Who's in for a trip to the US ?

[tvde]

Hell, I just can't believe that 3499$ = 3499€ so I figured some things out :

- with today's rate, 3499$ = 2662,50€
- difference with european pricing is = 836,50€
- three days trip from Paris to NY, including flights and hotel is approximately 700€
- I've never been to NY before, and I could actually SAVE MONEY  if I'd go visit it ... WHO'S IN ??

And, by the way, although it's (maybe, maybe not) a humorous topic, it could help me knowing some things about taxes and toll controls : is it true that if I get there, buy a camera on the first day, and then shoot 1,000 pics of NY, I'll be able to go through the frontiers with a "used" camera Won't they check the date I bought it and say "you're kidding us (US^^) you bought that three days ago !!" .... Thanks for your help / experiences

You could consider to buy it @ Studio 73 in Belgium. I bought mine for €3299 (http://www.studio73.be/canon-eos-5d-mkiii-body). This way it comes with 2 years of guarantee (I guess it's only 1 year in the US). And you should indeed not forget to add sales tax to the US price if you're going to pick it up in NYC.

[triggermike]

A note about US state sales tax (mentioned earlier in the thread):  If you buy gear in person, over-the-counter at a store, you will pay state sales tax - no exceptions. Most vary between 5% to 8% or so. The only time state sales taxes are not collected are with mailorder or internet orders sent to a different state than the one the vendor is in. Even in these cases, sales tax is sometimes collected when: (1) the vendor has some sort of registered business or subsidiary (may not be evident to you) in your state or, (2) the vendor just collects it anyway and pockets the tax for themselves.

[dichiaras]

I've been to the US last September (I live in Denmark): buying my first DSLR (EOS 1100D), a MacBook Air, plenty of other stuff= 3500 EUR; paying 0 EUR at the customs after throwing away all the packaging and receipts= priceless!

Notice that I had with me also a MacBook Pro, worth about 2500 EUR, which I bought in the US a couple of years earlier, again without paying customs to bring it to Denmark.

I read so many silly statements above. I lived in the US for five years, traveled back and forth 12 times, and never paid a dime to customs. Of course, again, things in your luggage have to look like personal items. If one is so naive that packs everything including shopping bags and receipts, I think one deserves to pay for it.

Btw, here in Denmark one pays 20 EUR handling fee +25% VAT on camera equipment shipped from outside the EU. I tried to make the customs believe that I had a girlfriend in Hong Kong, but they didn't believe me.   

[Frank209]

Hell, I just can't believe that 3499$ = 3499€ so I figured some things out :

- with today's rate, 3499$ = 2662,50€
- difference with european pricing is = 836,50€
- three days trip from Paris to NY, including flights and hotel is approximately 700€
- I've never been to NY before, and I could actually SAVE MONEY  if I'd go visit it ... WHO'S IN ??

And, by the way, although it's (maybe, maybe not) a humorous topic, it could help me knowing some things about taxes and toll controls : is it true that if I get there, buy a camera on the first day, and then shoot 1,000 pics of NY, I'll be able to go through the frontiers with a "used" camera Won't they check the date I bought it and say "you're kidding us (US^^) you bought that three days ago !!" .... Thanks for your help / experiences

You could consider to buy it @ Studio 73 in Belgium. I bought mine for €3299 (http://www.studio73.be/canon-eos-5d-mkiii-body). This way it comes with 2 years of guarantee (I guess it's only 1 year in the US). And you should indeed not forget to add sales tax to the US price if you're going to pick it up in NYC.

Why would we do that? it's stated above that in Switzerland it's 2820 euro's...

[DJL329]

Hell, I just can't believe that 3499$ = 3499€ so I figured some things out :

- with today's rate, 3499$ = 2662,50€
- difference with european pricing is = 836,50€
- three days trip from Paris to NY, including flights and hotel is approximately 700€

You could just fly to Zurich (Switzerland). Its a 1h flight which will cost you around 200Euros (AirFrance or Swiss) and in Zurich you get the camera for 3399.- CHF (= 2820 Euro). You should also consider, that sales taxes are included in the swiss price, but not in the us price

+1  In New York, you will have city and state taxes added on.  I don't live there so I am not sure what that total would be, but my guess is about 7+% (NY'ers help me out).  Fortunately, the state I do live in has no state sales tax so anything I order and have shipped (I usually select free shipping) costs nothing additional. I'm sorry the price where you live is so jacked up.  But I'm sure the US would love to have all of you come over and spend money here to help out our economy. 

In NYC, the total sales tax on most items, including electronics, is 8.875%.  See "Items 2-8" under "Tax Rates."

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dof/html/business/business_tax_nys_sales.shtml

[tvde]

Hell, I just can't believe that 3499$ = 3499€ so I figured some things out :

- with today's rate, 3499$ = 2662,50€
- difference with european pricing is = 836,50€
- three days trip from Paris to NY, including flights and hotel is approximately 700€
- I've never been to NY before, and I could actually SAVE MONEY  if I'd go visit it ... WHO'S IN ??

And, by the way, although it's (maybe, maybe not) a humorous topic, it could help me knowing some things about taxes and toll controls : is it true that if I get there, buy a camera on the first day, and then shoot 1,000 pics of NY, I'll be able to go through the frontiers with a "used" camera Won't they check the date I bought it and say "you're kidding us (US^^) you bought that three days ago !!" .... Thanks for your help / experiences

You could consider to buy it @ Studio 73 in Belgium. I bought mine for €3299 (http://www.studio73.be/canon-eos-5d-mkiii-body). This way it comes with 2 years of guarantee (I guess it's only 1 year in the US). And you should indeed not forget to add sales tax to the US price if you're going to pick it up in NYC.

Why would we do that? it's stated above that in Switzerland it's 2820 euro's...

If you CAN indeed find it for that price in Switerzeland: go for it. But I only found the following price in Switzerland: http://www.fotopro.ch/index.cfm?name=canon-eos-5d-mark-iii&s=tmpnews&nid=349

[pascamel]

Hell, I just can't believe that 3499$ = 3499€ so I figured some things out :

- with today's rate, 3499$ = 2662,50€
- difference with european pricing is = 836,50€
- three days trip from Paris to NY, including flights and hotel is approximately 700€
- I've never been to NY before, and I could actually SAVE MONEY  if I'd go visit it ... WHO'S IN ??

And, by the way, although it's (maybe, maybe not) a humorous topic, it could help me knowing some things about taxes and toll controls : is it true that if I get there, buy a camera on the first day, and then shoot 1,000 pics of NY, I'll be able to go through the frontiers with a "used" camera Won't they check the date I bought it and say "you're kidding us (US^^) you bought that three days ago !!" .... Thanks for your help / experiences

Don't forget to add the NY state tax (approx. 8.2%) => $300 !
As far as i remember OR is the only state with 0% tax.

You can use USPS to send packages and receipt to your home
(i did when i bought stuff in NYC, i'm french too ^^)

[thure1982]

Is it possible to buy it taxfree in US if your exporting it privately? Then pay taxes in your own country?
That's possible in Sweden.

[ramon123]

I think it's worth it to fly to the US just to walk into the incredible B&H with those little robot buckets above ones head and go and play with the 5D Mark III followed by buying it and having it delivered to your collection point!

 

[Jim K]

In NYC, the total sales tax on most items, including electronics, is 8.875%.  See "Items 2-8" under "Tax Rates."
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dof/html/business/business_tax_nys_sales.shtml

It just keeps going up! Makes me glad we moved to Florida five years ago. 

[vlim]

Apparently the price in France will be different : i've found 3190 € for the body !

[unfocused]

You guys are making this too difficult.

Have the camera shipped to me. Buy me a plane ticket to Europe (Provence is nice, but we'd also like to see Tuscany. We're flexible). Buy dinner for my wife and I at the nearest Michelin star restaurant (one star is okay).

I bring the camera to dinner, snap a few souvenir shots of all of us. We leave a little early because we have to get up the next morning. After we leave, you notice I forgot the camera. Oh no! What to do? You have no idea where we are staying and my cell phone doesn't seem to be working in Europe. Sucks for me.

[ed24]

I just reserved my 5DMK3 and 24-105 in Zurich, it came in at around £3190 which is significantly cheaper than the £3700 it will be over here.

[alipaulphotography]

So the price in the US PLUS sales tax is approx $3800?

[Caps18]

You guys are making this too difficult.

Have the camera shipped to me. Buy me a plane ticket to Europe (Provence is nice, but we'd also like to see Tuscany. We're flexible). Buy dinner for my wife and I at the nearest Michelin star restaurant (one star is okay).

I bring the camera to dinner, snap a few souvenir shots of all of us. We leave a little early because we have to get up the next morning. After we leave, you notice I forgot the camera. Oh no! What to do? You have no idea where we are staying and my cell phone doesn't seem to be working in Europe. Sucks for me.

I would be up for that too, I would love to go backpacking around Europe.  Buy me a plane ticket, but you wouldn't want to pay for the camera until you received it...

If you don't live in New York state, you are only supposed to pay some national use tax, but it doesn't happen unless you get audited.  On-line sales to states that don't have physical stores can't collect sales tax, yet.