DAP & DDP Shipping
Discussion
I am looking at buying some products from China from a leading tat emporium.
Honestly this is all a bit new to me so finding my way.
I am not powerfully built enough at the moment so cant afford a container load, so keeping the orders small and looking at freighting / parcels for the orders.
Two abbreviations I have noticed are DAP & DDP. Google tells me that DAP I need to cover the duty & VAT when it lands, DDP means the seller should cover this on the shipment.
For those with experience is it better to DAP or DDP on small volume orders?
Assuming if I DAP i get a contacted by the freight / courier company to clear the charges / pay an admin fee, a bit like when I order some products online and Royal mail / UPS sting me for duty etc? (again making assumptions so correct me if I am wrong)
Is there a risk that if I DDP, the seller doesn't cover the charges, so I ultimately end up paying more for an all inclusive shipment and then get stung again to pay duty and VAT (I dont have any history with any of these seller yet, so dont know how trust worthy they are - other than most have been trading 5+ years on Alibaba.
Interested in peoples views / experiences with all of this.
Regards
James
Honestly this is all a bit new to me so finding my way.
I am not powerfully built enough at the moment so cant afford a container load, so keeping the orders small and looking at freighting / parcels for the orders.
Two abbreviations I have noticed are DAP & DDP. Google tells me that DAP I need to cover the duty & VAT when it lands, DDP means the seller should cover this on the shipment.
For those with experience is it better to DAP or DDP on small volume orders?
Assuming if I DAP i get a contacted by the freight / courier company to clear the charges / pay an admin fee, a bit like when I order some products online and Royal mail / UPS sting me for duty etc? (again making assumptions so correct me if I am wrong)
Is there a risk that if I DDP, the seller doesn't cover the charges, so I ultimately end up paying more for an all inclusive shipment and then get stung again to pay duty and VAT (I dont have any history with any of these seller yet, so dont know how trust worthy they are - other than most have been trading 5+ years on Alibaba.
Interested in peoples views / experiences with all of this.
Regards
James
James, did you ever find out any info on this?
Does anyone on here buy through Alibaba and can give any advice on customs charges? Anyone willing to take on an order of 30 units (around 8Kg per unit) then do UK distribution? Likely total cost around £6000 for all 30 (identical) items and shipping.
Does anyone on here buy through Alibaba and can give any advice on customs charges? Anyone willing to take on an order of 30 units (around 8Kg per unit) then do UK distribution? Likely total cost around £6000 for all 30 (identical) items and shipping.
DDP doesn't work for most B2B sales. The VAT will be unrecoverable by you the buyer, and most likely unrecoverable by the seller. You'l just pay 20%+ more.
The starting point is what the vendor is willing to do. DAP will require a courier who is prepared to clear the goods through customs, and then recharge you for the duty, VAT and their handling fees. That's usually the most expensive option.
You can instead employ your own freight agent at the relevant port, and specify them as the address for delivery. They'll receive the goods and arrange customs clearance. Assuming you're VAT registered etc, you can get a Deferment Account from HMRC such that you won't actually have to pay the VAT and Duty on arrival. But they still need clearing through customs. You'll then use a UK courier to get the goods from the port to your door.
Using your own freight agent gives you the best chance of getting the most favourable duty classifications.
This Gov step-by-step is a good starting point for the statutory procedures: https://www.gov.uk/import-goods-into-uk
One of my clients imports goods in part-loads frequently. They use Zygo in Felixstowe to handle all their imports. Good people, worth a call https://zygo.ltd/
The starting point is what the vendor is willing to do. DAP will require a courier who is prepared to clear the goods through customs, and then recharge you for the duty, VAT and their handling fees. That's usually the most expensive option.
You can instead employ your own freight agent at the relevant port, and specify them as the address for delivery. They'll receive the goods and arrange customs clearance. Assuming you're VAT registered etc, you can get a Deferment Account from HMRC such that you won't actually have to pay the VAT and Duty on arrival. But they still need clearing through customs. You'll then use a UK courier to get the goods from the port to your door.
Using your own freight agent gives you the best chance of getting the most favourable duty classifications.
This Gov step-by-step is a good starting point for the statutory procedures: https://www.gov.uk/import-goods-into-uk
One of my clients imports goods in part-loads frequently. They use Zygo in Felixstowe to handle all their imports. Good people, worth a call https://zygo.ltd/
Just covered this in the club, don’t let the supplier pay vat / import duty as they may under declare the value. Assuming air ? Get a price for shipping also get the size n weight go to ups / fed ex see cost to collect.
It’s not that bad, I’m looking at container sharing for members as a way to reduce costs.
It’s not that bad, I’m looking at container sharing for members as a way to reduce costs.
DSLiverpool said:
Just covered this in the club, don’t let the supplier pay vat / import duty as they may under declare the value. Assuming air ? Get a price for shipping also get the size n weight go to ups / fed ex see cost to collect.
It’s not that bad, I’m looking at container sharing for members as a way to reduce costs.
DS, what club is that, please?It’s not that bad, I’m looking at container sharing for members as a way to reduce costs.
SpeckledJim said:
DSLiverpool said:
Just covered this in the club, don’t let the supplier pay vat / import duty as they may under declare the value. Assuming air ? Get a price for shipping also get the size n weight go to ups / fed ex see cost to collect.
It’s not that bad, I’m looking at container sharing for members as a way to reduce costs.
DS, what club is that, please?It’s not that bad, I’m looking at container sharing for members as a way to reduce costs.
DSLiverpool said:
SpeckledJim said:
DSLiverpool said:
Just covered this in the club, don’t let the supplier pay vat / import duty as they may under declare the value. Assuming air ? Get a price for shipping also get the size n weight go to ups / fed ex see cost to collect.
It’s not that bad, I’m looking at container sharing for members as a way to reduce costs.
DS, what club is that, please?It’s not that bad, I’m looking at container sharing for members as a way to reduce costs.
Thanks for all the responses, honestly forgot to check back in and see whether there had been much response. Appreciate people taking the time to reply. All very helpful.
So as my first foray into importing I have ordered 2 small batches of product. 30pcs of 1 and 100 of another. Nothing special but I honestly think both have a market and offer a good margin so going to see how it goes. Advantage with small items is less exposure and it can all be air freighted affordably so no shipping delays and I dont get locked in with a small number of sellers.
The past few weeks have been a crash course in dealing with China, and getting a grip on all the costs associated with importing. Genuinely exciting! Cant remember the last time I got enthused about work!
Both orders are coming in on FedEx Air Freight. Surprisingly cheap, and 15 day shipping time and checking with Fedex its only £12 for customs clearing (plus whatever I owe to HMRC etc). Factored this all into my costs.
One order is DDP - honestly interested to see how it goes, suspect the seller will just list them as zero value / samples and pocket the difference (she has already tried to dupe me once - but its all under Alibaba trade assurance so I have some comeback if it all goes south!).
I am not VAT registered so couldn't claim the VAT back either. But something for next time. Would prefer it DAP as its back under my control.
At the moment I am dipping my toes, so no container loads, but if I can make the next few batches a success I am going to look to scale things up.
Regards
James
So as my first foray into importing I have ordered 2 small batches of product. 30pcs of 1 and 100 of another. Nothing special but I honestly think both have a market and offer a good margin so going to see how it goes. Advantage with small items is less exposure and it can all be air freighted affordably so no shipping delays and I dont get locked in with a small number of sellers.
The past few weeks have been a crash course in dealing with China, and getting a grip on all the costs associated with importing. Genuinely exciting! Cant remember the last time I got enthused about work!
Both orders are coming in on FedEx Air Freight. Surprisingly cheap, and 15 day shipping time and checking with Fedex its only £12 for customs clearing (plus whatever I owe to HMRC etc). Factored this all into my costs.
One order is DDP - honestly interested to see how it goes, suspect the seller will just list them as zero value / samples and pocket the difference (she has already tried to dupe me once - but its all under Alibaba trade assurance so I have some comeback if it all goes south!).
I am not VAT registered so couldn't claim the VAT back either. But something for next time. Would prefer it DAP as its back under my control.
At the moment I am dipping my toes, so no container loads, but if I can make the next few batches a success I am going to look to scale things up.
Regards
James
Just had a 4K box come in via UPS, 6 days from order to receipt and no import duty (!) normally UPS want a cheque or cash on delivery but nothing this time / let’s see what happens if they send a bill.
Interestingly other club members have also said they didn’t get charged import duty - ?
Interestingly other club members have also said they didn’t get charged import duty - ?
Well a box arrived today with my order from China. I was a little surprised - the seller was going to send it land freight but it arrived air freight express! I probably over paid for them in the first place!
Also no customs to clear, so thats helped the margins on the product. I had this package sent DDP and assumed that the seller might not pay the customs and I would have an extra cost to bear, but my suspicions were unfounded.
Just need to get selling them now!
Also no customs to clear, so thats helped the margins on the product. I had this package sent DDP and assumed that the seller might not pay the customs and I would have an extra cost to bear, but my suspicions were unfounded.
Just need to get selling them now!
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