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GST on imported goods
Aug. 28th, 2015 12:07 pmI don’t really understand the Treasurer’s latest thought bubble. How could GST be applied on small purchases from overseas?
Take me, for an example. I buy quite a few books from small, second hand bookshops in England and the USA, usually out of print books that aren’t available here. Or in-print books that aren’t bestsellers and so aren’t available here.
Is Hockey actually proposing that Mr OverseasTinySecondHandBookShopOwner is going to note I live in Australia, deduct 10% from the price and post it off to the ATO for him? Admittedly, I do find most of the shops through search engines like Booko or Better World. Am I to instead imagine that Ms OwnsABigBookStoreNetworkService will think that it sounds like a brilliant idea to increase the price of all their books by 10% with a 0% corresponding increase in profits for them? I think not.
I guess they could massively increase the number of customs inspectors and open every parcel. ‘Hmmmm,’ says Mr Customs Officer, ‘This out of print biography of a Victorian author was sold at $20, so that’s an extra $2 I must charge the addressee before I can let her have it.’ Can’t see that being a very good way of making money.
Or it might be possible to get the banks to note all your overseas purchases and siphon off some money. Ms BigBankOwner would, I assume, leap at the chance to add an extra fee to all overseas transactions – 10% GST plus 5% for the bank? Plus I would assume the banks can’t tell the difference between me buying something overseas online and me actually going overseas and buying something, so that would add another whole layer of complication.
I honestly can’t see how this could possibly make money, but I do see how it could make some retailers not want to sell to Australia. Let’s face it – we’re not exactly a priority as it is. It’s a small market, a long way from anywhere else, with high postage costs. If the retailers are then expected to act as arms of the ATO and collect money for Hockey, I can see some just pulling the plug on sales here.
No doubt the technologically sophisticated will manage to work around this, with VPNs or overseas credit cards. But I am not technologically sophisticated. I am already thwarted in my efforts to buy some things – for instance, I can’t download some TV shows from ITunes because they aren’t available in Oz until Foxtel has used them. If I am to delay buying the type of books I like until my local book store stocks them, then I might as well give up right now on reading anything other than diet books and Dan Brown.
Take me, for an example. I buy quite a few books from small, second hand bookshops in England and the USA, usually out of print books that aren’t available here. Or in-print books that aren’t bestsellers and so aren’t available here.
Is Hockey actually proposing that Mr OverseasTinySecondHandBookShopOwner is going to note I live in Australia, deduct 10% from the price and post it off to the ATO for him? Admittedly, I do find most of the shops through search engines like Booko or Better World. Am I to instead imagine that Ms OwnsABigBookStoreNetworkService will think that it sounds like a brilliant idea to increase the price of all their books by 10% with a 0% corresponding increase in profits for them? I think not.
I guess they could massively increase the number of customs inspectors and open every parcel. ‘Hmmmm,’ says Mr Customs Officer, ‘This out of print biography of a Victorian author was sold at $20, so that’s an extra $2 I must charge the addressee before I can let her have it.’ Can’t see that being a very good way of making money.
Or it might be possible to get the banks to note all your overseas purchases and siphon off some money. Ms BigBankOwner would, I assume, leap at the chance to add an extra fee to all overseas transactions – 10% GST plus 5% for the bank? Plus I would assume the banks can’t tell the difference between me buying something overseas online and me actually going overseas and buying something, so that would add another whole layer of complication.
I honestly can’t see how this could possibly make money, but I do see how it could make some retailers not want to sell to Australia. Let’s face it – we’re not exactly a priority as it is. It’s a small market, a long way from anywhere else, with high postage costs. If the retailers are then expected to act as arms of the ATO and collect money for Hockey, I can see some just pulling the plug on sales here.
No doubt the technologically sophisticated will manage to work around this, with VPNs or overseas credit cards. But I am not technologically sophisticated. I am already thwarted in my efforts to buy some things – for instance, I can’t download some TV shows from ITunes because they aren’t available in Oz until Foxtel has used them. If I am to delay buying the type of books I like until my local book store stocks them, then I might as well give up right now on reading anything other than diet books and Dan Brown.
