Tariff law

**Alan H** · 11th May 05, 05:32 PM

BTW, remember that my target was to get high-quality, heaavyweight tartan kilting material to you for $45 - $55 a meter. When I was figuring this out, I DID NOT INCLUDE the cost of shipping the stuff from the "importer" to your doorstep. I did include the cost of shipping the material from the UK to whoever imports it. I counted on a 20- 25% tariff.

If that Tariff isn't levied, then you can subtract 20 - 25% off the "price-to-you" of the cloth. Add on a few bucks for shipping it to you or to your kiltmaker.

This means that ***WITH LUCK*** the cost to you will be more like $32 - $37 per meter instead of $45 - $55. It's double-width, ladies and gentlemen. Material for a high-qality "four yard" kilt (which usually takes more like 5 actual yards of single width and 2.5 yards of double width tartan) will run you a scoooch less than $90. The material for a drop-dead gorgeous 8 yard kilt in the X Marks tartan might come in at $160 or a bit more or less depending on your waist and butt size.

And THAT, my friends....is the deal of all deals for high quality tartan. If we can hit this, then if you don't order it when the opportunity comes, YOU BLEW IT. assuming you've got the $$ to swing it.

**Doc Hudson** · 11th May 05, 10:26 PM

Sounds better and better Alan. At a price like that, I might be able to afford a yard to make a vest.

**beerbecue** · 12th May 05, 06:17 AM

I think last time I orderd material from Canada, the shipping was very reasonable. Just my $0.02, to make you lot feel better about shipping charges...

**chasem** · 12th May 05, 07:18 AM

This is getting tempting now

**macgreggor** · 12th May 05, 01:50 PM

the only possible way i MIGHT be able to get in on this is for me to buy the cloth and store it for a later date. i would then, after experimenting on MUCH cheaper fabrics

build my own kilt. ( i would of course break down and buy barb's book

why waste $100/fabric plus who knows how many hours to save $25 for a book?)
question: what is the best way to store wool tartan to preserve the quality and colors?
i have access to nitrogen gas...fill a bag and seal REALLY well? just get some cedar chips?
suggestions please!
macG

**Hamish** · 13th May 05, 02:56 PM

Originally Posted by Alan H

.................................................. ................................

Finally, Hamish would like to not have to pay the import duty TWICE wouldn't he? Well, if the cloth gets shipped to Canada, and then back to the UK, there's NO IMPORT DUTY either way. There's shipping, yeah, but I can only do so much for us, you know?

And, Alan, all you time and effort is VERY much appreciated, believe me.

I am afraid I have missed most of all of this subject due to lack of 'logging-on' time in recent days and weeks and I certainly am not in posession of all of the facts. However, I cannot see that I would escape paying UK import duty when the fabric is shipped back to me here in England - I'd need to check that one with HM Customs and Excise.

What would make most sense for me, would be for me to pick up my kilt-length when I come to Vancouver in August(if some kind soul there could take delivery of it for me). I will then bring it back home with me thereby avoiding one of the shipping charges and, hopefully the UK import duty and VAT.

If that doesn't work, I can see my part of this becoming unduly complicated (and possibly expensive) and I might have to consider pulling out - and I wouldn't want to do that.

I am likely to be off-line again for a few days now, so I'll check back again next week.

Thanks again, Alan.

**Doc Hudson** · 13th May 05, 03:21 PM

Hamish,

I can't speak for current regulations, but in days gone by, American made goods returned from a foreign country came back duty free.

Check with customs to see if this is not the case in Britain. I hope you get a pleasant surprise.

**Hamish** · 13th May 05, 04:08 PM

Originally Posted by Doc Hudson

Hamish,

I can't speak for current regulations, but in days gone by, American made goods returned from a foreign country came back duty free.

Check with customs to see if this is not the case in Britain. I hope you get a pleasant surprise.

Thanks Doc.,

I just looked up their number and will call them on Monday. I'm hoping you are right (it might affect goods carried back into the UK also), but I suspect I would have to be in possession of a full set of the various invoices and other paperwork raised along the line from manufacturer to me, for that to be the case. We'll see.

**Colin** · 16th May 05, 08:05 AM

Originally Posted by Alan H

Originally Posted by Colin

Originally Posted by macgreggor

so alan,
is the tarrif between canada and the us on finished garments just as arcane? how about the tarrif on wool cloth re exproted from canada to the us???
oh wait, i'm getting a headache, think i will go have a little lie down

thanks for all the time and headaches you are putting in

macG

Because of NAFTA, there should be no tariff on goods between the US and Canada. Meaning that wool made in Canada should have no tariffs when coming into the US. At least that is my understanding. Is this correct Alan?

That is correct. Here's my thinking.....word is starting to come in from some kiltmakers about the N. Bately Ltd. material and it's good. I'll leave the specifics for a thread in a couple of weeks, but it's good. OK, but the tariffs for importing UK wool material into the USA can vary between 10 - 30 percent, depending on the day of the week, what the Customs guy had for dinner last night, and who-knows-what. In other words, that $25/meter cloth could actually cost us well over $30 a meter when it gets here. The stinker is, we don't know what the Cutoms guys will ding us, so that means we don't know what to charge YOU GUYS for the cloth. Now, that's a headache, eh? On top of that is the actual cost of shipping, which will happen no matter where we send it, and may add $5 a meter, right there. That's if we use a USA importer. Shipping into Canada will probably be about the same.

The USA importer would have to ship the cloth out to the X Marks participants who ordered it once it got here. So would a Canadian importer.

Now, if we ship into Canada instead, there's NO tariff. That means that the $25 a meter cloth costs us.....$25 a meter, not $33 a meter or some amount we don't know about. Shipping will still add about $5 a meter.

Now since most of our buyers are in the USA, the "importer" in Canada would have to mail the cloth out across the border If there was a big tariff in the USA on stuff coming from Canada, then it might not be worth going through the Canadian importer......but NAFTA says "no tarriff...North American Free Trade Agreement". Ta-Daaaa... problem solved.

Finally, Hamish would like to not have to pay the import duty TWICE wouldn't he? Well, if the cloth gets shipped to Canada, and then back to the UK, there's NO IMPORT DUTY either way. There's shipping, yeah, but I can only do so much for us, you know?

Conclusion; it should be a LOT less expensive to import the cloth into Canada rather than directly into the USA. We have a Canadian company that's willing to do this project and just make a few bucks on it for their time. If we go with the N. Bately cloth, I'll probably recommend to the Chief that this is how we go about it.

Just a quick note regarding the tariffs for textiles brought into Canada from the UK. When I ordered my jacket recently, it came listed as textiles (in wording and in tariff code) originating in the United Kingdom. There were duty charges that did have to be paid, so the import of textiles from the UK into Canada does not appear to be free of charges.

**Colin** · 16th May 05, 08:11 AM

Originally Posted by Hamish

What would make most sense for me, would be for me to pick up my kilt-length when I come to Vancouver in August(if some kind soul there could take delivery of it for me). I will then bring it back home with me thereby avoiding one of the shipping charges and, hopefully the UK import duty and VAT.

Come on Hamish the offer has already been made. No need to ask