Sending shipments to Jersey?

If you've shipped to Jersey before, you may have learnt a fact that often finds people by surprise - Jersey isn't part of the EU.

Officially known as the Bailiwick of Jersey, Jersey is a British Crown Dependency, having it's own independent governing democratic parliament.

So what does this have to do with sending shipments, you ask? Since Jersey isn't part of the EU, what this means is that any shipments entering the island are taxable.

This is not to be confused by VAT - there is no VAT payable to goods entering from or being imported from Jersey.

Bailiwick of Jersey does however, have it's own import tax called GST which stands for Goods & Services Tax). GST is charged at 5% on the value of the goods and freight charges at import.

How GST is calculated

Jersey customs will look at the value of the total invoice, not individual consignments to ascertain GST regulations. As an example, if you're importing a consignment with 3 goods, valued at £200 each, from the custom's point of view, GST will be payable as the total consignment is £600 (plus shipping costs etc) and not £200.

Here are some things to note on GST:

· For the value of goods (including shipping cost) amounting to more than £240, you must declare and pay the GST before your shipment can be released. This can be done on the website itself (here's the link in case you need it here )
· If your shipment is arriving from a country outside of the EU, there may be additional custom duty payable
· For an incoming shipment whose value exceeds £390, this must be declared to a custom officer upon arrival
· If your goods are intended to be in Jersey only temporarily, you may not be required to pay GST. However, if this is the case, you must apply for this prior to the date of arrival of your shipment, ideally before and at the very latest, upon arrival.

For more information on GST, take a look at the Government website