I wonder are there any european pipers out there who could help.
If someone in Europe buys a set of Uilleann Pipes from a US maker, do we have to pay import duty? If so does anyone know at what rate?
Would it be more realistic to buy from within Europe if taxes are incurred?
Thanks.
Mark
Unfortunately our beloved Gordon Brown (chancellor) needs all the money he can get and this is yet another source he can use. Not certain of the current rate but Customs and Excise will advise.
Look at makers in Eire, UK as well as US - list on the NPU website. Visit makers where possible - if not ask if anyone has the makers pipes in your area - might be possible to see them.
Chris
i live in belgium now, and got t-shirts posted from the U.S. they were labeled as “present”.
i paid no income taxes that way
T-Shirts aren’t pipes and one can understand why Customs doesn’t get excited over collecting or not collecting duties on a $20 T-Shirt.
Proper declaration for export from the US would not declare an item as a ‘gift’. No matter if it is a gift or it is not. If the transaction is reported correctly (the price of the pipes or, in the instance of repair work, the value of the repair work (whether money has changed hands or not)), duties will be assessed.
Carrying the pipes over does not change the situation as a Customs declaration would be required at arrival. I understand that it is pretty painful to be caught in Customs (even if one is lucky to be allowed to amend one’s declaration) as once your Passport is marked (through the computer system), they will ALWAYS look you over when passing through.
Note that if a set is sent away for refurbishment or repair, one should record the information on the set on the export documentation; best to have a serial number or marking on the set that could be verified on import or RETURN AFTER REPAIR.
I think it adds a whopping great 21% to the cost of goods,by the time you’ve paid import tax,vat etc. OUCH!
Hi,
As far as I know the duty varies depending on the item being imported. If I remember correctly I was quoted about 4.5% for a flute. What they do is take the value of the item, add the postage cost, add the duty and then add VAT at 17.5%!!! Best to check before you buy, you can contact them by phone on the number listed here:
http://www.hmce.gov.uk/business/importing/imports.htm
Cheers, Mac
I recentlly swapped a set with a guy in the states.Value of set 3000$ I had to pay import duty of £425.
He didnae have to pay import duty at his end.
Liam
Hi Uilliam,
that would be close to 21% or thereabouts when you’d add the postage. Pipes must be rated around about the same as a flute. I read on a makers website that you don’t have to pay duty if you’re in USA and import a set of pipes. That’s likely the reason the other guy had nothing to pay in the way of duty. The duty’s way over the top, it’d be a shock if you weren’t expecting it.
Cheers, Mac
Hya Mac the value was £3000 not $ and yep it was a bolt out o the blue.Take care and enjoy yer pipering
Slan go foill
:Liam 
Now…if it were me…
I’d find a very worthless, [nailed on a pub wall] sort of set and send that to the states “for repair”
…and get a very nice new shiny set back in due course.
I’d then have lots of documentation to prove i’d sent pipes for restoration…would that get me round the duty?
Boyd 
The burden is on the exporter who signs the export paperwork.
Does the claim of ‘returned for repairs’ really work ??
I’ve heard a few horror stories of people buying items and claiming much less than their real value only to be disapointed when the item is damaged (or lost) in transit and the money from the insurance claim isn’t enough to repair or replace the item.
An item ‘returned for repair’ can still be insured for its full value. Customs only collects duty on the value of the transaction.
But you’ve hit on the practical problem. If one declares something extremely low, that is all one will collect from lost/damage insurance.
Liam, I got a recent bill for $500 from the state of TN who wanted their cut of tax on the set we exchanged! I read the tax code and I was able to get out of the responsibility on fine print where it stated that the “occasinal sale” by an individual is not taxed. If you’d have been retailer then I’d been out the $$$.
I know of a fella in the US who purchased a second-hand Woof set and sent them to GW for repair. Eire wanted duty on them so they were shipped back without repair only to be shipped back to GW with the help of a friend who worked for FedEx and somehow passsed it thru customs without duty required.
It can all be done legally through its Commercial Invoice, presented to Customs on export. The article should be thoroughly described through its markings - serial number is best. The CI should state SENT FOR REPAIR or RETURN AFTER REPAIR as appropriate.
Country policies differ but if the item had not been re-exported within 6 months to 1 year, duties will be assessed on the full item.
They’re TAXING our PIPES?!?!?
Some fool tried to tax coffee in Boston last month, prompting yet another “Tea” Party with gaily-decorated colonials jettisoning java from wooden skiffs. What say we all row out on the nearest body of water and lob over burlap bags full of uilleann pipes.
B(oston-bound) C(hiffette)
The US is a unique situation in that pipes are specifically exempt from import duties. States don’t usually try to collect on such importations, so that thing from TN is a little strange.
Anywhere else is a completely different matter. I’m an American national in Canada on a work visa, and I have to say that one of the worst things about Canada is Customs Canada. They tax everything. No matter what. I had sent a flute back to the US for repair, and it got impounded by Customs Canada until they could determine whether to charge me for the value of the flute, or for the value of the repair.
The stupid thing is that you nearly never get stopped on the way into this country. They don’t give a crap at the border, but through the mail . . . yeesh.
Stuart
Hopefully, they did go for the value of the repair. That’s where good paperwork comes in on the Commercial Invoice, identifying the instrument in a unique way and expressing EXPORT FOR REPAIR and on its return RETURN AFTER REPAIR. The instrument can be insured for full value and duties are only due on the repair transaction (the value of the repair).