Stephen, I've taken the liberty of copying this to the list, as someone else may have a clearer picture of this than I do. You are correct that the tariffs charge 5.5% for bikes with both wheels over 63.5 cm (635 mm), provided they weight under 16.2 kilograms (any good lightweight would meet this weight test). Bikes with both wheels under 635 mm or which weight over 16.3 kg are subject to 11.% . The answer appears to be that it depends how Customs measures the wheels. If you read the excellent article on rims on Sheldon Brown's web site, you'll find that ISO standards for rims and tires measure the diameter at the rim bead seat. A 700C rim is 622 mm measured the ISO way, 27" rims are 630 mm. The 28" rims found on "roadsters" are 635 mm, (but a roadster could be over 16.3 kg). So with the ISO measurement, a bike with 700C wheels would cost you 11%. If they measure to the outside of the tire, you are home free at 5.5% (but still higher than a frame at 3.9%). If they measure to the outside edge of the rim, it could be VERY close. Anyone know how Customs in fact interprets this?
Regards,
Jerry Moos
Houston, TX
> Jerry:
>
> I am working on bringing a bike over from France right
> now. In my conversations with Customs, I was under
> the impression that bikes with 700c wheels were taxed
> at a rate of 5.5%.
>
> According to them, any complete bike with wheels under
> 63.5cm were taxed at 11%. Bikes with both wheels over
> 63.5cm are taxed at 5.5%.
>
> Am I wrong about this? I checked the website you sent
> in your email, and read that there is an additional
> condition (regarding tire cross section size). Is this
> what will catch me on this...or can I still expect to
> pay 5.5% of the value?
>
> I assume that you have done this before, which is why
> I am asking. Thanks for any help you can give.
>
>
> Stephan Andranian
> Costa Mesa, CA
> --- Jerry & Liz Moos <jerrymoos@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
> > Thought I'd update the list on a thread I started a
> > couple of months ago. I
> > had complained that DHL tried to collect 11% import
> > tariff on a Richard Kent
> > built Arthur Caygill frame, which was excessive in
> > my opinion. After a
> > second bill from DHL, I called them. I had checked
> > out the US Customs
> > Service database at:
> >
> > http://dataweb.usitc.gov/
> >
> > According to this, the frame should have been
> > assessed 3.9% (forks are at 0%
> > for no obvious reason). There were also lights and
> > dynamo, which are at
> > 0% - I guess the Feds want to encourage safe night
> > riding. The custom racks
> > didn't fit any specific category, so I had to
> > concede they were "other"
> > parts at 10%. I wrote down the Customs Service
> > category code I thought each
> > item on the invoice fit into, and calculated the
> > total I thought was the
> > actual amount due, including the not-unreasonable $5
> > broker fee DHL was
> > seeking. The total was $56 versus the $134 DHL was
> > seeking.
> > I had a frustrating time dealing with phone
> > answering systems and DHL
> > employee voice mails, but when I finally was able to
> > talk to a real person,
> > I laid out the invoice items, the Customs Service
> > category code I thought
> > applied to each, the corresponding tariff rates, and
> > the total I thought I
> > owed. She really didn't argue at all, adjusted the
> > invoice to what I
> > suggested, and I sent a check for the reduced
> > amount. It seems DHL had
> > simply declared the shipment at the 11% complete
> > bike rate because that was
> > the easy thing for them to do. When challenged with
> > the facts, they did not
> > argue.
> >
> > The moral is, if you get hit with a high tariff,
> > check the Customs Service
> > web site, get the facts straight, and challenge any
> > duty you think is
> > incorrect. Also note, the tariffs speak of a
> > complete bike "with both
> > wheels" at 11%, while frames are 3.9%, so if you are
> > buying an expensive
> > frame, you'll be better off not buying wheels from
> > the same source in the
> > same shipment. If ordering parts with traiffs much
> > less than 11%,
> > especially lighting equipment which is not taxed,
> > try to be sure the invoice
> > clearly lists these as line items.
> >
> > Regards,
> >
> > Jerry Moos
> > Houston, "tornados here this evening" TX
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > Classicrendezvous mailing list
> > Classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
> >
> http://www.bikelist.org/
>
>
> __________________________________________________
> Do You Yahoo!?
> Yahoo! Greetings - send holiday greetings for Easter, Passover
> http://greetings.yahoo.com/