I am being asked to pay 103 Euro by Backerkit on top of my pledge to cover taxes. is this legit? I don’t recall seeing anything on the pledge page saying tax was extra? Please confirm.
Yes, it is legit and business as usual. This is a quote from the FAQ on IGG.
What do I need to know about shipping?
We are able to ship worldwide! VAT and GST not included in perk pre-order price and will be determined by country on delivery. Backers are responsible for these costs (VAT, GST, duties, taxes, etc) on delivery. Shipping costs vary by country; please see reward for details on the shipping cost that applies to you.
Unfortunately taxes weren’t included in the pledge. The government wants their share.
Of course the government wants their share, as they would of any sale regardless of whether it’s online or in a brick-and-mortar shop. There’s nothing strange about this.
It’s difficult to include the taxes beforehand, as some backers may have tax exemptions and the rates differ from country to country, or even state. Handling it afterwards makes it easier for everyone to compare prices.
I have a question regarding VAT tax.
My pledge in September 2019 did not contain tax. That is all right.
Later on 27/11/2019 I had to pay tax of 20% at BackerKit account. So I paid it. You charged 83.80 euro as per VAT (20%). Exactly VAT tax we have in Estonia.
Today projector arrived to Estonia and local customs require me pay VAT again. The sending Chinese supplier of Philips indicated DDU term in the DHL waybill. Meaning no duties were paid.
So Estonian customs consider the VAT was not paid. But I have paid it via BackerKit platform. Or what charge was that?
So will you return me that paid VAT amount or provide me with a document confirmation of already paid VAT so Estonian customs make clearance and release the parcel?
Have u had any communication back from Philips? I’m in the same boat and also in Estonia. None of the emails have been replied by human. Only the automatic responses come back.
I just came here, via IndieGoGo, to report the same issue. I’m in Germany and had to pay €83.41 for taxes on Backerkit. However, given the net amount of €468.- (€439.- for the projector plus €29.- for shipping) the tax total of €83.41 doesn’t compute with either the old German VAT of 19% nor the new German VAT of 16% that’s in place due to COVID-19 since 1st July 2020! Can somebody explain the math?
Also, as I’m a small business owner, I require a proper invoice showing the VAT Number of the supplier, not a mere BackerKit confirmation.
Would somebody at Philips be kind enough to answer the questions posted here?
Just last week they started to reply. Still I have paid to Customs VAT again + Import payment to import electronics because the item is over 22 EUR limit.
Hopefully I will get at least those 83.80 EUR refunded, because in the beginning it seemed that Philips will import their projectors to EU and then ship them within EU as usual, so I will get no additional duties paid.
I suggest you write them again through BackerKit or directly to Philips support…