Does buyer in Canada pay for VAT on item sold from UK?

mrsmartypants
Contributor
Contributor

HI, i purchased an item via through EBAY from merchant in the UK, I live in Canada, should i have been charged VAT?

 

The item description indicated 'price includes VAT and final price may change depending on destination'...i took this to mean the price would be adjusted -20%. I didn't follow up on it straight away. Now post delivery I looked back and was charged the VAT included price.

 

Was this an error? I know in the past some countries across the pond would have 2 separate price lists for europe and US/Canada with and without VAT included.

Thx for any info

 

Rgds

 

 

 

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3 REPLIES 3

PayPal_Iris
Moderator
Moderator

Hello @mrsmartypants,

 

Welcome to PayPal Community! Is the item description including the fee on the eBay site? If so, you can discuss a breakdown of the fees on their site to see if the fee was applied by the seller or a site standard. If you would like to view the fees PayPal charges, please visit: 

 

PayPal Consumer Fees

 

Alternatively, you can reach Customer Support by clicking Contact and then Message Us (when available) at the bottom of the PayPal website. They're also available through Twitter direct message or Facebook instant message.  

 

Message Us

Direct Message

Instant Message

 

I hope this helps! 

 

Iris
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mrsmartypants
Contributor
Contributor

Hi,

 

In the item description, under taxes, it was indicated that the unit price 'inlciuded VAT and final price may be adjusted depending on destination'.

 

I took this to mean that in my case exports outside of UK and Europe in general are not subject to VAT and this must be taken off at point of sale.

 

Unfortunately, I didn't follow up on this prior to sale and assumed this was the case...it turns out I was billed full price including VAT.

 

I know that with other European merchants, not Ebay related, have had 2 price lists with and without VAT...I would be billed the cheaper w/o VAT price since I lived overseas in North America.

 

I'm wondering if this isn't still the case, or, if something has changed within last couple of years specifically regarding VAT , the UK and the UK's splitting from EU union. The seller has been no help whatsoever.

 

Rgds.

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PayPal_Michael
Moderator
Moderator

Hello, @mrsmartypants. Thanks for following up on your previous messages.

 

I'm sorry for any misunderstanding, but any taxes applied to an eBay purchase would be up to eBay and/or the seller. Please consult with eBay for more information and/or continue to try to work with the seller as best as possible.

 

If taxes were applied incorrectly, eBay should be able to address that. As a payments processor only, PayPal has no say in what taxes are applied by sellers (for any purchase, not just eBay purchases) or how eBay collects taxes. When you select PayPal to pay for an eBay purchase, we receive information from eBay regarding how much is needed and the money is sent directly to them. eBay then sorts out what needs to be paid for taxes (which does not go to a seller) and what needs to be remitted to a seller.

 

I hope this helps to clarify things. Thanks for your patience during this time.

 

Sincerely,

 

Michael

PayPal_Michael

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