Q: Esther Diamond:
Please can I have an email or tel no. for advice on tax levied on old furniture and clothes, if I no longer have rights of an oleh.

A: Dear Esther,

Please feel free to contact me about specific questions regarding duties on used furniture and clothing.

In the meantime, let me outline the current rules and regulations for used personal effects or household goods.

First of all, if you are sending by the post office, do not declare a value over $50. If valued up to $50, your package will be exempt of customs duties. However, if valued at more than $50... Customs will add the cost of shipping (ie postal charges or Fedex charges) to the declared valuation when calculating duties.

If you are sending a shipment (lift) with Sonigo or another company like ours, you will have to declare the value of your shipment for Customs. Customs will not necessarily examine your entire declaration, but will usually look at the bottom line of your valuation and the weight of your shipment. If they see a value of about $1 / pound ($2 / kg) they rarely look further and generally accept your valuation.

In general, customs duties and VAT will average about $0.20 - $0.25 / pound or $0.50 / kg.

Please keep in mind, these are very general numbers and your actual tax bill will be calculated according to the tax rate for each item. Every item has a specific tax rate, however, the average will be about 22% over an entire shipment.

You should keep in mind, Customs will *add* the cost of freight when calculating the value of your goods.

I hope this answers your question and helps you decide if it is worth sending used goods.

All the best,
Shmuel