Customs/import tax.

[btech]

Hi there people!

I am moving to New Zealand in three months and have only stumbled across the import duty tax now! (How infuriating!!)
I applied for a working holiday visa (12month) even though i have a job offer from a car dealership, with the hope of sorting a work to residence visa when i arrived. I need lots of tools for my job (vehicle technician) but if i import them with my personal possessions am i likely to pay the tax on them? This would come to about £2000 at 12.5%. I cant afford that!
Cheers for any help

Great informative website by the way!

[MotherBear]

Btech and welcome.

If you don't have either PR, a long term Work Permit or any other long term visa, you do have to pay GST of 12.5% on importing your personal possessions. If you have a job offer that you intend to take up, it might have been better to apply for a WP instead of the WHV and you can progress on to a WTR later if you wish or now if you decide you want to go straight for that type of visa.

The WHV is an easy visa to get but it won't be that helpful if you want to work full time or if you want to bring in your personal possessions. A WP isn't difficult to get either so I don't know if you can switch from a WHV to a WP. It may be that you would have to enter NZ and then apply for a WP before you take up your job offer but it might be worth asking if you can now apply for a WP and bin your WHV. More expense but certainly not as much as it'd cost you to bring in your stuff.

[ebianca]

On the same subject- what length of time constitutes a long term work permit? Over 12months?

Asking 'cos our stuff is in storage until 7July. No way we will have full residency granted by then but hopefully OH should have his work permit although don't know how long this will be for.

Wondering if we would be able to ship our stuff on the work permit or if we will need to extend storage until we have full residency.

[Taffy]

It's not really the length thats important, it's the type of permit. Work, PR and WTR are all long term permits as if they are not already permanent, they can be extended. Visitors and WHV are not as they have a definite time limit before you HAVE to leave the country, as no renewal is possible.

[ebianca]

so we should be able to ship our stuff 'tax free' on just a work permit instead of waiting how ever many months for residency.

[ebianca]

Just found this on customs website


When No Customs Charges Apply

Eligibility

Your household or other related effects (excluding motor vehicles, boats and aircraft) will qualify for concessionary entry, i.e. free of duty and exempt GST, for a reasonable time after you arrive in New Zealand, provided you can meet all of the following conditions.


Conditions
you have arrived and on arrival hold a document authorising residence in New Zealand; and
you have resided or lived outside New Zealand for the whole of the 21 months before the date of your arrival in New Zealand; and
you have owned and used the goods before the date of your departure for New Zealand; and
the goods are for your own personal use and not intended for any other person or persons or for gift, sale or exchange.
The following goods will not qualify for duty free entry, unless you can establish that the items have had personal use prior to their arrival in New Zealand:


goods shipped directly after purchase to avoid local taxes in the country of export
replacement electrical equipment operating to New Zealand standards.
Goods of a commercial nature (such as factory plant and office equipment) do not qualify as household effects.


Document authorising residence in New Zealand –

means any of the following:


a New Zealand Passport
an Australian Passport
a current New Zealand Residence visa or permit or a current New Zealand returning resident's visa or permit
a current permanent residence visa (including a resident return visa) issued by the Government of the Commonwealth of Australia
a current New Zealand work visa or work permit that was issued for a minimum of twelve months
a current New Zealand work visa or permit issued under the Long Term Business Visa policy, that was issued for a minimum of 9 months
A current New Zealand visitor's visa or permit that was issued for a minimum of three years.

[noodle's mom]

hi
can anybody clarify this:
Conditions
you have arrived and on arrival hold a document authorising residence in New Zealand;
so if my OH comes on a Vistors Visa and then gets a job and then applies for a WP, how do we bring the container in without incurring the tax ?
thanks
R

[MotherBear]

I know it always used to be...

One of the requirements for duty free entry of goods is that the owner 'has the intention of forthwith taking up permanent residence in New Zealand.' If you are not present at the time of arrival of your goods, Customs will take the view that you cannot at that time fulfil this condition, and the person you have nominated to receive your shipment will have to pay to Customs a cash deposit equal to the full amount of duty and GST which would normally be payable on the goods. When you do arrive in New Zealand, this deposit will be refunded to you, provided you meet all the conditions for duty free entry of goods.

From here

.... so I don't know if it's changed recently. I certainly can't find anything on the Customs Site about visa status unless I'm looking in the wrong place. I assume what the above quote is saying is that, at the time your shipment is due to be cleared, you should have a valid WP or PR. I'm a bit puzzled by the 'you have arrived and on arrival hold a document authorising residence in New Zealand' clause, but I guess it would be right because, if you were a visitor or held a WHV or similar, you wouldn't/shouldn't be needing to import your stuff anyway. It's just a bit worrying that they tie it down to you holding a visa authorising residency when you actually enter the country.

[noodle's mom]

i know, it is confusing .... but thanks for the link

[kiaora!!]

I shipped all my stuff over as well and my 12months working holiday visa was enough! just send them a copy of your passport with the permit stamp (it will just say work permit until rarara) once you get here and as it is for 12months you wont have to pay anything at all!
Just make sure you send that to them once you are in the country, not sure why but I have a funny feeling that s the best thing you can do to get out of paying taxes