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Really, so how do you explain this and this.

Plus the product was an ebook, so there is no "importing" taking place.

Here is a screenshot of my cart on ereader at checkout.

Tezza, "Please tell me where I'm struggling under the weight of that?"

So you started a clothing line in Australia, moved to the UK and you are no longer trading, but they still send you the forms and you fill them out?

Admittedly, I can see where you aren't exactly overburdened with paperwork, but why the hell are you still signing the forms?

"I don't see any British equivalent."

Self-assessment can be returned electronically; VAT can be returned electronically (although most financial packages will actually print on the form), PAYE can be submitted electronically. That's all I checked for, but you may have missed the paperwork that drops through any business owners door on a semi-frequent basis.

No its not - you just have to pay the tax!

UK tax rules

I am brewing my own biodiesel legally in the UK!

http://prisonerblog.zapto.org

So far I have only made small experimental batches - the equipment is not yet ready to make a fuel-tank full (should be this weekend once I get my filter equipment up and running).

I am relying on the hundreds of case studies for people using this stuff in unmodified diesel engines for my confidence of success! The best site I have found is:

Journey to forever - biofuels

Uk regulations can be found at:

UK biodiesel production regulations

But a little googling will turn up much more info.

I will be updating my site as soon as I have more to tell on my own little greasy odyssey ;o)

This is definatley in access of the 145 Pound(money not weight) allowence:

Try the Apple Store in Soho. They'll have great laptops.

<tongue_in_cheek>Don't forget to declare your new laptop to customs, though--if you don't, you'll be a damned, dirty tax cheat. Nobody likes a damned, dirty tax cheat.</tongue_in_cheek>

(Oh, bear in mind--you'll be stuck with a US QWERTY keyboard. No Euro key or Pound key, among other things--you'll need to remap and remember...)

Forget about that Dell business. Michael is a pawn of Bush (or is it the other way around?) and their former spokesman was fired for a joint. (Word is he's now the spokesman for Dell Canada, instead?)

Two-words: Apple SoHo.

justen
(A Mac-fanatic Democrat, in case you couldn't tell...)

p.s. You might wanna' ask Her Majesty about customs and such.

VAT, Value Added Tax, is a tax added to almost everything you buy: in the UK it's 17.5%, I think the highest in the EU is about 19%, the EU want everywhere's tax to be about 17.5% (I can't remember the exact value) as at the moment each country has a different rate. If you but something from the EU, within the EU (i.e. a German buying a Greek thingy) then you don't pay any import taxes because you paid the VAT (I think, IANAL). In the UK, you don't pay VAT on: * Ordinary food (luxury food, like chocolate, biscuits (cookies), microwave-meals and so on is taxed though) * Books * Children's clothes and shoes VAT page from HMCE (Her Majesty's Customs and Excise) for more info.

That '30GBP' is actually 18GBP, IIRC...
It was the last time I checked the relevant (and labyrinthine) regulations at the Customs and Excise web page, and I think that figure is set EU-wide.
UK importation laws are in dire need of being re-written, preferably by someone with a clue.

Nope, you're wrong, see section 3.4 of the VAT Ins and Outs guide. You could only delay paying VAT if you were operating the Cash Accounting Scheme, but this is only for small companies (turnover less than GBP600k).

Similar rules apply in the rest of Europe, I believe.

Yes newspapers are VAT free, but the law refers specifically to "printed matter". Although the philosophical justification for zero-rating books etc. is that VAT would represent a "tax on learning", the law doesn't extend the same consideration to websites. Customs and Excise notice 701/10 (which is available online here, but I don't know the exact url) states that "Any non-printed matter, such as audio or video cassettes or CD Rom is standard-rated. This includes the storage and distribution of textual information by fax, e-mail, microfiche, or any similar process" (section 1.17).

"If someone emigrates to the UK they do not pay VAT or any tax on the possessions"

True, but not because the goods are second hand. There's a general relief from VAT and duty for "Transfer of Residence", but it is subject to some rules. The relief only applies to goods which you've owned for a certain period and there used to be (and maybe still are, I don't know) restrictions on how long you had to wait before disposing of them, too.

"no VAT should be chargeable for auctioned items that are not new (being sold by retail via auction)"

This is irrelevant in the context of the article, since it relates to the services provided in connection with the sale, rather than the sale itself. That said, second-hand goods are, in fact, liable to duty and VAT at import. You would generally expect to pay less than for new items, but only because their second-handness would presumably be reflected in their value.

"Within the EU, a person pays VAT to the member state that the item purchased is purchased from"

In general terms, private purchasers and businesses which aren't registered for VAT pay in the state where the sale occurs i.e. where the vendor is located. VAT-registered businesses account for their purchases in the state they're registered in.

From July, you have the same issue with the tax rates whether you are in the US or the EU (it is the change inside the EU which has forced the change outside). You don't have 15 times as much paperwork as you can register in just one place under the Special Scheme for non-EU businesses.

Shipping and handling is not counted for customs, so perhaps £6.70 wasnt worth the vat (£1.20 extra), or perhaps UPS had something to do with it.

Yeah... Her Majesty's Customs and Excise charged me the princely sum of £26 ($38) in import duty, then they charged VAT (17.5%) on top of that. It seems the logistics companies are allowed to charge a £10 processing fee when collecting the tax, which obviously gives them a big incentive to make sure you pay the taxes, they used to just turn a blind eye until 18 months ago because it was hassle for them.