Just a little note for the Australian people out there who may read this thread.

I just wrote this reply in another thread but it is very long so I thought I would start another thread for it for those who may need to know.

When you import into Aus, you have to pay Customs import duty of 10% on anything over $1000 (up from $250 a few years ago). This gets ADDED to your original purchase price.
The cost of shipping also gets added to the price of the goods THEN the Government surcharge of 10% is added to the TOTAL cost.
So -
if I buy something worth $2348 and it costs $423 to ship it here then it will cost
$2348 + 423 = $2771

Customs of $234.80 is added = $2582.80 (10% of cost of product )
Then Gov GST is added to the total, inclusive if the Customs duty.(product + freight + customs duty)

Total then = $3264.08

Don't forget to budget for this when you buy something from overseas.
If you import something and have it sent through a freight service then they will act on your behalf as the import broker and fill out all the relevant documentation for you otherwise you will have to broker the goods yourself.
This involves having to download software from the Gov Customs site, get yourself verified through "Verisign" (the only trusted verification site the government uses) for about $36, or something like that, then fill out the documentation and wait for a return. About 3-5 days over the web but a lot longer of you don't use the internet.
Fed-Ex will do all this for you in the price of the shipping but the cost is VERY expensive for anything from Fed_Ex. Other freight carriers I would assume would also have this service.
If the goods aren't picked up after 30 days (I think) then they are sent back to the original destination OR destroyed.

So as you can see it is worth using a freight carrier if you want the goods as quickly as possible and it also saves you a minor headache when all you actually wanted is that really "cheap" laser tube.

As an aside to this I just got my laser up and running after ALL the hassles under the sun with EVERYTHING I put in it and now my new 35 watt laser seems to be only outputting about 5 watts. Its flat out cutting thin cardboard at 1 inch a minute, and I am talking thin about 0.025" Not bad for $800 worth of glass. I will try some more experiments with it today as I have only just got it running and I may have overlooked something.
I have only tried it on TTL running through Linkmotion so now I will try it using the Potentiometer as a power adjuster.
If that doesn't work then I will donate the tube to the local College and buy a RF Laser.
Geez, this laser hobby costs an arm and a leg.

Richard.

Richard, check the alignment and the heigth of the laser , it could be the problem, but as you say if you get a rflaser thats a hugh difference in price but also in quality of work
Luis

It is nice of them to add the postage before working out their "cut", I would hate for customs to miss out...lol

Thanks for posting this info, it also helps to explain why we DIY'ers in Australia build machines out of recycled vacuum cleaners and toaster ovens :D

Russell.

Also worth noting, if there is anything at all in your shipment that is second hand even if there is only one thing and everything else is brand new, even if it has not ever been opened from its' origional packaging there is a compulsory customs inspection which you are charged for. If any goods on your shipment require cleaning or treatment you are billed for this also. If the initial attempt at cleaning or treating is insufficient you will be billed for subsiquent attempts. You will be given time on the docks to get this done, usually about 5 days, after which you are billed an extortionate rate per cubic foot per day. Even if you abandon your shipment you are still liable for the fees.

Splint

Aye, Master Splinter. And the rich get richer and the poor........well, they just survive now-a-days. There is so much info out there that the individual just doesn't know about because they don't ever use these "services" (I say that with pursed lips) But all this "extra" keeps our country disease free. Another reason why international travelers complain when they are sprayed with bug spray just before entering Australia on International flights.
But I digress.
I hope some more people hijack this thread and tell us of their experiences with customs and importation. Good experiences as well as bad.
Richard.

Yes I totally agree that we need to protect our country from disease and vermin.

To give the punters an idea here is a summary of what I was stung when I imported some goods from USA. As well as all this I got ripped off on the freight as I didn't specify the dimensions of the crate which was to be custom built by the freight company. I assumed they would build it as small as possible but it ended up being twice the size it needed to be, after it's arrived and been paid for in advance there's nothing one can do to resolve this.

Agency and Attendance $95
Cartage $60
Cooperage $66
Customs Entry $47.60
EEC $60.75
GST $456.83
Port Charges $287.10
Quarantine Fee$113
Quarantine Release $15
Storage $396

Grand total incl. GST $1623.22 to get a crate off the ship and to my workshop. I somehow manage to avoid paying duty on the goods which was one pleasant surprise. This was for a crate approximately 450mm high by 1300mm wide by 2000mm long. This dose not include shipping from USA to Australia, only cartage from Melbourne to Geelong.

As well as these expenses, many of which I was not expecting, there were issues with improper documentation from the shipping company which meant numerous emails and phone calls to sort out. Confusion about the final destination, I asked them for delivery to an address in Geelong which they messed up thinking I wanted port to port delivery and and the supplied address as somewhere to send the bill. Even though I spent quiet a bit of time trying to get the facts about importing goods I still got caught out with considerable unexpected expenses.

Overall, I think I got the goods from the USA cheaper than what I could have got them here in Australia but I would certainly think twice about doing it again.

I hope this puts the would be importers in the picture.

Cheers
Splint

HAve any of you down there considered trying to coordinate and combine shipments into a single container?

I mention it because sometimes you can possibly economise on the shipping; a container can carry a lot and the cost is the same whether it is full or nearly empty.

Reading the list of fees and charges and taxes on taxes, etc., you have my sympathy; I thought the Canadian Govt was bad but your one has it beat. :)

Yes I had considered that. There are individuals and companies who can help in this area, all who expect to profit from the service. There may be, depending where your shipment is located, be considerable expenses involved in getting your shipment to the warehouse where the common container is located.
If you do what I did which was buying off ebay, then you incur shipping from the seller to your point of storage where you have to re pack everything to make the packaging space most efficient, then you may need to freight the main crate onto a warehouse then pay the shipping company to load the crate into the container and ship it. So in effect you can wear the cost of two to three lots of freight to get it to your nearest port, then further freight to get it to your factory.
On top of that if there are any issues which cause the container to he held up on the docks and a storage fee is charged for the whole container, well I shudder to think how expensive that could be and I'd hate to be the one who had to pay for it.
I think the simplest way is if you (or a friend who's willing to help) are going on a holiday to the USA (or where ever) buy your parts selectively and bring them home as luggage. Make sure you understand the weight and size limits as you may be charged excess weight which I think runs in the vicinity of $10 per Kg. If it's over size then you will not be allowed to put it in with the planes cargo, you will have to find some other way of freighting it.

Cheers
Splint