I managed to find the bike I want in Europe. Coincidentally, a friend is visiting me soon and he can bring the bike, along with his regular bike. He is not an US citizen. The bike will be packaged in the original box used to ship the bike to him.
The question is, when he enters the US and has to go through customs, will the be any annoying procedures or worst will he have to pay fees or taxes?
The situation looks difficult given that the bike will appear to be new. He’s already traveling with a bike……
Do you want the technically correct answer or the “I just want my bike as cheap as possible” answer?
It all depends on if your buddy declares it when he lands in the US. I have never had a customs agent question me about anything, even when I was bringing large boxes of samples back into the US from Asia.
Now, could you get an inquisitive, overly-annoying agent who wants to make your buddy’s life difficult because he is in a p*ssy mood that day? Absolutely.
Agreed w/ @Dubadai hat the best option is to build it and repack it.
I bought a canyon from Germany before they were selling in the US. I decided to declare it after reading that they could confiscate it. Saving $150 or something wasn’t worth losing $5k.
They honestly seemed like they weren’t used to people declaring things like that, and that I could have skated through. Regardless, it was an easy decision I would make again, despite wishing to save the cash.
Sport items tend to be cheaper in the US. It’s usually when bringing stuff in Europe that the european customs will annoy you (very typical for golf clubs for example). But I never tried to bring a new bike in the US.
If it was me, I would unbox the bike, remove paraphernalia (tags, labels, etc) linking it to a new bike, slap on a bottle cage and pedals, box the bike up in the original box with with additional packaging tape and khoki markings etc, ask your mate to act as if he is the owner of two bikes, and he is on a biking vacation.
Buying a new bike and going on vacation with it is not out of the ordinary. Let him carry the delivery notice of the bike to his EU address with him to show that it was delivered to him as ‘proof’ of ownership if questioned. However that is not normal behaviour when travelling with a bike.
The onus would be on Customs to prove he is not the owner of both bikes, never mind just the new bike. Who is to say he has not brought his older bike to donate to some person/charity/race etc. and to use the new bike for his vacation.
Thanks all for your input. It turns out that the stumbling block will be the sellers unwillingness to swap the existing drivetrain for my beloved DuraAce 12sp.
I’ve been stopped by customs in the US, in China, and in Mexico for my camera gear (I’m a professional photographer). I prepare a carnet before traveling, so it’s usually not a big deal - except in Mexico where the agents seemed either inexperienced with carnets or were stalling for a bribe - but it’s crazy considering my gear looks relatively used.
There’s also the issue that it is your mate taking a risk, not you. He could try to get away with it, and probably will, but he has to be honest if questioned and you will have to pay the fees.
Import taxes are one of the first type of taxes imposed by the US and are thousands of years old in general. Modern politicians have reduced duty significantly compared to historical averages. You can be upset about spending your money on taxes, but I don’t think your statement regarding modern political corruption squares with reality.
Are you seriously not able to see how low and/or not paid taxes translates to lesser government service? You’re stealing from the government…then blaming the government for not having the resources to fix things? And what…you want a ballot initiative to fix a pothole?
Talk about mental jiu jitsu…
P.S. I was in the Bay Area a couple months ago. Didn’t even get shot. Can we stop with the fear mongering?
California lets voters vote on almost anything. That’s why there’s a prop 65 warning at the bottom of almost every product sold in the US. Those voters didn’t understand that yes, in the wrong dose, almost everything we use is “linked” to cancer…
