Taking camera gear abroad (Customs Question)

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bigbigblue

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Peter
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I am off to Iceland at the end of January 2015, for a photography trip. I have receipts for most (but not all) of my camera gear and I am concerned about being stopped by customs on the way home and either having to pay duty and VAT on the items I have no receipt for, or having them seized.

So I asked HMRC a question - which was basically 'How do I go about registering my (unreceipted) camera equipment before I leave the UK so that I can prove it was not purchased abroad?'

The answer I got was: 'If your camera equipment is under $10,000 then there are no customs fees as they are seen as just being your personal items within your normal luggage items.'

Hmm.... they didn't answer my question and now I am worried about the $10,000 limit (and why is it dollars - and I presume they mean US Dollars - they didn't say)?

So, does anyone know:
1. how I can prove I had an item before I left the UK and am therefore not liable to pay duty and VAT on re-entry; and
2. Is there any duty or VAT to pay if you bring camera gear worth over $10,000 back into the country having taken it out, having originally purchased it within the UK (duty and VAT having been paid).

It is bad enough having to keep my camera gear under the 10kg hand baggage limit (Flybe) without having to worry about customs charges...

Thanks in advance
 
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Surely the onus is on HMRC to prove that your gear is subject to tax, rather than the other way round?
 
The real question is why you think you might be stopped when you're only visiting a place where photographic equipment must be much more expensive than it is here.
But the answer to 1 is probably just to photograph it all with detail shots of the serial numbers.
2. No, it's your legally held equipment; you might just have to answer a few extra questions.
 
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Is the equipment listed on your insurance documents?
If so, take a copy of that.
 
In the 70's and 80's when I was deep sea we used to buy camera gear in Hong Kong and never had problems, the odd person who did, would have the item put in a bonded warehouse, they would then have to get it back to them when they left the country again, the paperwork involved generally stopped any confiscations
 
Snapsh0t said:
The real question is why you think you might be stopped when you're only visiting a place where photographic equipment must be much more expensive than it is here.
But the answer to 1 is probably just to photograph it all with detail shots of the serial numbers.
2. No, it's your legally held equipment; you might just have to answer a few extra questions.
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It is not that I think I will be stopped, it is that IF I am I want to understand the situation. Like most people, I don't like paying any more tax than I absolutely have to and therefore want to make sure there is no possibility of being stung by customs for bringing stuff back into the country which has already had all the tax paid on.
 
gramps said:
Is the equipment listed on your insurance documents?
If so, take a copy of that.
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Nope - depending on how you view it, fortunately my insurance policy does not require any single item under £5000 to be listed. I do have it all listed on Nikon's registration system - but I doubt whether HMRC would
accept a printout of that as proof it was purchased tax paid in the UK.
 
UaeExile said:
Surely the onus is on HMRC to prove that your gear is subject to tax, rather than the other way round?
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No - if it is coming across the border into the UK, the onus is on you to prove that it is not subject to tax....
 
I take my camera gear to France every year, my wife must have one of those faces , the customs nearly always look in our caravan, and my camera gear is generally on the floor in the caravan and it has never been mentioned. Nowadays I think camera gear is the least of their worries, it's drugs an illegal immigrants that are a priority.
 
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bigbigblue said:
Nope - depending on how you view it, fortunately my insurance policy does not require any single item under £5000 to be listed. I do have it all listed on Nikon's registration system - but I doubt whether HMRC would
accept a printout of that as proof it was purchased tax paid in the UK.
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Well it does show serial number and date of purchase, so actually I think that might do the job :)
 
Many years ago I had all my gear confiscated at Heathrow. I had no documentation (it was all on loan from the UK distributors) and they were suspicious of a large and expensive pile of new kit coming in from the US. I have to say they were very sh!tty and unpleasant about it. In the end, they phoned my boss (6am Sunday morning) who verified who I was and what I was doing, my story stacked up and after a couple of hours I was allowed to leave with the gear. I now carry receipts ;)

But coming in from Iceland with a bag of obviously used gear is not going to arouse much suspicion. Not like arriving from Hong Kong with a brand new camera hidden amongst your socks.

Take receipts. Buy a newspaper and lay your kit out on the front page and take some snaps. If push comes to shove, the UK distributors will have records of serial numbers.
 
HoppyUK said:
Many years ago I had all my gear confiscated at Heathrow. I had no documentation (it was all on loan from the UK distributors) and they were suspicious of a large and expensive pile of new kit coming in from the US. I have to say they were very sh!tty and unpleasant about it. In the end, they phoned my boss (6am Sunday morning) who verified who I was and what I was doing, my story stacked up and after a couple of hours I was allowed to leave with the gear. I now carry receipts ;)

But coming in from Iceland with a bag of obviously used gear is not going to arouse much suspicion. Not like arriving from Hong Kong with a brand new camera hidden amongst your socks.

Take receipts. Buy a newspaper and lay your kit out on the front page and take some snaps. If push comes to shove, the UK distributors will have records of serial numbers.
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Richard, That is exactly the kind of situation I am trying to avoid - I like the idea of the newspaper - at least it would prove I had the items prior to my date of departure from the UK. (Un)fortunately other than the lack of packing, my gear is hardly distinguishable from new - I do pamper it.

I am still concerned about the mention by HMRC of the $10,000 dollars though - the outfit I am intending to take is worth more than that amount (at 'new' prices) although I suppose I could argue that as it is all used it is worth about 50% of the new price ! Would just prefer not to have to argue my corner with customs :eek:
 
bigbigblue said:
No - if it is coming across the border into the UK, the onus is on you to prove that it is not subject to tax....
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which will be fairly easy as it will be in used condition, presumably within rucksacks etc (i.e not boxed) with raw files with time in the EXIF in the memory card proving it was used. take an image before you go, leave it on the card, but you will be fine.
 
I think you're worrying about nothing as the chance of you being stopped and questions asked about your camera gear must be about nil. I travel extensively (over 350 flights) and have never had this happen in the UK or anywhere else in the world.
 
Years ago i used to travel with a lot of gear.

Here what i used to do,list all my gear with serial numbers arrive at the airport early and get an customs stamp,plus it was the days of film so i had to get them hand checked as well,there could be a lot of it.

Also for some country you visit you might need to do the same as above when you entrant & leave :)
 
I wouldn't worry about it; perhaps just snap a few pictures of the serial numbers and attach them to an email sent to yourself, that way there would be a date stamp with when it was sent.
 
I got stopped by Customs this morning coming back in at Gatwick this morning, she looked at my Camera/s as in a quick glance but she seemed more interested in the Booze and Cigarettes, Greedy bitch I think she was after them.. (not the cameras) I have as many others on here have travelled abroad a great number of times and never been stopped. Depending where we go I sometimes take two cameras one for my dive box and the other as a back-up. Never been stopped about my Camera stuff and if I was as worried as you sound about it all then I would just take a compact.
 
'Worried' has been used quite a lot in this thread. The only bit I said I was 'worried' about was the reference by HMRC to $10,000 as some kind of limit (see the OP) which might result in additional customs charges. I will go back to HMRC and ask them where the $10,000 comes from and what the significance is. I just don't want to have to hand any more money over to the government (than I already have) just for the privilege of taking my camera gear on holiday.....

Interestingly no-one has commented in this thread on the $10,000 reference by HMRC - I certainly had never heard of it and I presume by the lack of comment, no-one else has either.
 
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bigbigblue said:
'Worried' has been used quite a lot in this thread. The only bit I said I was 'worried' about was the reference by HMRC to $10,000 as some kind of limit (see the OP). I will go back to HMRC and ask them where the $10,000 comes from and what the significance is. I just don't want to have to hand any more money over to the government (than I already have) just for the privilege of taking my camera gear on holiday.....

Interestingly no-one has commented in this thread on the $10,000 reference by HMRC - I certainly had never heard of it and I presume by the lack of comment, no-one else has either.
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Seeing we don't use $ in this country,I not even sure why HMRC are quoting in $ :confused:
 
I really wouldn't worry, I've never been asked for proof of purchase re customs.

Including my trip to Iceland in August :)

Enjoy, it's the most beautiful place I've ever been to!
 
bigbigblue said:
I like the idea of the newspaper - at least it would prove I had the items prior to my date of departure from the UK.
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No it wouldn't. Think it through.
 
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StewartR said:
No it wouldn't. Think it through.
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LOL It would also need something to tie the image to a recognisable UK location. Maybe a video clip including part of the airport in the background?
 
StewartR said:
No it wouldn't. Think it through.
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Stewart
I think you will find it does. My statement was that it would show I had the equipment before the date of my departure from the UK - not that it would show where it was at the time the picture was taken.........
I suppose a really cynical customs officer could question whether it was me that took the photograph and where it was taken. A mirror in the picture would do the trick (selfies are all the rage at the moment ;)). Also, if Big Ben were in the background ....... :cool:

Note to self : Stop it - this is getting ridiculous :p
 
HRMC are not too bothered about used gear these days. Their priorities have changed. General rule of the thumb is that if it's new boxed or in
a sealed box then it's of interest.
 
bigbigblue said:
Stewart
I think you will find it does. My statement was that it would show I had the equipment before the date of my departure from the UK.
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Like I said, think it through.

If you like, I'll send you a photo of my Nikon D750 on a copy of the Daily Mirror from June 1970. That will prove that I've had the camera for 44 years, right?
 
StewartR said:
Like I said, think it through.

If you like, I'll send you a photo of my Nikon D750 on a copy of the Daily Mirror from June 1970. That will prove that I've had the camera for 44 years, right?
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A phone video clip of equipment on a newspaper, clearly made in the airport before check-in and access to the duty-free area, should work. Flight times and departure dates would verify that it couldn't have been fabricated afterwards.

That's no protection against grey imports though, where duty/VAT has not been paid. I guess in theory at least, tax remains payable on those even if you've owned and used them in the UK.
 
Jaisus said:
The best thing to do Peter if you are WORRIED (lol) is just take a time stamped Photo of all of the items you have before travel, that way you would have some evidence that you had it before you left.
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I doubt that would be convincing: who set the time on the camera and what time did they set it to?
 
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