I am looking at vintage and antique lenses on e-Bay. Several have caught my attention but they are in the UK. What complications will come up in importing one of them into the USA?
Total purchase will be under $300 including shipping.
I am looking at vintage and antique lenses on e-Bay. Several have caught my attention but they are in the UK. What complications will come up in importing one of them into the USA?
Total purchase will be under $300 including shipping.
Drew Bedo
www.quietlightphoto.com
http://www.artsyhome.com/author/drew-bedo
There are only three types of mounting flanges; too big, too small and wrong thread!
I have never had an import problem with any used lens from any country.
Tin Can
Thanks TC: No problems. . .good to hear. What about import duty and so on? Are there any additional expenses to be expected?
Drew Bedo
www.quietlightphoto.com
http://www.artsyhome.com/author/drew-bedo
There are only three types of mounting flanges; too big, too small and wrong thread!
If the item is mailed, none. If the item is sent by a courier service such as FedEx or UPS, the service may charge you a customs brokerage fee -- usually large -- for seeing the item through US customs. Have it sent by Royal Mail.
Most of the items I've bought overseas come through the various mail services and I've never paid any additional fees. Don't know if film and paper is any different import-wise, but bought these supplies from fotoimpex several times and they ship DHL. Again, no additional charges ever.
Some credit cards charge a currency translation fee. Use a card that does not, or pay from your bank account.
Keith Pitman
Hmm. PayPal charges a currency translation fee too. It is endurable.
I've made several international bank transfers. The first two were to purchase a used car and have it serviced. No problem, the payee was in the UK and the bank sent sterling. The third was to buy a bellows from a dealer in France. The dealer set US dollars, the seller's bank charged him a large currency translation fee. If you pay by bank transfer, make sure that the bank sends the funds in the recipients currency.
About DHL. They've performed well on some deliveries to me, horribly on others. The worst experience convinced me to avoid DHL at nearly all costs. I once bought a lens from a seller in Germany. He shipped by DHL. It disappeared for several months, eventually turned up on his doorstep. DHL insisted that I had refused delivery. The seller and I forced an investigation. Turns out the lens never left Germany. DHL accepted it, put the parcel in a corner and lied about what they'd done.
Things arrive pretty quickly with Royal Mail. No problems ever, no additional expenses other than currency fees which are to be expected
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I haven't had a problem with Ebay per se but I bought a Plaubel Veriwide 100 from a store in Vienna Austria and was hit with an import fee for it.
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