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How do I buy from Amazon US? Advice needed.

Saajid

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Hi all.

I would like to buy a few items from Amazon. The last I did this was like 3-4 years ago. At that time, I had an Amazon Prime account which gave me free local shipping in the US. I would then get my stuff delivered to a shipping forwarder (Stackry). I could shop as and when good deals came out over the cause of a few days/weeks, and get all the stuff delivered for free to Stackry. Stackry would then combine all the different packages into a single one and then ship it to RSA. After a few weeks I would then head over to my local post office, pay the VAT + customs and other fees, and collect my item. If I'm not mistaken, a few times it was delivered directly to my workplace.

SAPO being what it is, and my last order being ages ago, I'd like to know what the current best/safest method is to order from Amazon US.

Willing to pay extra for better shipping options to get some peace of mind.

Please advise regarding the full work-flow. From placing the order till the items are in my hand. Do I order direct from Amazon and use an RSA physical address for delivery? Do I use my home or work address, or use the local post office address?

How is the VAT / import duties calculated?

I'm planning to do a few orders a few weeks apart. I'll first initially test the waters with some lesser-value stuff. If that goes well, there are a few bigger more expensive things I'd like to purchase.

None of the stuff I am looking for is available locally, or is very ridiculously priced and still comes with a many weeks in the future delivery date (which means its via importers who slap on a huge markup, and still order only on-demand).

Thanks.
 
Last edited:
Hi all.

I would like to buy a few items from Amazon. That last I did this was like 3-4 years ago. At that time, I had an Amazon Prime account which gave me free local shipping in the US. I would then get my stuff delivered to a shipping forwarder (Stackry). I could shop as and when good deals came out over the cause of a few days/weeks, and get all the stuff delivered for free to Stackry. Stackry would then combine all the different packages into a single one and then ship it to RSA. After a few weeks I would then head over to my local post office, pay the VAT + customs and other fees, and collect my item. If I'm not mistaken, a few times it was delivered directly to my workplace.

SAPO being what it is, and my last order being ages ago, I'd like to know what the current best/safest method is to order from Amazon US.

Willing to pay extra for shipping to get some peace of mind.

Please advise regarding the full work-flow. From placing the order till the items are in my hand. Do I order direct from Amazon and use an RSA physical address for delivery? Do I use my home or work address, or use the local post office address?

How is the VAT / import duties calculated?

I'm planning to do a few orders a few weeks apart. I'll first initially test the waters with some lesser-value stuff. If that goes well, there are a few bigger more expensive things I'd like to purchase.

None of the stuff I am looking for is available locally, or is very ridiculously priced and still comes with a many weeks in the future delivery date.

Thanks.
AFAIK - Amazon uses various couriers (to your door) & sellers have to specify.

@JeffTheApricot could also help with crystal clarity.
 
No Amazon orders from the site uses SAPO.

The slower shipping option usually uses Aramex, which is fine, the faster one is usually UPS (very good)

All the costs are given to you in the quote before you pay (incl. VAT/Import Duties)

There is no real risk going with Amazon's shipping options.
 
I've used MyUs.com to have stuff shipped from US to here. They have been fine the few times I've used the service...
 
The slower shipping option usually uses Aramex, which is fine, the faster one is usually UPS (very good)
My last parcel was handled by UPS while overseas, but got outsourced to RAM when it hit our shores.
Took 5 days to get into SA, and two weeks to my door.

No idea how they decide when to outsource to RAM.
 
No Amazon orders from the site uses SAPO.

The slower shipping option usually uses Aramex, which is fine, the faster one is usually UPS (very good)

All the costs are given to you in the quote before you pay (incl. VAT/Import Duties)

There is no real risk going with Amazon's shipping options.
Just to add to this - it is literally as simple as adding stuff to cart, inputting your SA address, typing your ID number (for SARS customs clearance), and paying with your SA card. The cart will have all shipping and duties calculated for you before you pay. Then you don't need to do or pay anything else until the package is at your door (although I had to also give DHL my ID number, but that was it).
 
No Amazon orders from the site uses SAPO.

The slower shipping option usually uses Aramex, which is fine, the faster one is usually UPS (very good)

All the costs are given to you in the quote before you pay (incl. VAT/Import Duties)

There is no real risk going with Amazon's shipping options.

Read some threads here on Carb which said to avoid Aramex for the local leg in RSA. How do I avoid them? Do I choose a more expensive shipping option? If so, which option?

Also, I'm guessing I should try to stick to products sold directly by Amazon instead of 3rd parties, or at least "Fulfilled by Amazon", to prevent issues around warranty, and to ensure everything is shipped together in one box/delivery. Can anyone advise on this bit?
 
Just to add to this - it is literally as simple as adding stuff to cart, inputting your SA address, typing your ID number (for SARS customs clearance), and paying with your SA card. The cart will have all shipping and duties calculated for you before you pay. Then you don't need to do or pay anything else until the package is at your door (although I had to also give DHL my ID number, but that was it).

Thanks. Sounds easy peasy. Just want to make sure I don't shoot myself in the foot by not getting all the correct info before-hand. Want to know that I use the correct sellers (Amazon directly, or at least sellers that are fulfilled by Amazon, and choose the correct shipping option).

From what understand, things are a lot easier, faster and more reliable than it was 3-4 years ago. Correct?
 
Thanks. Sounds easy peasy. Just want to make sure I don't shoot myself in the foot but not getting all the correct info before-hand. Want to know that I use the correct sellers (Amazon directly, or at least sellers that are fulfilled by Amazon, and choose the correct shipping option).

From what I've read, things are a lot easier, faster and more reliable than it was 3-4 years ago. Correct?
I used it for the first time end of last year, so not sure how it compares to the past. But except for the ID steps it was the same as when ordering from Takealot.

I got only two shipping options, Standard and Priority (or something along those lines) and I chose the more expensive option, which ended up being DHL.
 
I had no problems buying from them and using Aramex
Same, shipped directly to my door in 2 weeks, the tax is added on checkout and if the actual tax amount is less than estimated amazon refunds you the excess a couple of weeks or months later
 
Thanks for all the replies so far. Really appreciate it.

Last I remember, you're also only allowed to do like 3 overseas order per year, before SARS requires you to sign up is an importer with an importer code (or something like that). Does that still apply? Or can I shop to my hearts content like I do from Takealot?
 
I order from Amazon quite frequently. Had a bit of a blow out one year, can't remember when, and only then was asked for an importers code. I frequently order more than three packages/items a year and don't had an issue. Amazon handles all of the logistics so they make it really simple.

I've never had to pay anything outside of the checkout costs, the only package that was stuck in customs was while I was applying for my importers code and everything has arrived perfectly safe.

Customs/SARS might ask you for more info if you're shipping through something like Aramex Global Shopper. Shipping through there has always been more expensive and takes longer to clear.
 
I've ordered of Amazon probably 5 times the past 2 years and always used the cheap shipping.
Never had to pay anything after paying Amazon and never had an issue with shipping.
 
Thanks, a question regarding payment method: Is an FNB credit card good enough? Should I consider things like Paypal, which come with their own supposed peace of mind, where they guarantee you safe shopping on any Paypal-enabled web site?

I don't think I'd do more than 3 orders per year, at least initially. Unless it works out really well and smoothly and I start feeling comfortable with it, then I'd perhaps consider more frequent shopping.

If do decide to order very frequently, what's the process and cost of getting an importer code? Do I need to sign up as a business, or can one sign up as an individual? What are the monthly/annual or other costs to be aware of? And does signing up for an importer code help to speed things up? Are there any other issues to be aware of if signing up for an importer code?
 
So my experience with recent purchases (about a couple weeks ago) from amazon us, they quote you the total price including the customs and delivery fee's. Taking the faster delivery option, it was handled by DHL Express - package goes on a US tour, before reaching Europe. Once it hit SA, it was outsourced to RAM for delivery. Payment on my side, was made with an FNB Debit Card - used the virtual card that FNB now offers. As far as i have seen, the payment options did not include Paypal. You are able to track the package via the dhl Express website, or even on Amazon as well.
 
safest option

1. stick to products sold
1.1 directly by Amazon
1.2 "Fulfilled by Amazon"
1.3 in stock items

2. Pick the priority shipping.

3. Cheaper options

shipping (std shipping)
They may work, but is it worth the grey hairs. The delivery date is the most optimistic time option.

importers code.
it seems a crap shoot. may work or not.

getting a seller to ship direct.
Some may be in china.

Some are crap with shipping times.
 
Thanks everyone for the advice and answers to my questions. I placed my Amazon order yesterday. Before the budget speech, just in case it caused rand to tank (it hasn't yet, still more-or-less the same).

Was pretty easy. Not much to think about and plan, unlike how it used to be years back. I'm hoping I can shop on Amazon more often with a simple Takealot style experience.
 
Thanks everyone for the advice and answers to my questions. I placed my Amazon order yesterday. Before the budget speech, just in case it caused rand to tank (it hasn't yet, still more-or-less the same).

Was pretty easy. Not much to think about and plan, unlike how it used to be years back. I'm hoping I can shop on Amazon more often with a simple Takealot style experience.

did your stuff arrive yet
 
My lessons learnt
1. rather buy directly from amazon
2. don't skimp on shipping
3. don't buy 1 small item at a time (add a few to justify the shipping cost)
 
did your stuff arrive yet

Yip, all arrived. I placed my order 24 Feb. Was a big order (for me at least). $508 total, which included shipping + import duties. 17 different items. But the order got split into 5 different packages, each with its own tracking number (coz the items were split/sourced from 5 different fulfillment centers/warehouses). The packages arrived between 10 and 15 March. So it took 14 days for the first package to arrive, and 19 days for the last. I chose the cheaper shipping option - AmazonGlobal Standard Shipping - which goes via Aramex for us.

Placed my second order on 30 March. Tracking says its currently in Dubai. Should arrive at my door by next week.
 
One note though, of the 5 packages my first order got split into, 2 of them were marked as "Undeliverable" on the Amazon order tracking page. And there was no tracking info at all for these 2 packages. This was worrying, so I contacted support via live chat, and they said its nothing to worry about. Some type of system error and they can see the real tracking info and that the packages are on their way. A day or 2 after contact them the tracking info then showed up for those 2 packages, showing the whole history that couldn't be seen before.
 
What exactly on Amazon US/UK is cheaper than companies in SA? I've never found one where item+shipping+imports were cheaper.
 
What exactly on Amazon US/UK is cheaper than companies in SA? I've never found one where item+shipping+imports were cheaper.

All of the stuff I bought are either not available here in RSA, or the alternatives / similar products are of inferior quality.

It's usually better to buy most stuff locally, as you get local warranty and have local companies to deal with. Its for the bigger more expensive stuff, and more niche stuff that you'd use Amazon, either to achieve a big enough savings by importing it that it negates the lack of warranty, or because its something you just cant get this side.
 

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