jamesw7

Hi - i have seen on threads a reference to selling your imported car in australia within 2 years seems to attract some further tax or customs charge. However, i have not been able to find any detail on this. Does anyone know the exact law or who charges these levies? I can't imagine it is tax, so not sure exactly whether this is an urban myth or something that needs to be considered - imported car 18 months ago. Cheers, James

Yep, good point. My car is german and after multiplying uk cost price times current exchange rate it is still worth approximately double that amount if bought in australia. Therefore, any issues with transportation, or otherwise, are worth dealing with. Japanese cars are the biggest sellers in Australia (Mazda 3 most sold last year, and Nissans take up 3-4 or next 6 positions on recent 2012 sales stats in Aussie paper), so probably cheaper. Sounds like the best option for those with a european car is to export it, sell it when in australia and buy the equiv japanese car and use the extra cash for a holiday. job done...

As someone who has just been back in Aus for 12 months, after 10 years in the UK i would respectfully disagree. A recent CPI comparison showed Australia can upto 60% more expensive than the UK. If you can take it (owned it for 12 months), then take it as you'll save money - a quick comparison on car sites will show this. I don't actually agree with the heat issue as i have taken a air cooled car myself which would be most at risk and just driven sydney to brisbane and back with no issues during summer. If you are worried about aircondition (again i think this is a non issue as a fully functioning and fill aircon unit will work anywhere), then pay for a change or upgrade before you leave, as still cheaper than buying a car out here.

Few guys at work have been discussing this, as they left savings in the UK when returning to australia. Due to the GBP rate, decline they have effectively lost AUD equivalent. They spoke to various people and feedback was it should be a capital gain/loss - but did not get specific confirmation from the tax office. Makes sense that from the time you arrive in australia it is an AUD asset (even though held overseas), and and change in valuation until the point it is physically realised or exchanged into AUD, is subject to tax (could be upside). On a side note, I believe these boys put the loss through as income, so suspect if investigated they will need to pay it all back.

Hi - we are looking for the following for our new flat in Balmain - arrived 2 weeks ago. Have finally survived the joke that is acquiring a rental property in Sydney and did not bring the following items from the UK If anyone has the below they could part with at a reasonable price then please PM. Otherwise, any suggestions besides the usual (gumtree/ebay/craigslist), would also be appreciated. cheers- james Fridge Clothes Wash Cloths Dryer Couch Coffee Table Double Bed and Mattress Fold out couch Desk Office Chair

Hi - we have a container booked for first week of Jan, and have been told that all items should have been owned for 12 months or may be liable for duty under australian customs import. We were married this year, and had all out gifts put straight in storage ready for Australia. My question is whether 'gifts' are still taxable. All are unopened but have a 'gift list' stamp from the retailer. We can unpack everything, and rewrap it to look like its used, but thought we'd ask the question first. cheers

Yep, the price has gone down again when i queried (£125). Their branch manager sent me a note on it, which i'll attach for others use. 'Further to our conversation I have made some enquiries into the Dangerous Goods Note and the charges which are levied. The shipping lines do have an exception if the vehicle is TOTALLY drained of fuel, as a new car off the production line, and the wet cell battery isolated. This I do not believe is possible with second hand vehicles as there will always be fuel in the system and there is no other way to load the vehicle into a container unless it is driven. The charge applied is set by the shipping line per TEU and it is the stuffers responsibility to produce the DGN as well as to produce and affix 4 DGN warning signs to the relevant container. The charge quoted by Jason is for a 40ft container (2 x TEU's) and this should be halved as your shipment is a 20ft container.'

Getting final quotes for move, and been told it will be a £250 charge for this. I suggested draining the fuel tank and unhooking the battery, but was told this was standard procedure and would not influence the charge - ie it is still considered dangerous goods and the charge stands. Frustrating! It is not mentioned in comparision quotes, so unsure whether an oversights, or W&C are looking to get extra on this.

Is there a large price differential between getting a full package from a shipping company who comes and packs up all your gear, as opposed to packing your own boxes and getting a company to pick them up. I rang a company yesterday who said there was no real saving as they have to bring the boxes to you anyway, so taking two trips to your house is equivalent to spending the extra time in packing all the gear? As a guide is it a per box price, or as a whole depending on the number of boxes (i'd imagine the price increases per box, but at a decreasing rate)?

Iron chief - regarding personnel import: did i read somewhere on this thread that you can, or should, apply online, obtaining a reference number then forward documents through the post? I've gone back through a few pages and cannot see it, so thinking i may have dreamed it..

hi iron chief - question on the pre-89 exception for ownership. i am Australian returning from the UK after a long stint, and would like to take on old car with me. i assume i can purchase right up until i leave and ship it later. if i don't find one i like, can i still get a friend to purchase on my behalf and my name and ship it to me , or do i physically have to be in the UK to buy it?

wow, thanks for the level of detail. very much appreciated. since posting the orignal i have reviewed about 100 pages of related threads, so gained a pretty good picture. - We had not even started the packs (hence the questions), but will put in all our information by the end of the month, which may be aggressive, but rather just get it out the way. - This will prob not allow to front load, but general theme seems to be that no longer is as important - just police will be missing, but not sure if that is an issue?? - based on teh 4-5 months am hoping that an end of Aug submission will get us a visa some time in January(fingers crossed) - We are planning on travelling through asia in Dec and Jan, so will tell the case officer, but prob just stay offshore until granted, then enter Australia. - an extra few weeks on a beach hut is no bad thing and keeps us out of NZ:) Anyone aware of threads on content on pack ? - level of detail around photos etc - stat decs contect etc. again, thanks in advance.

Hi - new joiner, so hoping to get a little info from users. My new wife (English) and i (Australian) are hoping to move to Australia in Dec/Jan this year and are not sure of the best option for applying for a spouse visa for her: 1) Off - shore - been told this takes 12 months, but last few posts seems to indicate it can take 4 months if front loaded at Aus House in London? Is that right? 2) There is a small chance she may be able to work for the same company as in UK - can a work request from an Aus based company be used in Application to get some sort of priority 3) If we do lodge it and then leave the UK before it is granted - is that ok? Appreciate she cant work until it arrives, but is there some sort of restriction on her even entering the country? thanks in advance - will pore over the older threads while waiting.