Item received for which I paid customs fees twice
Summary: A participant bought an item in Singapore via eBay and paid import taxes, but had to pay them again when receiving the package. After checking with Chronopost, there was no trace of the initial payment. Another user suggested checking an eBay link to get reimbursed, and the issue was resolved. Another member shared a similar experience with an order in England where VAT was paid twice, and despite several refund requests to eBay, there was no response. Advice was given on the procedure to follow to obtain a refund, including contacting the carrier with the appropriate documents. However, some requests to La Poste did not succeed, leaving the fees to be paid by the customer.
Hello
I bought an item in Singapore for $250, and when I made this purchase I paid $74.40 "import VAT taxes" collected by EBAY.
However, when my parcel was received, I had to pay the import taxes again, €75, claimed by Chronopost.
So I contacted the customs department at Chronopost International, where I was told that there is no record of the taxes being paid by Ebay.
What is the solution to get a refund, thank you for your help.
bon_6373
·1 year agoI'll pick up the thread of the discussion to give you the epilogue to my troubles.
After all the steps indicated by francexpressdeal (thanks again to him) and after 6 weeks of waiting (2 emails - 3 weeks between each email...) the post office refused to hear anything about issuing the refund and passes the buck to ebay to get the refund. Knowing that in this case the €8 in post office handling fees stays on my dime...
Even though I went to pick up my parcel at the post office with all the proof of the VAT payment made on ebay.
If this can help others avoid getting taken in.
yamxte
·1 year agoHello, I have the same issue, with a delivery from Japan, I do have the Chronopost invoice with the amounts paid in cash to the delivery driver, but eBay does not want to take it into account because it is not marked "paid"! so I am trying to get proof of payment from Chronopost and, there, a flat refusal, because for them, the invoice should be enough !!!!
in short, I am at an impasse
What should I do?
Thanks
frelonverre
·1 year ago@yamxte
don't buy on eBay outside the EU anymore, in your case you're stuck between two autistics
bon_6373
·1 year agoThanks, I’ve already gone and looked at that post, I even replied to it... It’s not a matter of a $20 dispute, it’s more about putting a finger on a widespread scam (besides, that’s kind of the point of the post you mention as well as other posts of the same kind), which is why I referred to the DGCRF.
As for the "buy French" comment, it’s rather inappropriate in my case: it was a second-hand accessory for a Peugeot RIFTER, unfortunately impossible to find in France and insanely expensive new, so it wasn’t really my choice to buy it in England.
francexpressdeal
·1 year agoHello @bon_6373
"This isn’t a story about a €20 dispute, it’s more about putting a finger on a widespread scam"
This is absolutely not a scam.
When you make a purchase outside the EU, you pay import VAT at the time of purchase. The seller must absolutely note the IOSS number provided by ebay on the shipment. This number lets customs know that you have paid this import VAT.
However, many sellers do not note this number. So for customs, the VAT has not been paid and they ask you in that case to pay it.
Either you get reimbursed by ebay, or by the carrier.
It is preferable to get reimbursed by the carrier because in addition to this VAT amount, handling fees are often added. And for those, the carrier will reimburse them, but not ebay.
bon_6373
·1 year agothanks for your reply, this is the kind of information I was expecting.
Well unfortunately for the carrier it's the post office... And even with the ebay invoice they wouldn't hear any of it and I couldn't even pay the reduced fees before midnight as indicated on the delivery notice by scanning the QRCODE (there was nothing on the site allowing payment). According to several posts it seems to be at the discretion of the post office branch and complaints to customer service don't seem to go anywhere.
To be more precise, and this is the purpose of my message to the community, I would have liked to have your opinion/experience and know whether there was anything to be done on ebay's side because :
- the listing clearly stated "Prices are increased by VAT depending on the delivery address. No additional customs fees will be applied"
- I did send requests via the link https://ocswf.ebay.fr/mudcwf?deptName=CollectRemitRefund but I have not had any response from them
francexpressdeal
·1 year ago@bon_6373
As for La Poste, I had the same problem twice and there was no issue.
You need to send them:
- The eBay invoice on which the import VAT amount is clearly shown
- The invoice for what you actually paid at La Poste. You need to ask them for what they call the CN50 (which details the VAT amount + the handling fees)
You can also request it online:
https://www.laposte.fr/justificatif-droits-taxes
Once they have all the documents, though, you should expect a refund delay of up to 3 weeks.
- For eBay, what proof did you send?
And logically, the request is made either to the carrier or to eBay, but not both...
bon_6373
·1 year agogreat, that's exactly the info I needed.
I'll try the process with the post office.
On eBay's side, I sent (in addition to my order reference):
- the screenshot of the item's purchase mentioning that there would be no customs duties
- the receipt for my post office invoice mentioning the €20 customs fees
Thank you very much, hoping this will be helpful to others too
francexpressdeal
·1 year ago@bon_6373
for eBay, you say you sent " the receipt for my postal invoice mentioning the €20 for customs fees"
The receipt? What do you mean?
What they need is an invoice on which the import VAT amount that the carrier charged you appears clearly. Hence the importance of asking La Poste for the C50 invoice.
bon_6373
·1 year agoThe post office seemed less informed than you; I only had a ticket without the detail you mention. But now that I’ve received the invoice thanks to the link you sent me, I’ll be able to send it to them. Unless it would be better to take the steps with the post office in the hope of recovering the handling fees in addition to the VAT? If so, do you contact customer service or is there an online process?
francexpressdeal
·1 year agoSmall correction: for the Post Office, it’s not the CN50, but the C50 invoice.
bon_6373
·1 year agoHowever, I don't have any C50 mention on the postal receipt (I was a bit surprised, by the way, to have only a payment receipt and not an invoice), and I no longer have the delivery notice. I only still have the parcel reference
francexpressdeal
·1 year ago" I have no C50 mention on the post office ticket"
The C50 is an invoice as already explained.
"For the steps with the post office afterwards, do you need to call them at 3631 or is there a link to do it online?"
I had called 3631 and sent the documents to an email address they gave me.
They have a very specific procedure, so ask them to give it to you in detail.
bon_6373
·1 year agoI received the document from the post office just fine using the link you provided and entering the package number. For the next steps with the post office, do I need to call them at 3631 or is there a link to do it online?
frelonverre
·1 year ago@bon_6373
life is funny, two days ago I helped a lady with a seat belt problem on a Rifter, even though the seat belt was clicked in the car still beeps and the rear right sliding door no longer wants to open even though it is unlocked
for the seat belt, unplug the wire under the seat ( watch out, no more seat belt pretensioner and a warning light on the dashboard )
for the door, I got fed up
bon_6373
·1 year agoHello, I have a somewhat similar problem.
I ordered an item in England. In the listing it was clearly stated "Prices are increased by VAT depending on the shipping address. No additional customs fees will be applied".
Upon delivery, the post office is asking me for €20, which I had to pay.
I used the link in eBay help to indicate that I paid twice, but this is the second time in a week that I’ve made the request and there’s been no response, not even an email from them. What should I do? A PayPal dispute appeal? Open a case with the DGCCRF ?
Thanks for your replies
frelonverre
·1 year ago@bon_6373
check out the reply from @felin12 in this post
https://communaute.ebay.fr/t5/Livraison/La-Poste-Fran%C3%A7aise-v%C3%A9ritable-arnaque/m-p/2940514#M16766
and then another thing, the ddccrf has better things to do than deal with $20 disputes
if it bothers you, buy in France
wikket74
·1 year agoHi
you have to be careful because otherwise they line their pockets....if you don't ask for anything you won't get anything.
When paying VAT twice, know that it's the same amount (paid twice, then)
Customs fees are something else.
Let's stay focused.
*miss-tigri*
·2 years agoHello
See this link to get reimbursed
https://www.ebay.fr/help/buying/paying-items/payer-les-taxes-sur-les-achats-effectus-sur-ebay?id=4771&st=3&pos=1&query=Payer%20les%20taxes%20sur%20les%20achats%20effectu%C3%A9s%20sur%20eBay&intent=Taxe&lucenceai=lucenceai&docId=HELP1425
yam1a3
OP2 years agoThanks "miss-tigri", everything is back to normal.