Owned GMTII for 2 years and returning to UK - import duty & VAT?

[OLJR]

I shall be returning to the UK in December after spending more than five happy years as a British expat in Qatar.

When I get back to the UK I shall have owned my GMTII for two years (actually 23 and a half months!).

Do I need to go through declare it in the red channel (I will be going through the red channel anyway as I have to declare some other items)? Is it subject to VAT now that I have owned it for two years?

I have the original box and papers showing the date of purchase in Qatar.

Many thanks in advance!

[tattooedfagin]

Me, i'd mail the paperwork home & throw out the box (can always get another one), or go straight, declare the purchase & pay the 17.5% duty which will be nigh on £1000

[Fredrik]

Check with UK customs. In Sweden you can import your personal items without paying customs and VAT if you have lived more than one year permanently outside of EU. The only catch is that you have to fill in the proper forms.

Most likely it is similar in the UK.

[Kingair]

Ship the box & papers and wear the watch !

Pretty easy

HAGS

[GeoGio Greece]

Originally Posted by Kingair

Ship the box & papers and wear the watch !

Pretty easy

HAGS

+ 1

A watch is a personal item, I would not even declare it, not because I am a "bad boy" but because I do not feel I should.

If you had the watch purchased in the UK and go for holidays in Spain, do you declare it on the way out just to be on the safe side if you will be questioned on the return ?

And if your fear is that the flight arrives in the "third world" arrivals, where checks are more strict, fly to a non questioning country within EEC, such as Athens, Greece, and continue from there. Easy as a cup of tea.

[airchitect]

Um. Just ship the box and papers home with some other belongings and wear the watch right off the plane...

[FWK]

Does Rolexforums allow possible tax fraud to be discussed?

[Kingair]

Originally Posted by FWK

Does Rolexforums allow possible tax fraud to be discussed?

Option is post # 3

HAGS

[SeaDweller50]

Wouldn't be so bad if our UK tax money was spent wisely. Unfortunately it isn't.

[OLJR]

Thanks for the responses everyone.

After some digging on the HMRC site I think I found the answer here. And it seems to suggest that I will not need to pay VAT or import duty.

Originally Posted by HMRC

5.1 Can I get relief from duty and tax on transfer of residence?

Yes. You can bring in your belongings or vehicle free of duty and tax so long as you:

* are moving your normal home to the EC
* have had your normal home outside the EC for a continuous period of at least 12 months
* have possessed and used them for at least 6 months outside the EC before they are imported
* did not get them under a duty/tax free scheme (but see paragraph 5.2)
* declare them to us as explained in paragraph 3.2
* will keep them for your personal use and
* do not sell, lend, hire out or otherwise dispose of them in the EC within 12 months of importation, unless you notify us first and pay duty and VAT on disposal. Our National Advice Service can tell you how to do this.

Belongings include clothing, furniture, portable tools of trade, pets and other household and personal effects, but not alcoholic drinks or tobacco products: you will not get relief on those unless they travel in with you and qualify for the duty-free allowances - see paragraph 2.1.

Originally Posted by FWK

Does Rolexforums allow possible tax fraud to be discussed?

This is not a question about tax fraud. It is a question about whether or not tax is due.