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US import/tax when buying internationally--need advice!

lovedogs

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jul 31, 2014
Messages
18,023
Hi All,
I've been looking (on behalf of my family) for a special b-day present and came across David Michael's gorgeous designs. I've admired Pink Jewel's orchid ring for a long time (orchids are my favorite flower), but am looking for a pendant, and of course would want it to be unique and different colors, etc.

DM got back to me immediately yesterday and is currently drawing some ideas for the project. But since I am in the US and they are in AUS, I want to do some digging about customs fees/taxes for jewelry. My searching last night yielded conflicting results--some pages said import tax is capped at $485, others said it's a flat 5.5% of the total cost, and yet others said it depends on what specific materials/stones are used in the piece. Needless to say I am very confused and am hoping for some advice here.

Does anyone know the rules about this? And does it matter what state within the US the piece is shipped to (I live in CA where taxes are high, my family lives in WA where they are slightly lower, but I'm not entirely clear that state tax even comes into play here).

The reason this concerns me is that I am on a "tight" budget (for his designs), so I want to make sure I'm taking all costs into account before going ahead with something so costly.

Thanks in advance!
 

Resonance.Of.Life

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Nov 8, 2008
Messages
1,449
I live in Cali and called Malca Amit (I am having a piece made from another country) and they said there would be a 5.75% tax on the TOTAL VALUE of the item, even if the diamond was purchased in the US because it is a completed jewelry piece. Unless the jeweler ships the diamond and the jewelry piece separately, this is how you will be taxed.
 

lovedogs

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Jul 31, 2014
Messages
18,023
Resonance.Of.Life|1478019177|4092689 said:
I live in Cali and called Malca Amit (I am having a piece made from another country) and they said there would be a 5.75% tax on the TOTAL VALUE of the item, even if the diamond was purchased in the US because it is a completed jewelry piece. Unless the jeweler ships the diamond and the jewelry piece separately, this is how you will be taxed.

Perfect, that's very helpful. It will be a completed jewelry piece rather than a diamond + jewelry separately. Can I ask how did you knew to ask them specifically? One part I don't entirely understand is who to ask about this, which makes finding info even harder!

Thanks for replying--I appreciate the help, and hope you are correct (rather than me being charged significantly more!)
 

Resonance.Of.Life

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Nov 8, 2008
Messages
1,449
You can call customs or any shipping company as they have to collect the import tax/duties prior to releasing the shipment for further clarification.
 
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