Re: [CR]import duty question

Import duty? This is my experience in importing bikes and bike parts (for the last 10 years)

1. Some items are duty free- derailluers, chains and rubber tires and tubes come to mind immediately.

2. Some items are assessed with a 10% duty, known as the Wald Tax- baskets, kickstands, one pc cranks, cottered cranks etc. Anything that was made in the US during the 60/'s and 70's will probably fall into that.

3. Some items are between the two, based on the whims of Customs (or Homeland Security or whatever they call it these days) and various lobbying groups outside the bike industy (see below), like frames (but forks are free.....) computers, steel wire, bolts and nuts.

4. Some things, like raw steel tubing are currently assessed a 40% tarrif (so much for NAFTA and the WTO).

5. A copy of duty rates that pertain to bikes is available through the BPSA for like $2,000 for non members (and it is really the only concise source for the correct HTS #'s).

6. If you do a lot of importing with many shipments via air and ocean it is better to find a customs broker and have them itemize all the goods for you. UPS, fed ex, etc in my experience just adds 10% to your bill for duty since there is a general heading for bikes and parts that customs asseses. If this is a one shot deal, then just eat the 10% duty and add it to your freight and brokerage costs.

7. It is up to you- the importer of record- to submit an accurate duty for the stuff you import. The broker will not be held responsible and Customs like the IRS assumes you are guilty until you prove your innocence. And like the IRS, ignorance of the law is not an excuse, especially if you are caught more than once. This ususally requires you to look up the HTS number and make a note of it on the commercial invoice. Doing this will save you and the broker lots of grief.

8. When you fly back into the US, you have to make a declaration of goods you are carrying on you, outside fo your personal possessions. if the total is under $400.00 then they wave you on. if it is more than that, you are hit with a 10% duty based on the declared value. Customs expects you to declare samples but from my experience no on ever does that. Now if you have 450 'samples' of bikes sitting in a container in Long Beach CA, well they will think something is fishy and wil probably impound the ctr, Xray it for explosives and human cargo and then see where the duty falls and then you will pay fines on top of that.

There is no nutshell with Customs, its more like a nut grove.

Tom Martin Oakland CA I know way too much about this stuff, or maybe just enough to get myself in trouble.