How to avoid GST on low value imported goods from overseas stores including Aliexpress and Alibaba?
Can You Avoid GST on Low Value Imported Goods?
rocmelon on 29/06/2024 - 15:49
Last edited 30/06/2024 - 18:44 by 1 other user
Last edited 30/06/2024 - 18:44 by 1 other user
Comments
The exporter has to collect GST if their sales exceed A$75K per year
They "have" to. But for Alibaba Group and Amazon and eBay, who must have combined global revenue closer to a trillion than 75k, our government can easily oblige them to make the simple changes to their system to automatically apply GST on orders. An art supply shop in the US with a revenue of 250k that actually lets Australians order on their website, because the owner randomly decided to tick that box in their WooCommerce settings or whatever and let their postal calculator plugin just charge whatever it costs, you have a better chance of not getting GST charged on your order there.
It's sales to Australia, so you're good with the 'art supplies'
It’s 10%… on your $2.38 plastic dog shit joke prop, it’s $0.24. Pay it and move on with your life.
I’m happy to pay the GST on low priced goods because every time I do, I think of Gerry Harvey crying into a silk hanky while on his mega yacht, watching one of his horses race and me knowing that he thought that the GST on cheap goods was some kind of silver bullet to fixing his sales woes…
All it has done is make these Chinese garbage websites 10% richer, because I can tell you, they are forwarding (fropanity) all of this “GST” back to Australia, but are more than happy to charge you the 10%.
So, pay your 10% to the Gerry Sook Tax knowing that him crying about it did absolutely nothing to stop people from buying cheap, plastic shit directly out of China.
I can tell you, they are forwarding (fropanity) all of this “GST” back to Australia
I don't find that shocking, but I would like to know your evidence please.
It’s not fact, it’s speculation based on logical probability. I never said it was “fact”.
Chinese companies are not beholden to Australian laws. They don’t give a (fropanity) about what foreign governments tell them. They are not going to be submitting tax payments to foreign governments.
Now, some operators also operate in Australia, ie: AliExpress or Hobby King. They have warehouses out here. These warehouses need to abide by Australian tax laws, so they would pay some tax based on what they sell and ship through these warehouses. But for shit shipped direct, you are kidding. The ATO are not going to audit a Chinese based company, and these companies know it.
So, they would take 10% on everything they sell into Australia, and only pay a portion of it, enough to keep the ATO off their backs on their Australian based operations.
100%, if I ran a Chinese company selling shit out of China to Australian consumers, I would laugh, slap the 10% GST on everything, keep the 10% as extra profit and tell the ATO to go (fropanity) themselves if they came asking.
If it is low value, I feel like efforts to avoid it would cost more.
Ship forwarding could be something (since whoever you are buying them off of is not sending it to Australia, they wouldn't collect GST on that order). I have a strong doubt that it would be cheaper than that 10% GST.
Seriously, you are so tight you need to worry about paying 10% GST on crap you buy out of China?
What charges are payable on top of GST charged by AliExpress for a mobile phone A$770 including GST. I paid $220 approximately for a watch on eBay from Japan to DHL for duty and customs charges. If shipping is done by AliExpress are these changes applicable?
Charges
Doubt it. Government seems to have arrangements with huge corporations overseas to automatically add GST to orders shipped to Australia. A small independent shop overseas is more likely to not charge you GST, or even know what GST is. I can't remember if BHPhotoVideo charges GST but they didn't for a long time if they do now.