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New EU VAT rules: the end of cheap pens from non-EU countries in the EU?

mr T.

By mr T.
in Fountain & Dip Pens - First Stop

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A Smug Dill Museum Piece

A Smug Dill

Posted
Posted
34 minutes ago, Detman101 said:

Wow! Ink samples are so light! I can't see how it could cost so much to send them... :o

 

I wrote about that in February:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/blogs/entry/201-end-of-sharing-ink-samples-by-post-economically/

 

I endeavour to be frank and truthful in what I write, show or otherwise present, when I relate my first-hand experiences that are not independently verifiable; and link to third-party content where I can, when I make a claim or refute a statement of fact in a thread. If there is something you can verify for yourself, I entreat you to do so, and judge for yourself what is right, correct, and valid. I may be wrong, and my position or say-so is no more authoritative and carries no more weight than anyone else's here.

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Detman101 Collectors Item

Detman101

Posted
Posted
14 minutes ago, A Smug Dill said:

 

I wrote about that in February:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/blogs/entry/201-end-of-sharing-ink-samples-by-post-economically/

 

Indeed! I saw that post way back then and popped in from time to time to read through it. Disheartening...but we, literally, have no choice in the matter.
At least, I can't figure out a way around this one...
Everything is on the decline but inflation :sad:

 

Eat The Rich_SIG.jpg

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A Smug Dill Museum Piece

A Smug Dill

Posted
Posted
22 minutes ago, Detman101 said:

At least, I can't figure out a way around this one...

 

By sending 72 ink samples at once to @LizEF, I managed to lower the apportioned (or average) shipping cost per sample to a personally acceptable level. That's how I get around my psychological hurdle of the shipping cost stopping me from sharing ink samples, when I think the exercise is meaningful; because it's not the total spend that actually mattered, but what in my framing was the value proposition.

 

What is getting killed off is the idea of buying, swapping, or gifting inks as <$10 micro-transactions to which one doesn't need to think twice about committing. That's OK; I don't mind that each decision to do with the hobby requiring lots of deliberation. Enjoyment of results doesn't have to come easy (in the sense of not having to ponder long and hard); and onerous endeavours are one valid way to really dive into the hobby.

 

It's a bit like doing away with offering single-visit passes to the gym for ≤$10, and making it uneconomical to be a casual user of the facilities. It doesn't stop people from signing up for the whole month or the whole year, in order to make it economically palatable; while some would-be newcomers could be deterred or scared away, others may be more committed than they otherwise would have been, having made the sizeable outlay of dollars upfront.

I endeavour to be frank and truthful in what I write, show or otherwise present, when I relate my first-hand experiences that are not independently verifiable; and link to third-party content where I can, when I make a claim or refute a statement of fact in a thread. If there is something you can verify for yourself, I entreat you to do so, and judge for yourself what is right, correct, and valid. I may be wrong, and my position or say-so is no more authoritative and carries no more weight than anyone else's here.

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Detman101 Collectors Item

Detman101

Posted
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15 minutes ago, A Smug Dill said:

 

By sending 72 ink samples at once to @LizEF, I managed to lower the apportioned (or average) shipping cost per sample to a personally acceptable level. That's how I get around my psychological hurdle of the shipping cost stopping me from sharing ink samples, when I think the exercise is meaningful; because it's not the total spend that actually mattered, but what in my framing was the value proposition.

 

What is getting killed off is the idea of buying, swapping, or gifting inks as <$10 micro-transactions to which one doesn't need to think twice about committing. That's OK; I don't mind that each decision to do with the hobby requiring lots of deliberation. Enjoyment of results doesn't have to come easy (in the sense of not having to ponder long and hard); and onerous endeavours are one valid way to really dive into the hobby.


True...it's all about how bad you want it...in the end.
Kinda like dating. You can sit and complain in loneliness....or say "F-it" and shoot your shot til you hit a bullseye.
Regardless of how much it cost, the satisfaction will soothe the burn.
Seeing/hearing about someones enjoyment of a received PIF ink is all the justification needed.
:D

Eat The Rich_SIG.jpg

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david-p Rare

david-p

Posted
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On 7/23/2021 at 10:34 PM, Dione said:

You will find that many UK companies that you might have previously bought from are still charging prices inclusive of VAT as they always did and will now supply the required IOSS number that will mean your items won't be stopped at customs if they are under the €150 threshold. 

 

I was under the impression that the change in EU regulations on 1 July did away with the €150 threshold for VAT and customs charges. I have rarely received anything that cost more than that.

 

David

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Dione Vintage

Dione

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Posted

I've read various documents that say a €150 allowance for sending goods with pre-paid VAT and an IOSS confirmation form came in force within the EU on July 1st 2021. I read this stuff because of ebay sales. I haven't read anything that now says it came in on July 1st then was subsequently done away with. Austria may differ I don't know.

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