Shipping to France? Taxes/duties

[boomchickaboom]

Hello all,

Has anyone ever shipped luggage to France via USPS or another service? If we shipped our luggage do we need to pay taxes on our stuff, but not if we carry it on the plane?!? Thanks!

[Bevdeforges]

Are you shipping your luggage as part of a move to France? If so, you need to clearly mark it as "household items" in connection with your move. You're entitled to ship in household items for up to your first year without paying customs or taxes - provided the shipment contains only things you've owned for at least 6 months.
Cheers,
Bev

[rynd2it]

Originally Posted by boomchickaboom

Hello all,

Has anyone ever shipped luggage to France via USPS or another service? If we shipped our luggage do we need to pay taxes on our stuff, but not if we carry it on the plane?!? Thanks!

I shipped two 25kg suitcases direct to France using a company called LuggageForward - there were no taxes or duties involved and the company did a door-to-door service and handled all the paperwork.

Cheers

[boomchickaboom]

Originally Posted by Bevdeforges

Are you shipping your luggage as part of a move to France? If so, you need to clearly mark it as "household items" in connection with your move. You're entitled to ship in household items for up to your first year without paying customs or taxes - provided the shipment contains only things you've owned for at least 6 months.
Cheers,
Bev

Do you have any idea what kind of "EEL" (Exemption or Exclusion Legend) or "PFC" (Proof of Filing Citation" we need?!? This is so confusing!!! Thanks!

[rynd2it]

Originally Posted by boomchickaboom

Do you have any idea what kind of "EEL" (Exemption or Exclusion Legend) or "PFC" (Proof of Filing Citation" we need?!? This is so confusing!!! Thanks!

Never heard of either of those - just shipped the stuff as personal effects exactly as if going on vacation.

Cheers

[Bevdeforges]

I suspect that the "Exemption Exclusion" thing has something to do with if you're moving there on a visa, since in that case you're exempt from VAT. You want to make sure that it's clear that this is NOT commercial merchandise and that it IS household goods and/or personal possessions. Still, if the valuation is under a certain limit, it will all just go as regular luggage being shipped on ahead.
Cheers,
Bev

[dixie.martin]

When moving to France, I considered shipping my luggage. However, I found it much cheaper to just pay the airline fee and check it all. I came with two suitcases, both over the weight limit and a carry on stuffed full (and double this - because my husband did the same). It cost somewhere around 200$ - which was much cheaper than what USPS or UPS wanted to send just one piece of luggage. I will admit, it was quite awful lugging all of it around - but, being on a very tight budget, it worked best for us.