Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

ort888 · Jun 27, 2006, 03:07 PM

Here's the deal. I have a friend who is in the Army and serving in England. He needs a new laptop, but does not want to buy a British one because he doesn't know how long he will be there and they cost more. Apple.com will not ship a laptop overseas.

So what he did was wire me $1,500, have me buy a Macbook and send it too him. Did I violate some sort of international law?

Mastrap · Jun 27, 2006, 03:11 PM

Doesn't Apple US ship directly to a military address?

ort888 · Jun 27, 2006, 03:15 PM

Do they? If so, then my friend was misinformed.

Scifience · Jun 27, 2006, 03:22 PM

IANAL, but I wouldn't think you should be violating any law by mailing a laptop overseas. The warranty might not be valid in the UK, but unless there is some import or export restriction on laptops from the US to the UK that I am not aware of, there should be no reason you've broken a real law.

A license agreement, maybe.

Mastrap · Jun 27, 2006, 03:29 PM

No, looks like I was wrong:

U.S. SALES ONLY
The Apple Store sells and ships products only within the continental United States, Alaska, and Hawaii. No shipments can be made to APO or FPO addresses, United States territories, or addresses outside the United States. You may not export any products purchased at the Apple Store.

Gossamer · Jun 27, 2006, 03:56 PM

So Apple doesn't want you to, but will any government do anything about it?

TETENAL · Jun 27, 2006, 04:11 PM

You can send whatever you want to whatever country you want. The worst thing that could happen would be that your friend would have to pay import duty.

ort888 · Jun 27, 2006, 04:48 PM

What would be the import duty on a $1,500 Macbook?

villalobos · Jun 27, 2006, 04:50 PM

Originally Posted by ort888

What would be the import duty on a $1,500 Macbook?

Probably enough to offset the price difference. FWIW AppleCare is valid worldwide.

Doofy · Jun 27, 2006, 05:04 PM

Originally Posted by ort888

What would be the import duty on a $1,500 Macbook?

Never tried with a computer, but the import duty on $1,800 worth of guitar is usually between $150 and $200, depending on what mood the customs guys are in.

MacBook78 · Jun 27, 2006, 05:20 PM

Because he is in the military he has an APO address which is the same as shipping to a regular US address. So you'll ship USPS Priority or Express and then fill out a customs form. You will put down what the item is and send without any worries. I have had several laptops and camera bodies and lenses sent to me in the last year and not once have I paid for customs.

Joe

Angus_D · Jun 27, 2006, 05:56 PM

Originally Posted by ort888

What would be the import duty on a $1,500 Macbook?

IIRC, import duty is 22%. Her Majesty's Customs & Excise will be able to tell you a definitive answer, though.

Kerrigan · Jun 27, 2006, 06:07 PM

Free trade arrangements between US and UK (and elsewhere in EU) mean that customs laws are hardly ever enforced. I've moved frequently back and forth between the US and UK and even though I've always declared new products which I buy in one country and bring to the other, I've never had to pay any duties.

olePigeon · Jun 27, 2006, 06:29 PM

Would it be possible to fill out a temporary mail forwarding form for the USPS and have your mail sent to a POB in Britain? I don't know if you'd get a Postage Due or not of if it'd even work.

alligator · Jun 27, 2006, 07:23 PM

You ought to be concerned with export control laws. If it has encryption anywhere on the computer, you could be in violation of export control laws. Go see the advice of an attorney in this area. Export control violations are serious - and may include jail time.

legacyb4 · Jun 27, 2006, 11:52 PM

Isn't Mac OS X all the same code regardless of the country you buy it in? Thus, any encryption software included (Filevault, openSSL, SSH, etc.) by default should meet any export/import laws. No?

Originally Posted by alligator

You ought to be concerned with export control laws. If it has encryption anywhere on the computer, you could be in violation of export control laws. Go see the advice of an attorney in this area. Export control violations are serious - and may include jail time.

Angus_D · Jun 28, 2006, 05:04 AM

Originally Posted by Kerrigan

Free trade arrangements between US and UK (and elsewhere in EU) mean that customs laws are hardly ever enforced. I've moved frequently back and forth between the US and UK and even though I've always declared new products which I buy in one country and bring to the other, I've never had to pay any duties.

That's not entirely true. Almost all packages I've received from the US have been opened by customs, and I've regularly been charged import duty. Trying to avoid paying it is fraud.