Did you get the Dial of Destiny soundtrack on the CD format before it sold out?

[E-Wan 65]

1 hour ago, Luke Skywalker said:

I got the same response.

 

specify to them that you dont want the refund of the customs fees and local tax you have had to pay in your country, you want to be returned the USA VAT they charged when ordering the item.

 

Thanks a lot for your help.

[ciarlese 259]

16 hours ago, Luke Skywalker said:

I got the same response.

 

specify to them that you dont want the refund of the customs fees and local tax you have had to pay in your country, you want to be returned the USA VAT they charged when ordering the item.

Yes same here

 

As far as I know, there is no VAT in USA.

[Jurassic Shark 12,618]

Isn't it in California?

[ciarlese 259]

I just did some further check, and I am starting to think that the tax applied is correct.
I went on the UK government website, and although no duty fee is due in this purchase due to lo value of the item, UK VAT is due on the item and the shipping costs as well when you buy an item abroad, and it is charged by the seller for low amounts like this. I did a quick calculation and the tax applied to my order is 20% of the CD price+shipping cost, which is the UK VAT rate, so as much as I hate to say this, I really think Ariel is right, at least in my case. 

[Luke Skywalker 1,882]

As the uk is out of the UE it may have different import policies anyway…

 

 

[Marian Schedenig 8,583]

The seller *can* charge the VAT of the destination country if they like, to allow you to pay everything up front with less hassle. Amazon does, for example, and also Arrow Video. But if they do, they have to correctly declared the package so that it's marked as already taxed and isn't re-taxed by the customs office (and they have to pay the collected VAT to whoever collects that, obviously). DME's FAQ states that they cannot and do not charges taxes on international orders, but apparently they do (at least what I've seen so far has always seemed to match the VAT in the respective destination country) - but they don't declare it on the package, so effectively, they're just increasing the item price by the VAT amount and collecting the entire amount themselves (whether they keep the whole amount or pass on the extra bit I don't know), and then, because it's not officially taxed already, the destination country's customs office calculates the actual VAT based on that (already increased) final price and collects that (plus handling fees).

[ciarlese 259]

2 hours ago, Marian Schedenig said:

The seller *can* charge the VAT of the destination country if they like, to allow you to pay everything up front with less hassle. Amazon does, for example, and also Arrow Video. But if they do, they have to correctly declared the package so that it's marked as already taxed and isn't re-taxed by the customs office (and they have to pay the collected VAT to whoever collects that, obviously). DME's FAQ states that they cannot and do not charges taxes on international orders, but apparently they do (at least what I've seen so far has always seemed to match the VAT in the respective destination country) - but they don't declare it on the package, so effectively, they're just increasing the item price by the VAT amount and collecting the entire amount themselves (whether they keep the whole amount or pass on the extra bit I don't know), and then, because it's not officially taxed already, the destination country's customs office calculates the actual VAT based on that (already increased) final price and collects that (plus handling fees).

 

The UK government website says something different:

 

"Goods worth £135 or less in total

If you bought the goods yourself and they are not excise goods, the seller will have included VAT in the total you paid.

 

You will need to pay VAT to the delivery company if the goods are:

 

gifts sent to you by someone else and worth more than £39

excise goods".

 

So the UK government is expecting the seller to charge VAT.

 

https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/tax-and-duty

[Marian Schedenig 8,583]

25 minutes ago, ciarlese said:

So the UK government is expecting the seller to charge VAT.

 

And if they don't? That all sounds a bit fuzzy.

[Jilal 569]

39 minutes ago, ciarlese said:

 

The UK government website says something different:

 

"Goods worth £135 or less in total

If you bought the goods yourself and they are not excise goods, the seller will have included VAT in the total you paid.

 

You will need to pay VAT to the delivery company if the goods are:

 

gifts sent to you by someone else and worth more than £39

excise goods".

 

So the UK government is expecting the seller to charge VAT.

 

https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/tax-and-duty

 

You might want to check this page too, which discusses the possibility of the goods not having been declared correctly by the seller: https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/documents

 

 

[ciarlese 259]

59 minutes ago, Marian Schedenig said:

 

And if they don't? That all sounds a bit fuzzy.

Don't know, however I have been charged by the sender the extra 20% the government is expecting so everything seems in order to me.

49 minutes ago, Jilal said:

 

You might want to check this page too, which discusses the possibility of the goods not having been declared correctly by the seller: https://www.gov.uk/goods-sent-from-abroad/documents

 

 

I have received goods from USA in the past (mainly CDs 😁) and this has never been the case so I have no reason to assume this might happen this time.

Also, we are in a case where no custom duty is payable due to the low value of the item, so it is even less likely that anything may go wrong.

However, in the worst case scenario I will get a letter from the government asking to pay what they claim and at that stage in might have something to further complain about to Disney.

 

[Marian Schedenig 8,583]

7 minutes ago, ciarlese said:

Don't know, however I have been charged by the sender the extra 20% the government is expecting so everything seems in order to me.

 

*If* they declared it correctly. They obviously didn't do so for any of us mainland Europeans.

[ciarlese 259]

4 hours ago, Marian Schedenig said:

 

*If* they declared it correctly. They obviously didn't do so for any of us mainland Europeans.

Why do you say so? It is not so obvious to me. I certainly see some confusion in this forum, and surely Disney haven't been clear enough, but I can't see anything proving that they were wrong, neither I have seen any comments of any members receiving government letters asking for extra fees to be paid to release their parcel.

Also, Disney website states as follows :"While we take steps to minimize or eliminate the cost of importing for our customers, we are required by law to provide accurate information to customs officials. Marking an order as a 'Gift' will not prevent fees from being charged".

To me this means that they put the required care to fill every need documentation. Still, mistakes can still happen of course...

 

[Marian Schedenig 8,583]

4 hours ago, ciarlese said:

Why do you say so? It is not so obvious to me. I certainly see some confusion in this forum, and surely Disney haven't been clear enough, but I can't see anything proving that they were wrong, neither I have seen any comments of any members receiving government letters asking for extra fees to be paid to release their parcel.

Also, Disney website states as follows :"While we take steps to minimize or eliminate the cost of importing for our customers, we are required by law to provide accurate information to customs officials. Marking an order as a 'Gift' will not prevent fees from being charged".

To me this means that they put the required care to fill every need documentation. Still, mistakes can still happen of course...

 

Because it doesn't check out. They taxed me 20% of the price, which corresponds (intentionally or not) to the Austrian VAT, but the package didn't have a customs declaration on it and the customs office re-taxed the package accordingly. Also, DME refunded the taxes they had charged themselves without complaint.

 

I don't know how it works in "real life" in the UK, but in Austria, if we get a commercial package that hasn't been taxed already, the customs office will either calculate the amount of tax based on the declaration label on the package or, if it's missing or they don't trust it, open the package and investigate the contents. On several occasions, I got an email from them telling me that the package hadn't been declared and no receipt had been included, and asked me to send them a copy of the receipt before they could finish the taxing process.

 

I don't have the envelopes DME used anymore, but they were declared for the correct amount, sans tax. I.e. they were either incorrectly declared if DME had really intended to handle the Austrian VAT, or they had been declared correctly but the tax collected by DME was invalid. The second option is what DME acknowledged and promptly refunded.

[ciarlese 259]

23 minutes ago, Marian Schedenig said:

 

Because it doesn't check out. They taxed me 20% of the price, which corresponds (intentionally or not) to the Austrian VAT, but the package didn't have a customs declaration on it and the customs office re-taxed the package accordingly. Also, DME refunded the taxes they had charged themselves without complaint.

 

I don't know how it works in "real life" in the UK, but in Austria, if we get a commercial package that hasn't been taxed already, the customs office will either calculate the amount of tax based on the declaration label on the package or, if it's missing or they don't trust it, open the package and investigate the contents. On several occasions, I got an email from them telling me that the package hadn't been declared and no receipt had been included, and asked me to send them a copy of the receipt before they could finish the taxing process.

 

I don't have the envelopes DME used anymore, but they were declared for the correct amount, sans tax. I.e. they were either incorrectly declared if DME had really intended to handle the Austrian VAT, or they had been declared correctly but the tax collected by DME was invalid. The second option is what DME acknowledged and promptly refunded.

So the Austrian government didn't acknowledge the VAT you had already paid 🤔.

At least Disney issued a refund immediately, which is what I would expect.

Well I guess I have to wait a few weeks and see what happens with my parcel as it approaches Great Britain...

[Manakin Skywalker 5,099]

2 hours ago, ciarlese said:

So the Austrian government didn't acknowledge the VAT you had already paid 🤔.

 

It's... the Austrian way.

 

Spoiler

 

[BB-8 3,693]

On 11/09/2023 at 6:51 PM, BB-8 said:

Yep, same. When I look at the order form at Disney Music Emporium it says "shipped" but the expected send date is October 18th.

 

Last APC status update (arrived in country of destination) was September 8th.

Update:

I was notified yesterday that it had entered customs and was due out for delivery 'today'...we'll see.

[Jurassic Shark 12,618]

Received mine today, without any cracks. I think I will put it up on eBay for €500 and see how it goes.

[BB-8 3,693]

Cracking news.

[GerateWohl 4,789]

43 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said:

Received mine today, without any cracks. I think I will put it up on eBay for €500 and see how it goes.

You can't deny your viking roots.

[Marian Schedenig 8,583]

10 hours ago, ciarlese said:

So the Austrian government didn't acknowledge the VAT you had already paid 🤔.

 

And correctly so, because as far as I could tell from the declaration papers on the package, it was not declared as already taxed. And DME confirmed (rightly or wrongly) that they don't tax international orders.

[Jurassic Shark 12,618]

51 minutes ago, GerateWohl said:

You can't deny your viking roots.

 

€500 vs. an album I'll mostly listen to through Spotify anyway? A no-brainer!

[GerateWohl 4,789]

29 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said:

€500 vs. an album I'll mostly listen to through Spotify anyway? A no-brainer!

And you are young enough to get the expansion in 20 years while your ears are still working.

[Jurassic Shark 12,618]

1 hour ago, GerateWohl said:

And you are young enough to get the expansion in 20 years while your ears are still working.

 

Well, I was born a few years before John Williams, so it's the years, not the mileage.

[Luke Skywalker 1,882]

13 hours ago, ciarlese said:

Why do you say so? It is not so obvious to me. I certainly see some confusion in this forum, and surely Disney haven't been clear enough, but I can't see anything proving that they were wrong, neither I have seen any comments of any members receiving government letters asking for extra fees to be paid to release their parcel.

Also, Disney website states as follows :"While we take steps to minimize or eliminate the cost of importing for our customers, we are required by law to provide accurate information to customs officials. Marking an order as a 'Gift' will not prevent fees from being charged".

To me this means that they put the required care to fill every need documentation. Still, mistakes can still happen of course...

 

My parcel was on hold until i paid the spanish vat

 

in the dme tracking site provided, it stated clearly that the package had no prepaid customs duties. Unlike the order last year who went to my house without customs intervention.

[BB-8 3,693]

Mine is now delayed by at least 24 hrs due to some unspecified technical issue...presumably custom duties need sorting in all directions.

[Foxfan 133]

23 hours ago, Luke Skywalker said:

My parcel was on hold until i paid the spanish vat

 

Wow they really are a bunch of jobsworths, holding back packages for a few measly cents! I mean it’s ONE CD, not a Gucci bag! 😅

[Jurassic Shark 12,618]

1 minute ago, Foxfan said:

Wow they really are a bunch of jobsworths, holding back packages for a few measly cents! I mean it’s ONE CD, not a Gucci bag! 😅

 

Hey, this CD is worth as much as a Gucci bag on eBay.

[Foxfan 133]

38 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said:

 

Hey, this CD is worth as much as a Gucci bag on eBay.

Haha yeah now it is! 😂
 

So will you be declaring this windfall capital gain on your tax return? 🤓

[Jurassic Shark 12,618]

I've put my new & sealed copy up for sale on Discogs, in case anyone's interested and loaded.

[BB-8 3,693]

The Lost Label will soon be selling a cracked copy for 4998 EUR.

[Jurassic Shark 12,618]

Who's that? You?

[BB-8 3,693]

It hasn't arrived yet but according to Murphy's law, my copy will be cracked.

[BB-8 3,693]

It's arrived - no cracks!

[Germany 2023]

Any offers?

[Jurassic Shark 12,618]

Oh no, you took off the shrink-wrap! Now it's only worth €2499...

[BB-8 3,693]

1 minute ago, Jurassic Shark said:

Oh no, you took off the shrink-wrap! Now it's only worth €2499...

No, it's still on - look closely.

 

Funny to think that I have heard both versions of Helena's Theme live (Milan, Hamburg) before the CD arrived.

[Andy 4,821]

Vintage Star Wars figures.... nice job!  They look like they were enjoyed.

[BB-8 3,693]

1 minute ago, Andy said:

Vintage Star Wars figures.... nice job!  They look like they were enjoyed.

Yep, Darth Vader and the classic Storm Trooper are from the 1977/78 starter kit.

[Bellosh 3,746]

40 minutes ago, BB-8 said:

It's arrived - no cracks!

 

Except for that GIGANTIC CRACK in our trust of Disney Emporium for the rest of eternity.  Glad you got it though, finally. 

[BB-8 3,693]

10 minutes ago, Bellosh said:

 

Except for that gigantic CRACK in our trust of Disney Emporium for the rest of eternity.  Glad you got it though, finally. 

 

[E-Wan 65]

On 11/09/2023 at 10:52 PM, Luke Skywalker said:

I got the same response.

 

specify to them that you dont want the refund of the customs fees and local tax you have had to pay in your country, you want to be returned the USA VAT they charged when ordering the item.

 

Today I have received the following response:

 

Hello,
 
Thank you for reaching out to us.
 
I apologize for any inconvenience or confusion caused. Please note that when purchasing goods from a supplier outside of the EU, import VAT and customs duties will be applicable upon the arrival of the goods in your country. This is irrespective of whether VAT has been charged by the supplier in the country of origin.
 
Regrettably, we are unable to provide a tax refund as the charge is valid.
 
Once again, I apologize for any inconvenience caused and thank you for your understanding.
 
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any further inquiries or concerns.
 
Kind regards,
 
Ariel
Customer Service

 

[Marian Schedenig 8,583]

This states correctly that they cannot refund the tax that has been charged by *your country's* customs office. But if your order receipt includes a tax charged by DME, they have to either explain why that tax is valid, or refund that.

[Luke Skywalker 1,882]

THAT.

 

say that you are ok with your country’s customs tax. 
 

that you meant the XX dollars they charged you as tax when ordering the item as can be seen in your order receipt.

 

 

[1977 1,744]

Does anyone think this will ever get to other retailers in the future, or will it be DME forever?

[Jay 38,292]

DME exclusive

[scoreman36 77]

For those of us who failed repeatedly to get this when it was on sale, would someone be kind enough to post photos of the cd booklet?

[Jay 38,292]

1 hour ago, scoreman36 said:

For those of us who failed repeatedly to get this when it was on sale, would someone be kind enough to post photos of the cd booklet?

 

How's this?

 

https://twitter.com/disneymusicemp/status/1675173270520463361

[scoreman36 77]

Honestly?

[Jay 38,292]

I didn't know if you just wanted to see what it was like, or have scans for your archives.  You didn't specify.

[scoreman36 77]

Scans for archive was the idea. Even just a photo of each unfolded side. Thanks if anyone can do that

[1977 1,744]

I guess I'll be getting the download and creating my own front cover. A scan of the back inlay card and inside of the insert would be appreciated.