I'm getting a vintage American cigarette vending machine from a fella in the US for my gallery, which has been adapted to sell small items of original art...

[img]http://www.artomat.org/images/nav/macine.gif[/img]

...thing is the bloke sending it to me hasn't sent one outside of the USA before, and isn't sure of the procedure once it's left foreign shores.

I've got to collect it from Southampton docks when it arrives - anyone know what the deal will be with customs? And will I have to pay duty other than VAT, as it will be shipped as a piece of art?

Ta!

depends on how much he sells it to you for and how much he declares on the Customs slip.

He could say he is a relation and is giving you the machine or passing it down from the family.. then you wont need to be anything.

Contact your local vat office, they can be very helpful. The dilema is the declared value. Too high and vat and any duty could be quite a sting, too low and if anything goes wrong you will get a low insurance payout. Looks like a nice piece of Americana.

I have a factory in Southampton so if you need it shipping a few miles outside the docks give me a shout.

Thanks guys - will pass the info back to him and try and get the price adjusted accordingly

[quote name='dhs' date='Aug 1 2005, 09:02 AM']I have a factory in Southampton so if you need it shipping a few miles outside the docks give me a shout.
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Cheers DHS - very kind of you to offer