Dear all,
I am being asked to pay 48% of customs duty and IGST for clearing the books and getting delivered. this is over and above the amount paid for the books. I am from India. Ayone else has similar experience.
Is this only duty charge or is VAT included in that amount? If so, check if your government changed VAT rates?
Pratikshaha,
I faced a similar issue with my L3 Schweser books, ordered about a year ago, though none with my CFAI printed books. I was lucky that Schweser refunded the charges after I had to pay and get the parcel cleared. Based on the conversation I had with the courier staff back then, the customs duty/VAT is not applied to all articles (study materials) but is based on a random check at the port of arrival.
The CFA Institute however does state that duties/cess, where applicable for print versions of their material, need to be picked up by candidates. 'Having said that, I would suggest that you reach out to the CFA helpdesk to request for any assistance if possible. Alternately, if your course fees/materials are being sponsored by your employer, you might have the option of providing their PAN/TAN number to the courier. This will enable the courier firm in turn to pass the dues on to your employer (not sure of the mechanism, but it is likely that the courier will pay the IGST, claim a credit, and threfore pass the tax liability onto the final recipient of the service/goods - i.e. the employer in this case).