I wanted to give you a report on my experience of ordering a Sandberg VM5 from Thomann Music in Germany and having it delivered to Texas.
https://www.thomannmusic.com/sandberg_california_ii_vm_5_mn_bkb.htm
(The price has gone up since I ordered it)
The first thing I did was sign up to be a verified customer with an official customer number. The price of the bass was $1,599 plus $58.90 for shipping. I used a Chase Visa card and it appears that however Thomann routed/processed the payment, I wasn't charged any foreign transaction fees. (you probably want to make sure that USA is selected as your location on the top) If the any fees show up on my monthly bill, I'll give an update.
I placed the order on a Friday and received the bass one week later. It was packaged with the Sandberg box inside a larger Thomann box using scrunched up brown paper as space filler. The outside box was in relatively good condition and the inside box and bass were pristine.
CUSTOMS and BROKERAGE:
Thomann filled out any required invoices and paperwork.
While the bass was in transit UPS emailed me requesting my business tax ID or, if the item was for personal use, my Social Security Number. It took about a day and a half for the bass to clear customs. My advice is to not pay too much attention to the scans while the item is processing through customs. Just be patient and it will probably get released within a couple of days. At some point after the bass clears customs the tracking will update with the option to pay the duty and fees ahead of time. The other option is to pay the driver with a check. The box will not be released by the driver without payment.
My total bill from UPS was $113.24. I believe this included 5% duty on the total invoice (including shipping) plus a ~$30 brokerage fee.
Total out of Pocket: $1,599 + $58.90 + $113.24
= $1771.14
Scan History:
Fri 30 Apr 2021 1:11 PM Delivered FORT WORTH TX US
10:46 AM Out For Delivery Today Fort Worth TX US
8:55 AM Loaded on Delivery Vehicle Fort Worth TX US
4:48 AM Processing at UPS Facility Fort Worth TX US
Thu 29 Apr 2021 10:37 PM Departed from Facility DFW Airport TX US
5:05 PM Arrived at Facility DFW Airport TX US
3:59 PM Import charges are due for this package. Select Pay Now (where available) or pay at delivery.
3:59 PM Duties or taxes are due on this package.
3:49 PM Departed from Facility Louisville KY US
2:55 PM Import Scan Louisville KY US
2:36 PM Your package has been released by the government agency.
2:35 PM Your package has been released by the government agency.
12:07 PM Warehouse Scan Louisville KY US
Wed 28 Apr 2021 5:54 AM Your package is pending release from a government agency. Release of the package to UPS may take up to 10 days. Louisville KY US
5:54 AM UPS initiated contact with the sender to obtain clearance information. Once received, UPS will submit for clearance. / Your package is on the way
12:08 AM Import Scan Louisville KY US
Tue 27 Apr 2021 10:32 PM Arrived at Facility Louisville KY US
9:01 PM Departed from Facility Koeln DE
2:00 PM UPS initiated contact with the sender to obtain clearance information. Once received, UPS will submit for clearance. / The package is at the clearing agency awaiting final release.
Mon 26 Apr 2021 8:49 PM The package is at the clearing agency awaiting final release.
Tue 27 Apr 2021 1:28 AM Export Scan Koeln DE
Mon 26 Apr 2021 11:44 PM Arrived at Facility Koeln DE
9:10 PM Departed from Facility Frankfurt DE
6:03 PM Origin Scan Frankfurt DE
8:15 AM Package is in transit to a UPS facility Burgebrach DE
8:16 AM Shipper created a label, UPS has not received the package yet. DE
NOTE: The times listed in the scan details are local time.
