes.com/en/about.php) - they are my go to store if I can't source in UK - highly recommended
Steve
Always a little further