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Import Duties and Sales Tax on Books
Hi, Nico!Books should be exempt, as stated in the Florence Agreement -- here's the latest news piece I got from internet search: http://ph.news.yahoo.com/imported-boo...
I'm not sure how it goes, really, since I've never gotten taxed with my books -- I order from Book Depository, and I don't even pay Php40 delivery fee from my post office anymore. I haven't ordered from Amazon and had it shipped here yet.
I asked my friend and she said you might have to pay extra depending on the declaration in the package. If it's exclusively books, it might be free from tax. However, if there are other items, you might pay extra.
Hope this helps. :)
Books are completely free from tax, including text books, fiction, magazines, comics, etc. Your blu-ray might be taxed, but that is the only item they are allowed to charge the customs tax for. They will add 515 in documentation (which still have +10% tax +12% VAT on TOP of that, their mathematics doesn't make sense). But do not allow them to charge tax for the shipping fee, because that's them being corrupt, and don't let them charge you taxes for the books. I usually have a courier at work pick up my packages for me, and what I do is I attach a copy of the book tax law with my acknowledgment letter. They back off pretty quickly after that. At some point, the assholes in the Mandaluyong Post Office tried to charge me for customs tax so I showed up personally -- they canceled the tax fee but charged me for 'documentation' fee instead (the 515). I don't know why a non-existent tax fee needs a documentation fee, but whatever.
You might be asked for a storage/handling fee, which is usually 40php. Once, I had to pay 80 and 120 for mine because they were big boxes. Ask for the receipt.
Customs will always greedily eye Amazon boxes and will try to find ways to cheat you of money because it's Amazon. Next time, try to divide your shipment to packages that cost less than 50usd each, or order your books from Bookdepository.com. They let those go because there's no profit in them.
Ugh, I hate the postal service in this country. I am constantly having to wage war against them for every package I get, and I get a LOT of packages because my friends use my office address for their deliveries.
Kung mga box set kaya, may customs tax din? How long does it usually take for orders from BookDepository to arrive here in Metro Manila?
Rachel wrote: "Books are completely free from tax, including text books, fiction, magazines, comics, etc. Your blu-ray might be taxed, but that is the only item they are allowed to charge the customs tax for. The..."Can relate. Good post. Ditto on the corruption.
Gene wrote: "Kung mga box set kaya, may customs tax din? How long does it usually take for orders from BookDepository to arrive here in Metro Manila?"
Not sure about boxed sets. :) Book Depository orders usually takes 2-4 weeks, and it should be shipped directly to your doorstep.
Tina wrote: "Gene wrote: "Kung mga box set kaya, may customs tax din? How long does it usually take for orders from BookDepository to arrive here in Metro Manila?"
Not sure about boxed sets. :) Book Deposito..."
I wish! I ordered something from eBay last month with priority shipping, wala pa rin hanggang ngayon. :/ Hopefully, I will receive the two books I ordered in BD.
Gene: My orders from BD arrive safe naman, although if you order it around Christmas or something, it takes a while longer for it to get here. Sometimes I get it within 2 weeks. The longest was about 5 weeks? I usually go to BD to pre-order books since they're cheaper (25% off) and when they give a 10% off on all items. :)
Hi.Just to clarify:
For books, Book Depository or otherwise, the only fee you should be paying is P40.00. This is not storage fee but the standard Post Office handling fee.
It's been my experience (to clarify, this is personal experience; no final jurisdiction on whether your packages should be home-delivered or picked up at the post office) that small packages are delivered to the house, while bigger ones (i.e. a pair of hardcovers) are picked up at the post office.
Sometimes, this is due to the postal person wary of any Customs fees. At other times, it's just a heavy load for them or they're too busy.
Again, the only fee you need is P40. If not, show them this document: http://charles-tan.blogspot.com/2012/...
If you want a breakdown on the math on how much imports cost (WHICH, THEY SHOULD NOT BE CHARGING YOU), see http://charles-tan.blogspot.com/2011/...
Personal experience with Mandaluyong post office is that they will sneak in whatever charges they can, but once you've proven that you can stand your ground, they will stop. (It's where I claim my packages and they've stopped charging me for it. They even pulled the stunt in Rachelle's anecdote but while that happened once, it never happened again so far.)
Book Depository orders usually take 4 weeks for me. Longest it's taken was 3-4 months, but that was just one shipment.
Hi all. I'm a bit confused about the "...6 copies of any 1 work when imported by an individual." part of the DOF Order No. 57-2011 stating the exemption of books that are for personal use.I recently bought a set of books (Manga) with 36 volumes in total. Does that mean it's not exempt? What does "of any 1 work" mean?? :-?
Dear bookish friends whose passion for book hoarding extends beyond our borders:Print this out and show the customs officer: DOF Department Order No. 57-2011. Cheers!
Cherish wrote: "Hi all. I'm a bit confused about the "...6 copies of any 1 work when imported by an individual." part of the DOF Order No. 57-2011 stating the exemption of books that are for personal use."Re: 6 copies of one work, this is just to differentiate between commercial booksellers importing books wholesale and private citizens who are purchasing books from abroad. I don't think manga volumes count as one work, since each has a different ISBN numbers. The best thing do is follow what Ycel's advice and print out the DOF order. You can also print out the National Book Development Board (NBDB)'s guidelines.
If they insist on putting additional duties, you can either refuse to pick up the book or demand an official receipt with the name and position of the superior officer present in the post office. Both NBDB and Undersecretary Manolo Quezon (@mlq3 on Twitter) have positioned themselves publicly against book duties, so you can also lodge a complaint through them.
Thanks so much for the replies!I've just been at the Post Office again, armed with a copy of DOF Department Order No. 57-2011. The Customs officer still insists that the Manga books I have does not fall under "personal use" in the said DOF Order. For them, each book/volume is a copy, hence I have more than 6 copies... whatever. She let me speak to her superior on the phone too, and I was advised to bring my case to DOF myself.
Thank you so much for the info about NBDB and Undersecretary Manolo Quezon. I will do as advised. I feel that this "of any 1 work" (emphasis on "work") should be clarified- not just for my sake but for everyone's as well. It looks like they found a hole in the Order. The customs officer have a copy of the DOF Order as well, but there was a note handwritten on it, defining that a "work" means from 1 author and/or publisher. When I asked who defined "work" that was written there, she said it's from their local office.
P.S.
The NBDB guideline link you gave seems broken. I've looked at their website, but can't find the mentioned guideline. Would you kindly give me the link again? Thanks a lot!
Oops, sorry I didn't check, I edited it but here's the link anyway: http://www.nbdb.gov.ph/images/guideli...
Kristel wrote: "Oops, sorry I didn't check, I edited it but here's the link anyway: http://www.nbdb.gov.ph/images/guideli..."Thanks for the link! I've read the guidelines, it looks like it's more about importation of raw materials for book publishing. I'm not sure how that relates to me?
By the way, have you guys seen this BoC Rationalizes Tax-Free Importation of Books? According to Bureau of Customs, "books that are Educational, scientific and cultural materials under the Florence Agreement" are the only ones that are tax-free.
The customs officer claimed that my package are "comics", hence not books... and also, it's not educational - so the books I ordered don't even fall under the Florence Agreement. That's what they are telling me. :(
Oops I misread the file name, I was actually thinking about the pdf files the NBDB linked to here, which is really a duplicate of the department order already linked. My bad, please disregard.I think this info is no longer fresh but Blooey Singson mentioned contacting a department in the BOC called the Internal Inquiry and Prosecution Division-Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service to lodge a complaint. She mentioned it here but this info is from 2009.
She also wrote about her experience at the Customs Office.
With which BOC office are you having this issue, btw? The books don't have to be educational to count as tax-free. They simply must have cultural value. Do you have the copy of the Florence Agreement? You can mention that by ignoring it, the Philippines is essentially violating a treaty that the country has signed.
After my post here yesterday, I got myself a copy of the Florence Agreement. Like what you said, books simply must have cultural value to count as tax-free as can be seen in Annex A of the said agreement. Japanese Mangas do have cultural value, right?I also called BOC's Office of the Commissioner Public Assistance Hotline (917-3201) and yes, I was told to write a letter addressed to Commissioner Biazon to lodge a complaint.
I also sent a tweet to Undersecretary Manuel L. Quezon III (@mlq3 on Twitter) and he replied! I'm pleasantly surprised. I wrote: "Good day, sir @mlq3! Las Piñas PO wants me to pay tax and custom duties for a set of books (Manga) with 36 volumes total. Tama po ba ito?" He replied: "no. They can only charge you the post office handling fee that's it." You guys think it's enough to show this Twitter conversation to the customs officer?
I'm having this issue with the Las Piñas Post Office. I got my parcel notice last Friday, and went there this Monday to claim it... despite me being a resident of Muntinlupa. Isn't that strange too? Why do I have to go to Las Piñas when I'm a resident of Muntinlupa? I brought this up to the customs officer (should I go ahead and name her?), and she said that the Muntinlupa PO only handles small parcels. She also mentioned that it was someone or something stationed at the Port (I guess airport) that sends these "large" parcels to them.
So anyway, I went there last Monday. When I pointed out that those books are for personal use, she said that to be categorized as personal, a parcel/package should have 6 books at most. I was not aware of the Order No 57-2011 nor the Florence Agreement, so I was not able to counter that. She then invited me to go in her air-conditioned office while she computed how much I should pay. It amounted to 3,885.00 (they included the shipping fee, charged 5% for it, then added that to the taxable value, meaning the 12%, etc.) It doesn't make sense. So I told her that I'll check the internet to verify her computation, and also to make things clear to me. Coz it all really doesn't make sense. That's when I stumbled upon this forum/discussion. I also checked with BOC's Tax Calculator, and according to that, my total Duties and Taxes is 1,416.43. This looks fair to me, if I really do need to pay.
When I went back yesterday, she even showed me a copy of the Order No. 57-2011. However, because of the number of "pieces" that my package has (36 books/volumes), the customs officer maintained that I have 36 "copies". I said that she totally misinterpreting the "6 copies of 1 work" part of the Order. It's not like I have more than 6 copies of the entire series (of 36 volumes). What I have is 1 copy of each book/work. She then showed me a handwritten note on her copy that defines what "work" means. If I recall correctly, it went along the lines of "one work means... one per author, per publisher". So according to the customs officer, I have more than 6 copies of one work, hence not for personal use. I'm like... that's SO ridiculous!!
It's so darn frustrating reasoning out to them. I'm starting to feel that perhaps, I'm the one who is not understanding it. So after I have explained my side, she told me to go to DOF to ask about my case. It's similar to the blog link you shared here.
Sorry about the rant. But after seeing my situation, what do you guys suggest I do?
I am willing to write to DOF or even the Customs Postal Office, etc. My only concern is that they will take a while to reply, and I only have 22 days left to claim my parcel. Do you think they will reimburse me if I pay them now and it turns out that I did not have to? Does Undersecretary Quezon III's reply enough to support my case? Can I just go there and show the customs officer his reply to me? I don't want to go back there again until I have some sort of proof, and guarantee I will be able to get my books.
Honestly, I do not wish for this to affect me that much... but it is! I'm supposed to work, but this issue is gnawing at my thoughts. It's.... mind boggling! :D Just give me my books please! Those are MY books! :D :D
It's not a bad idea to mention that you talked online with Undersecretary Quezon. I think paying for the fee and asking for a receipt in case of reimbursement is a viable option. Just make sure to insist on receiving an official receipt, plus get the name, position, and contact details of the officer signing the receipt. Do you have the name of the person who calculated the fee in her office? Print out the calculation you received online and negotiate for a lower payment. After that, you can just file your complaint. It's important that you get the name of every person involved in your transaction.I'm sorry that this happened to you. I can't guarantee that you'll get reimbursement, but by filing a complaint, that specific office will be put on notice by the internal department of the BoC. I'm not sure if there is a private citizen who is still keeping up with book tax issues, so maybe keep us updated on the issue? Good luck. :)
I do have the full name, title, and cp num of the customs officer that computed the tax. I have scanned the piece of paper that shows the said computation as well.I'll certainly do the things you've suggested here, and keep you guys posted.
Thanks a lot for the time, advice/suggestions, and moral support!
I was finally able to get my books, and I did not pay for anything, except the potal fee that I paid the first time I tried to claim my parcel. :)I went back to Las Piñas PO last week Friday. This time a male customs officer was there instead. Turns out that the female customs officer I spoke with the last two times I went there has shared / told him about my case. Initially, he told me upfront that he won't be able to meddle with the releasing of my parcel because it was already handled by the female customs officer.
Long story short I was able to explain what has happened so far. After hearing that, he emphasized that personally, my package is just one set of books, and not multiple copies thereof. He used the encyclopedia as an example. I said that that's what I have used an example to the lady customs officer already. I don't understand why she can't understand that.
In the end, he said that he will try to explain to her that my package is just one set and not multiple copies. I had to wait for her to go back to their office, and when she did, I heard them discussing. After a while I was called in by the male customs officer. The lady customs officer asked me what had happened to the letter to BOF regarding my case. I said that I am still waiting for it, but that I had to get my books before my 30 days limit expires. I added that I'll be needing the Official Receipt together with her name, job title, and contact number and that I'll be attaching that to the letter / complaint to BOF. The male customs officer then interjected that for him, my parcel is for personal use since it did not exceed the 6 copies limit set in the DOF Order No. 57-2011. My notice then got stamped OK, and I got my package. :)
That's the gist of it - I don't want to bore you guys with lots of details. :)
I am thinking of still going ahead with writing DOF and BoC in the hopes of at least clearing out this "copies of one work"... what do you guys think?
Hi, I'm thinking of ordering books through Book Depository (one pre-order while the other is not)but still not sure if I have to pay for a tax, if there is, for the imported books. Are the books' price the only thing I would pay? Are the books arriving in my doorstep or on postal office? Should I continue to order? Thank you.
Daryl Gian wrote: "Hi, I'm thinking of ordering books through Book Depository (one pre-order while the other is not)but still not sure if I have to pay for a tax, if there is, for the imported books. Are the books'..."
i have ordered thru BD before...you don't pay for any taxes...and they shld be delivered to ur mailing address and not at the post office. i'm located in PH...i don't know in your location tho? same country? fyi.
Laila wrote: "Daryl Gian wrote: "Hi, I'm thinking of ordering books through Book Depository (one pre-order while the other is not)but still not sure if I have to pay for a tax, if there is, for the imported bo..."
Yes, same country. Just feel a little bit nervous about it but I will now order one :D
Tried ordering at The Book Depository and you just have to pay for the price indicated on the site, no more taxes and duties. (view spoiler)
Maria Ella wrote: "Tried ordering at The Book Depository and you just have to pay for the price indicated on the site, no more taxes and duties. [spoilers removed]"Thank you! Now I'm more eager to order Louise O'Neill's book with the same price without tax :)
One more question, how many days/weeks your books arrived through Book Depository? Just need to know. Thank you.
Daryl Gian wrote: "One more question, how many days/weeks your books arrived through Book Depository? Just need to know. Thank you."Depends on where you live. If your city has a good post office and ZIP CODES (Book Depository pays great attention to that, you can have it 3 weeks at the earliest! :)
Maria Ella wrote: "Daryl Gian wrote: "One more question, how many days/weeks your books arrived through Book Depository? Just need to know. Thank you."Depends on where you live. If your city has a good post office ..."
I haven't been on the post office to see if it was good or not but thanks for the info. Do the dispatching days on Book Depository also counts on the 3 weeks earliest date? Thanks :)
Hi I'm about to buy books from book depository and I stumbled upon this discussion. I just want to ask if I will be paying 40 pesos for every parcel delivered to me (I'm planning to buy 3 books and I learned that BD separately ships books) or is it per delivery done?
What is with 40 pesos, dear? Do you own a post box in a post office? It's supposed to be free. Once you buy from the book depository - and you give your complete home address including the zipcode - all payment's done. NO ADDITIONAL charges whatsoever. Unless you maintain a PO box. -___________-Communicate to your nearest post office for your zip code. So that it will not be lost in transit.
And to answer Daryl, 3 weeks is the earliest ETD. Unless you ordered a book that is so rare, it would request another wait. Mine took 3 months for this book - http://instagram.com/p/reBnKrJrdA/?mo...
...all because the book traveled before going to the official Book Depository shop in Gloucester, UK. :)
If it's from TBD, no need for storage fee. They are shipped in different envelopes straight to your mailbox/home. but I saw some packages have 2 books in it, shipped to AU and NZ. Regardless, basta books for personal use, no tax.Also, Php 100 na ang storage fee sa PO ngayon, hindi 40.
If it's from TBD, no need for storage fee. They are shipped in different envelopes straight to your mailbox/home. but I saw some packages have 2 books in it, shipped to AU and NZ. Regardless, basta books for personal use, no tax.Also, Php 100 na ang storage fee sa PO ngayon, hindi 40.
Got a form letter from Postal Office to claim my book. ask ko lang sana kung may babayaran ba akong tax para sa isang book na binili ko from bookdepository. may nakalagay kasi sa stamp na kailangan nila ng invoice or paypal? not sure about that. postal office ko is at novaliches thanks in advance!
Paypal is to pay for the book depository orders. Kailangan yun. Resibo ng binili mo yung aklat. Syempre matatanggap mo yun via email.No taxes required. I just don't get why these orders get stuck in post offices. If you have a PO box, it should have. But book depository purchases are supposed to arrive AT YOUR DOORSTEP. 3weeks ETD.
Parang nakakatakot tuloy ang mga post offices ng ibang lugar. -_-
Always always put a zip code guys. Book dep relies on that heavily.
thanks Maria so kailngan ko pala ipakita yun, iniisip ko kasi baka pag nakita nila yung paypal receipt eh doon nila ako singilin for tax. pero nabasa ko na dapat hindi taxable ang libro for personal use. ewan ko nga bakit hindi sa bahay ko dinala, at sa post office pa :( Base sa mga reviews na nakita ko sa internet, dapat sa bahay i di-deliver :( btw I did put my zip code sa book depository.
From the messages on this thread, there are links about the laws you might want to print - especially the DOF department order, para hindi ka singilin ng Php40 on whatever-that-is-charges. (view spoiler)I don't get it though? Is Novaliches that far? Hirap ang mga Mister postman na ihatid ang parcel mo? (Unless you ordered like 20pcs of books, talagang kukunin mo sa post office)
hindi isang jeep lang actually! haha no it's only 1 book! kaya nga eh, hopefully walang masamang balak ang postal office officer sa pag punta ko doon. hassle talaga :(
Hi guys, I just wanted to ask if I should be concerned for my bookdepository bookmail dispatched last nov 19. I'm from Malate, Manila and I've had a person checked twice at the Manila post office and still the package hadn't arrived. I've read from a lot of posts that it only takes 2 or 3 weeks. Also, is the Tracking Number of Bookdepository a registered one because they've said in the Post office that it wasn't the registered Ph Tracking number or some sorts. Thanks Guys and Happy Reading! :)
i dont think i'd ever gotten a tracking number from bd although i had received everything i had ordered from them. you can contact bd's customer service just to let them know that you haven't received your orders yet.
The tracking/order number is for BD and not post office. It's been almost two months, best to contact BD about that.
Maria Ella wrote: "tip, use a US IP address to grab the most discounted figures, and use SGD as the currency equivalent - this way you can avail the cheapest purchase price!"Have been buying from BD for quite some time now. Now this is interesting! Have you done this? :D
So hello. ☺ I just want to ask if as of 2015 books . either commercial or personal should be tax free? ☺
Charles wrote: "Hi.Just to clarify:
For books, Book Depository or otherwise, the only fee you should be paying is P40.00. This is not storage fee but the standard Post Office handling fee.
It's been my experie..."
Hi! Yesterday i went to Mandaluyong Post Office. I have deceived a book from an Author which costs AUD$20.00 and they told me to pay 100 for the post office service charge and i was also told to pay a 140 peso amount of Tax. I just want to ask if it's necessary? I kept on telling them that import books whether educational, commercial or personal should not be taxed. But they insisted and I don't have any proof so I still have to pay 140 pesos. Guys, I need help, there are still books that are going to be shipped and I don't want to pay high amount of taxes
Hi! Yesterday i went to Mandaluyong Post Office. I have received a book from an Author which costs AUD$20.00 and they told me to pay 100 for the post office service charge and i was also told to pay a 140 peso amount of Tax. I just want to ask if it's necessary? I kept on telling them that import books whether educational, commercial or personal should not be taxed. But they insisted and I don't have any proof so I still have to pay 140 pesos. Guys, I need help, there are still books that are going to be shipped and I don't want to pay high amount of taxes.
imogene wrote: "Hi! Yesterday i went to Mandaluyong Post Office. I have received a book from an Author which costs AUD$20.00 and they told me to pay 100 for the post office service charge and i was also told to pa..."Hi imogene,
Your proof is the DOF Department Order No. 57-2011, and I quote:
"All imported books whether for commercial or personal use ... are exempt from customs duties. Importation of books is likewise exempt from value-added tax (VAT) ..."
Read posts made in October 2013 and even the 1 post before that (made 1 year prior). Those contain links to the said DOF Order as well as other helpful documents for you to show the customs officer.
I also found it useful to show a printed copy of news articles published related to this issue regarding imported books. Here's the Google result for "All imported books are tax free" which should display web articles about the said DOF Order:
https://www.google.com/search?client=...
Some of the links in the Google search are probably also referenced on the posts in the said period. But the DOF Order should be enough. It is clear enough.
I suggest you read the discussion I mentioned for your own understanding about importation of books and its background (the Florence Agreement in 1950 -- which means, since 1950 books have been tax and customs duties free! Unfortunately, majority of the people do not know this - even up to now, even after the issuing of the DOF Order in 2011).
Best regards!
Cherish wrote: "imogene wrote: "Hi! Yesterday i went to Mandaluyong Post Office. I have received a book from an Author which costs AUD$20.00 and they told me to pay 100 for the post office service charge and i was..."Thank you so much!!
:)
Hello, I might sound dumb pero please bear with me. So I was trying to buy on Book Depository pero I don't know if pwede ba yung atm card na gagamitin ko, it was issued to me nung nag summer job ako, it's a company card po kasi pero Visa enable naman. My concern is pwede ko po bang gamitin iyon even though peso yung currency and okay lang kayang gamitin kahit tapos na yung contract ko from my previous work? Tho may funds pa naman po.
Hello everyone! I have questions that needs answers. Please bare with me on this. The shipment I ordered in Amazon.com was 3 Hardcovers and 3 Tradepaperbacks. What I want to know is if a package of that size is handled by our local post office. I'm from Caloocan City. I usually get my package in North Caloocan Post Office. Back in the day, my shipments were 3 Tradepaperbacks. Sometimes I have Hardcovers in it. My max numbers of books back in the day was 4 books. It always arrive after 3 to 5 days of the estimated time of arrival. But this particular shipment was supposed to arrive on June 30 2016. Does it usually take this long for this particular package(3 HC and 3 TPB) to get a notification from the Post Office?Thanks in advance!
I've recently ordered 5 books and a blu-ray collection from Amazon amounting to $411.14. UPS was the courier service used and they are charging me 10% import and 12% sales tax for all items.