Request: European/Worldwide dealers to prevent unnecessary import tax

Will it be possible to buy this in the EU through a dealer when the orders reopen?

Seems like this could be easily arranged.

rubadub is listed as a dealer on Modulargrid but I haven’t gotten a response yet.

The import tax is a killer for me, I can’t be the only one. Thanks :slight_smile:

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Retail sucks for small companies. I think O|D did retail in the beginning but it was just too much. (plus retail cuts into the cost and the return is diminished.)

I think with the way (which is awesome especially for quality control) they are being made now just isn’t made for the production levels retail supply lines would want.

If one OID related person in Europe became a dealer, it would save worldwide users a lot of high and completely unnecessary fee’s. Or contact Schneider’s Laden, perhaps. I am sure they would be really happy to have this great module in their stores - especially if other dealers don’t have it.

In fact, OID and the community would profit, because more people would buy them (no import cost) and share their passion for the module. This would result in more good stuff down the line for everyone (software, associates, etc)

Quality doesn’t suffer because of import. The production numbers can stay low (Cwejman), but even he has worldwide dealers. Three dealers are enough.

Why do you think there is there no import cost?

As far as I know the exact same fees apply!

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When you buy music gear for your business within the EU, it’s tax free or a calculated reduction if it’s partly for business, partly for leisure.

When a regular user or business imports from the USA or elsewhere both have to pay import tax.

Everyone is worse off. Making a partnership with a dealer would make the ER-301 around 170 euro’s cheaper for everyone. OID get the exact same amount they normally do.

This would make it easier to sell and easier to buy - and try out in a store. Huge selling points.

How does O|D get the same amount of money? Nobody is going to sell anything if they are not making 10-30% over what they are paying. So if Brian has to sell a unit to company X for say $600 that he would have sold for $800 and the retailer has to agree to not undercut his direct sales, the vendor has to add VAT and so the consumer pays $920 anyway.

It doesn’t matter if it’s for a company or a regular user. Everyone has to pay import tax over it.

It’s tax - no one is getting it but the government, not the company.

A dealer could charge a slighty premium, but it wouldn’t amount to 170 euro’s.

And a business could get it for less.

Possibly. Either way, while there might be a small chance Schneiders can import the products for less than you would individually, this typically requires larger quantities of the product. This, I recall, was one of the main reasons OD stopped selling direct to retail. He just couldn’t keep up with the demand.

On the one hand he has to assemble and support the products. However, he is also still very much developing the 301. In order to keep up with retail demand, his time would be too consumed with keeping up, and development suffers.

So what we have here is a happy medium with a few pro’s that are of the most benefit to the product itself, and admittedly a few cons to the consumers. Not perfect but better than the alternatives.

@Adore you could also buy used in your local market and avoid everything with a private transaction.

Sorry adore, not true.
Of course a dealer will get the vat back or get it without vat, but when he sells this in his country he has to charge vat.
For example in Germany In customs you pay 19% vat plus something like 2-3% custom.

So, buying the er 301 here from a dealer would change nothing at all. Nothing.

If you’re a dealer you get the vat back. But if you sell it you have to charge the vat, it’s the law to do it…

Schneider is also the dealer for Cwejman who makes the least products of any Eurorack.

The demand is irrelevant, it should be whenever the maker feels like it.

This should not influence retail pressure, if this is expressed clearly perhaps as Cwejman explicitly does this issue could be solved.

The cost to the consumer is unnecessary. 170 euro’s is a high premium, is that wrong to say?

I want to support the maker and buy it new, I know I could find it for less.

Ah, I read it again, I see where your mistake is.
If you’re a business man or dealer and buy from the USA or japan, it’s true that you pay the vat at the customs, but you get that money back.
You paid the vat in your country, and you get it back there…

You will pay this high premium in Europe, too, but charged from the dealer…

You think a dealer would add the tax on top of it? But it’s already taxed in the USA. We get taxed twice. Does not make sense?

No, you don‘t understand. It’s not taxed in Japan. The price here on the website is the net price. If you buy it in Japan you pay the tax in Japan. If you buy it in Germany you pay the tax in Germany. At the customs. That’s how it goes.

A dealer has to add vat. Unless you buy in the eu from a different country and you have a valied vat Id.
If you buy from another country not in the eu you don’t pay the vat directly, you pay it at the customs in your country.

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So you say you import it, list it in your taxes and get it back then? Have you tried this? I know it’s supposed to worth but I have my doubts here in the EU.

Wouldn’t it be easier to have Schneider as a dealer? If Cwejman does it with 5 modules a year, what’s the reason for non business consumers to pay 170 euro’s? That is not what they would charge extra…

If you are a private person, you always have to pay the vat, you are not getting it back.
If you buy it and you are for instance a freelancer and you can use the module for your job, of course you get the tax back that you paid in your country.
And yes, this is how I always do it.

Of course this is what they charge extra. Look at a module which is more expensive. Let’s say it’s 1000€. You will pay 190€ vat.
This means at schneidersladen it will cost 1190€.
SchneidersLaden keeps 1000€ and gives 190€ to the german state.
The vat is just meant for end consumers.
Not for dealers or businessman or freelancer who use the stuff professionally… sorry, more easy to explain this for me in german:-)

Isn’t that a complaint to your government and not OD? :smile:

I’m having a hard time following what you are really asking here. Is it really that you are just trying to avoid paying the VAT and custom’s fee?

It would help also if you would say what country you’ll be importing it to you as well, but like Evs says the taxes are pretty much unavoidable without special accommodations. Kind of the nature of taxation.