Onion Posted February 21, 2014 Posted February 21, 2014 I've been talking to someone about something and we disagree about whether or not this is legal. Certain Amazon products are not available in Europe. Would it be legal to have customers buy them and have them shipped to a US address and then have them forwarded to Europe, making any US Amazon item available to all of Europe. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClayMeow Posted February 21, 2014 Posted February 21, 2014 Yes it would be legal, assuming what is being shipped is legally allowed to be exported and/or imported. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stonerboy779 Posted February 21, 2014 Posted February 21, 2014 There are also services available that enable you to purchase many different items from multiple sites and have them shipped to a collection point and then at your choosing you can have them posted/frieghted/shipped to you. They're good services for australians as you can make use of things like free US48/50 whatever shipping and then once you picked a bunch of stuff from different sources it gets sent to you in one hit not multiple shipment that could incur postage fees of often times $50-200 Then with aus, not sure about individual countries of Europe. So long as the item is legal for import (no guns, drugs etc) and below thresholds/other conditions, namely under $1000 then you can import tax free if you need to pay tax you better off trying to find something here. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waco Posted February 21, 2014 Posted February 21, 2014 Duties and shipping usually make this a non-starter. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onion Posted February 21, 2014 Posted February 21, 2014 Yeah, as long as the items are legal, and as long as they fall within the shipping company's guidelines, it's alright. Couldn't Amazon get butthurt about it though? Let's say they sell an equivalent product in Europe for more money, they'd technically be losing potential profit, right? Duties and shipping usually make this a non-starter. Whether or not the clients let customs know of the items and values isn't up to the company though, so its kind of just their problem. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bishop245 Posted February 21, 2014 Posted February 21, 2014 To save on the taxes ship it as a gift I have done it before Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waco Posted February 21, 2014 Posted February 21, 2014 Whether or not the clients let customs know of the items and values isn't up to the company though, so its kind of just their problem. So...tax evasion and mail fraud? Unless you want zero insurance on anything... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onion Posted February 21, 2014 Posted February 21, 2014 Whether or not the clients let customs know of the items and values isn't up to the company though, so its kind of just their problem. So...tax evasion and mail fraud? Unless you want zero insurance on anything... Isn't it up to the buyer to declare these things? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waco Posted February 21, 2014 Posted February 21, 2014 The shipper still has to agree. So yeah - not legal that way. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onion Posted February 21, 2014 Posted February 21, 2014 Yeah, didn't think it was legal. The US government wouldn't go after the shipper, though, it'd be the country of the person receiving the packages. Doesn't that cause too many issues due to international boundaries and whatnot? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClayMeow Posted February 21, 2014 Posted February 21, 2014 Yeah, as long as the items are legal, and as long as they fall within the shipping company's guidelines, it's alright. Couldn't Amazon get butthurt about it though? Let's say they sell an equivalent product in Europe for more money, they'd technically be losing potential profit, right? No because despite what some people seem to think, most retailers don't have increased foreign prices to earn more profit, it's to cover costs like shipping, VAT, etc. So to Amazon, a sale is a sale. Yeah, didn't think it was legal. The US government wouldn't go after the shipper, though, it'd be the country of the person receiving the packages. Doesn't that cause too many issues due to international boundaries and whatnot? Yes and no. The US govt doesn't really go directly go after anyone unless they suspect some widespread problem. The real risk comes if you're audited. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyfire Posted February 21, 2014 Posted February 21, 2014 Yeah, didn't think it was legal. The US government wouldn't go after the shipper, though, it'd be the country of the person receiving the packages. Doesn't that cause too many issues due to international boundaries and whatnot? Actually, US the UN and the receiver's country could/would go after the shipper or person importing prohibited items. For example Dennis Rodman is being investigated by the UN for importing "birthday gifts" into North Korea possible violation of sanctions against North Korea http://www.arirang.co.kr/News/News_View.asp?nseq=157622 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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