Need help with HLJ shipping!

[GU-11]

I just ordered three items from HLJ:

VF-1J Hikaru standalone (free shipping)

VF-0A reissue (free shipping)

VF-1D (20% sale)

In one single shipment, these three are going to be packed into one huge box, and I don't want to call any attention to such a big box at the customs department, lest I be taxed to kingdom come.

BTW, are the customs guys going to tax this based on each individual item purchased, or the combined price of all three items on a single receipt?

Is there any way I can get HLJ to ship these items individually?

Damn HLJ and their frequent sales!

PS, I'm currently living in Malaysia, which means online purchases above MYR 500 (local currency, about USD 156) aren't tax free.

Edited June 14, 2010 by GU-11

[nexxstrait]

PS, I don't live in the US, which means online purchases aren't necessarily tax free.

Me too. I can't say for sure, but every sigle pack (no matter the size) that was sent to me by HLJ has been charged at the airport customs office. Taxes included, the items were still cheaper than buyin it in my country. With the global crysis, however, that has changed a bit.

But I'm sure someone else here has some more useful advice to give to you.

Edited June 14, 2010 by nexxstrait

[neostrata]

I just ordered three items from HLJ:

VF-1J Hikaru standalone (free shipping)

VF-0A reissue (free shipping)

VF-1D (20% sale)

In one single shipment, these three are going to be packed into one huge box, and I don't want to call any attention to such a big box at the customs department, lest I be taxed to kingdom come.

BTW, are the customs guys going to tax this based on each individual item purchased, or the combined price of all three items on a single receipt?

Is there any way I can get HLJ to ship these items individually?

Damn HLJ and their frequent sales!

PS, I'm currently living in Malaysia, which means online purchases above MYR 500 (local currency, about USD 156) aren't tax free.

Hey bro

I inquired about shipping back in the Msian hobby forums once and I was told that the customs will see a price tag which includes shipping apparently. So even if its free shipping the customs will process your items as a full sum inclusive of shipping. Well the friendly guy who told me this did manage to "persuade" his way out of it by telling them about the free shipping. But there's no guarantee. Guess its quite subjective

[GU-11]

Thanks for your replies, guys.

I emailed HLJ and asked if they could separate the shipment for me, and they said that while they usually try to ship items together, they'd make an exception this time. The thing is, the guy said he'll have to cancel one of the orders, and then I'll have to RE-ORDER THE ITEM MYSELF to make it a separate shipment. To make matters worse, that item will no longer be eligible for free shipping.

It seems that if you want HLJ to ship your stuff separately, you'll have to wait until the first order has entered the shipment/payment processing stage before placing the second order. Not much of an option in my case, since I was trying to take advantage of the free shipping promo.

After this incident, I just learned that one of the biggest problems with online shopping in Asia is the hassle one has to deal with regarding the tax-free threshold. Not only are you getting taxed, you have to drive all the way to the airport to pay the taxes! The only other option is to get the local courier company to transport it for you to the nearest post office for you to collect, which necessitates an extra fee of about 15 USD. Your third option would be to use FED-EX as a shipping option, in which you're spared the hassle of collecting the items yourself. FED-EX pays for any necessary taxes at customs, and brings the item right to your doorstep, and then mails you the bill for the taxes.

It seems most people steer away from anything above 156 USD when using SAL or EMS, or request that the seller mark down their prices.

I've read that the local customs department has a separate definition of what constitutes a "toy" (which is supposedly tax-free no matter the price) and a "replica or model" (which falls into the MYR 500 threshold). I've heard that there were some cases where locals have bought items from HLJ that went way above MYR 500, and never got taxed, and other that got taxed for far less.

From what I've read, the customs department defines a toy as an articulated figure meant for "playing with", while a model is simply a static, non-moving figure.

Man, it that were true, and most Macross VF figs certainly fall under the "toy" definition, then I might have wasted all day emailing HLJ and trying to get my shipment separated.

Better safe than sorry, I guess....

[Hikuro]

All I can really say is whatever they estimate on their damn shipping is double it. It said I'd pay around 23 and some change for EMS and I ended up almost paying 55! i was royally pissed off about that.

[Vi-RS]

http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?showtopic=31383&pid=856402&st=560entry856402

[Bri]

Thanks for your replies, guys.

I emailed HLJ and asked if they could separate the shipment for me, and they said that while they usually try to ship items together, they'd make an exception this time. The thing is, the guy said he'll have to cancel one of the orders, and then I'll have to RE-ORDER THE ITEM MYSELF to make it a separate shipment. To make matters worse, that item will no longer be eligible for free shipping.

It seems that if you want HLJ to ship your stuff separately, you'll have to wait until the first order has entered the shipment/payment processing stage before placing the second order. Not much of an option in my case, since I was trying to take advantage of the free shipping promo.

After this incident, I just learned that one of the biggest problems with online shopping in Asia is the hassle one has to deal with regarding the tax-free threshold. Not only are you getting taxed, you have to drive all the way to the airport to pay the taxes! The only other option is to get the local courier company to transport it for you to the nearest post office for you to collect, which necessitates an extra fee of about 15 USD. Your third option would be to use FED-EX as a shipping option, in which you're spared the hassle of collecting the items yourself. FED-EX pays for any necessary taxes at customs, and brings the item right to your doorstep, and then mails you the bill for the taxes.

It seems most people steer away from anything above 156 USD when using SAL or EMS, or request that the seller mark down their prices.

Yea, HLJ's order system that automatically combines shipments is a pain. Waiting till the first order hits shipment/payment processing stage isn't always handy, especially during sales. I'm happy that Ami Ami now offers unregistered SAL as well, as they are more flexible when it comes to splitting orders, I have switched most of my purchases to them.

[GU-11]

Yea, HLJ's order system that automatically combines shipments is a pain. Waiting till the first order hits shipment/payment processing stage isn't always handy, especially during sales. I'm happy that Ami Ami now offers unregistered SAL as well, as they are more flexible when it comes to splitting orders, I have switched most of my purchases to them.

The only thing holding me back from buying from AmiAmi is their relatively pricey shipping fees. But after this incident, I'll seriously have to give AmiAmi another look.

Regarding HLJ's shipping system, when they said to wait until the first item enters the shipping/payment phase, do they mean when you get an email confirming that HLJ's received payment for the item(s), and the open orders show the item in the shipment processing stage?

Or must the first item have to be already shipped out before I place the second order?

[VF-19]

Have you considered emailing HLJ before you actually ordered your stuff? I'm sure if you explain your dillema to them, along with what you're getting, they'll probably help you out. Heck, I'm not in this buisness, but it seems to me, that if a customer was about to order $200 of stuff, and asked me to split it up, I'd help him out. Sure he'll pay more for shipping in the end, but it'll get the loyalty of that customer.

[GU-11]

Have you considered emailing HLJ before you actually ordered your stuff? I'm sure if you explain your dillema to them, along with what you're getting, they'll probably help you out. Heck, I'm not in this buisness, but it seems to me, that if a customer was about to order $200 of stuff, and asked me to split it up, I'd help him out. Sure he'll pay more for shipping in the end, but it'll get the loyalty of that customer.

Honestly, the whole issue of import taxes just didn't occur to me until I ordered a third item (the VF-1D I was planning to buy this year end was already on low stock status), and then it hit me just how big the damn box would be with all three VF inside.

In any case, the guy who replied my email seemed a little reluctant to separate the two items, but at least he came through anyway.

I guess I should try sending an email to HLJ the next time I buy several items at once, and see if they might be able to work something out for me. No harm in trying.

[Bri]

Regarding HLJ's shipping system, when they said to wait until the first item enters the shipping/payment phase, do they mean when you get an email confirming that HLJ's received payment for the item(s), and the open orders show the item in the shipment processing stage?

Or must the first item have to be already shipped out before I place the second order?

The open orders menu needs to show the item in the shipment processing stage.

Have you considered emailing HLJ before you actually ordered your stuff? I'm sure if you explain your dillema to them, along with what you're getting, they'll probably help you out. Heck, I'm not in this buisness, but it seems to me, that if a customer was about to order $200 of stuff, and asked me to split it up, I'd help him out. Sure he'll pay more for shipping in the end, but it'll get the loyalty of that customer.

I've discussed this problem with HLJ customer service when I had an issue with unwanted merging of orders that lead to forced EMS shipping. ( EMS = extortion by customs and mail service)

The response just pointed at the shipping rules: take it or leave it. They did not offer an option to contact them before ordering, just to wait with a second order till the first reaches the shipping stage. According to them most customers prefer the automatic merging of orders. As I am not part of that majority I'm testing other shops that either have SAL unregistered or are prepared to ship EMS with reduced value.

[Fly4victory]

Trust me Bri you are not a minority. A couple of years ago I had a conversation with HLJ about their shipping.

It sucks they have adapted a take or leave it attitude... If they cross enough customers, HLJ will be the one left behind.

Best thing to do is save your money over the course of a year then fly to Japan and bring your goodies back as luggage.

[anime52k8]

the best thing to do would be to move to a country that doesn't suck and charge you import taxes on this kind of stuff.

[GU-11]

The open orders menu needs to show the item in the shipment processing stage.

Got it. Thanks!

Trust me Bri you are not a minority. A couple of years ago I had a conversation with HLJ about their shipping.

It sucks they have adapted a take or leave it attitude... If they cross enough customers, HLJ will be the one left behind.

Best thing to do is save your money over the course of a year then fly to Japan and bring your goodies back as luggage.

That's precisely the reply I got. And I even lost free shipping for my VF-1J because of I had to reorder it again to have the shipment separated. Well, at the very least, the guy did agree to cancel one of the orders. I just found out that the local customs department taxes items based on the combined price of the shipment, which would not only be way over the 156 USD threshold, the 15% tax they charge would be enough to buy a small car! I know I exaggerate, but still....

Currently looking at AmiAmi or HK Collectibles as an alternative. Rumor has it that HK imports go through customs more easily than Japanese ones.

the best thing to do would be to move to a country that doesn't suck and charge you import taxes on this kind of stuff.

Easier said than done, pal.