Do you charge UK VAT when selling to USA from UK?
Question
Good morning.
My name is Mark and I’m currently in the process of expanding my brand to sell into USA and Canada from the UK.
We will be selling our garments to indivdual customers based in the USA and Canada and we would like to know the UK VAT rules that apply to these distance selling exports.
Do we charge UK VAT on the goods or are they zero rated?
I have read that we can zero rate the items as long as we have proof of export etc. Is this correct?
The average sale value will be £49.99 + £8.00 postage.
If anyone could help that would be great.
Thanks in advance
Mark
Answer
Thank you for question Mark.
You should hopefully receive some useful answers shortly.
In the meantime, this video may be of assistance – https://opentoexport.com/article/video-tax-and-vat-issues-when-trading-with-countries-outside-the-eu/
Best wishes,
William
Answer
Hey Mark
You shouldn’t charge UK VAT to these customers. When you export your goods to the USA (or anywhere outside the European Union) you’ll need to send along a commercial invoice with the product which includes the cost of the product and cost of shipping.
US customs will then assess whether to charge any local sales tax (their equivalent of VAT) and import duty to the receiver. Their assessment will be based on the type of goods and the total value.
You’ll still need to include these sales in box 6 of your vat return and keep invoices/documentation to prove the goods were exported.
If you haven’t yet selected a partner to export your product to the USA, please give me a call. We have exceptional rates for small parcels to the USA and make deliveries NEXT DAY by 10:30am to over 20,000 zip codes.
Wishing you the best of luck in your venture, exporting is EASY!
Kind Regards
Gregg Temperley
www.ParcelBroker.co.uk
01371 868355
Answer
Thankyou Gregg for the above information, much appeciated.
I’ll take a look at your website now for an idea of prices etc.