Does anyone have experience of importing?

Hi, i want to send a parcel of computer components to a US buyer (i live in the UK), but i am very confused as to what duties may apply to what i am sending. I am also stumped at what the country of origin of the product should be, as 300 sticks of RAM and 100's of CPU's have multiple places of origin, some of which are a mystery. If anyone has any experience of importing into the US i could really do with some advice. Thanks.

You can circumvent tariffs and duties if you take a piece of the computer off, put it in a second box, tape it to the outside of the box with the computer in it and then write or stencil on the outside of the box "For assembly in the United States". So long as it is being assembled in the US, it's providing, so far as customs is concerned, someone in the US a job, and thus you can circumvent the normal tariffs and taxes normally charged against the shipper.

Scott

Scott, do you mean they could ship boxes of RAM, CPU's and boards duty free as long as the boxes of parts were labeled "for assembly in the USA"?

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Originally Posted by NobleMetalWorks

You can circumvent tariffs and duties if you take a piece of the computer off, put it in a second box, tape it to the outside of the box with the computer in it and then write or stencil on the outside of the box "For assembly in the United States". So long as it is being assembled in the US, it's providing, so far as customs is concerned, someone in the US a job, and thus you can circumvent the normal tariffs and taxes normally charged against the shipper.

Scott

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Would the same apply if i said they were being sent to be tested and/or repaired?

I think they might actually be a duty free import anyway, i just found a calculator site but it may be wrong.

Depending on who you're shipping with, you should probably start by talking to them. As far as the country of origin goes, you might be able to use UK, as it is where the items were first purchased. As far as import value/duties are concerned, maybe your shipper can help with this also, I would look at declaring it as "scrap for recycling" or some such class of goods, where the buyer would not be faced with excessive fees(which will no doubt be deducted from your return)

This is how Japan can ship so many cars to the U.S. They send them in pieces and they are assembled here in the U.S.

There is no duty on ram and CPUs if you need the tariff codes let me know

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Originally Posted by Rogue

Would the same apply if i said they were being sent to be tested and/or repaired?

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I believe this applies to anything that is being brought into the United States, and requires labor. The idea is that bringing things into the United States that requires labor, also generates jobs.

Also, you might want to check the free trade agreements the United States has in place with other countries. For example, I used to ship a lot of computers, working, to be re-purposed in the country of Jordan because there exists a free trade agreement between the United States and the country of Jordan.

Scott