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Travelling from USA to UK

K

Kinger61

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Oct 16, 2015
13
0
Hi everyone,

I'm going to be going to Las Vegas within the next month! Whilst there i plan to buy an iPhone 6s! My issue is I already have an iPhone 6 which I will be getting rid of when I return to the UK, but what would be the way it works through customs in UK, should I declare the iPhone 6s or what needs to be done to it for them to not know it was bought in the USA on that trip ? Should i discard the box it comes in or set it up or anything ? Don't really wanna pay the VAT applied as it would mean I save nothing on the iPhone !

Any help appreciated! Thanks in advance
 
Kinger61 said:
Hi everyone,

I'm going to be going to Las Vegas within the next month! Whilst there i plan to buy an iPhone 6s! My issue is I already have an iPhone 6 which I will be getting rid of when I return to the UK, but what would be the way it works through customs in UK, should I declare the iPhone 6s or what needs to be done to it for them to not know it was bought in the USA on that trip ? Should i discard the box it comes in or set it up or anything ? Don't really wanna pay the VAT applied as it would mean I save nothing on the iPhone !

Any help appreciated! Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Las Vegas? Can I ask why?
 
Ship the empty box back to yourself and put the phone in your pocket. Simple
 
Will the US version work on UK 4G networks?
I know that the Note 5 doesn't. It picks up 2G but not 3G or 4G, rendering it pretty useless...
Best double-check.
 
I always carry 2 phones when I travel abroad. One is locked to my carrier and other is unlocked for use abroad.I believe this may be commonplace. Carrying 2 phones through customs should not be an issue. Put the box in your luggage or ship it home. Do you expect your checked baggage to be opened and inspected?
 
I've carried two phones with me through airports. It's pretty common as people have two different SIMs and there's no law in the UK about declaring for your own personal property just as you won't declare your iPhone 6, laptop, etc when you enter the US.
 
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Thanks everyone for the replies !
I know that the phone will work on 3G and 4G, already checked that out!
Yea I just wasn't sure because there was a guy telling me the other night that if the box is in luggage or if the phone is still in the box then it can cause issues, suppose it makes sense to just put both in pocket and say one for UK and one for use abroad or a buisness phone or something ! Thanks everyone!
 
Kinger61 said:
Thanks everyone for the replies !
I know that the phone will work on 3G and 4G, already checked that out!
Yea I just wasn't sure because there was a guy telling me the other night that if the box is in luggage or if the phone is still in the box then it can cause issues, suppose it makes sense to just put both in pocket and say one for UK and one for use abroad or a buisness phone or something ! Thanks everyone!
Click to expand...
You can bring back up to $600 worth of purchases completely free of Duty into the UK anything above that is subject to Duty at 2.5 percent plus vat at 20 percent on the total value of the goods. Travelling with two phones is not that unusual
situation. Those who recommend putting the box in your luggage or posting it back must think the UK customs are stupid.
If you do not plan to declare the phone then i suggest you discard the box and all the associated bits of paperwork. Apple will email you a receipt do not travel with the store receipt.
 
sunking101 said:
Will the US version work on UK 4G networks?
I know that the Note 5 doesn't. It picks up 2G but not 3G or 4G, rendering it pretty useless...
Best double-check.
Click to expand...
A note five purchased in the US will work perfectly on both 3G and 4G networks in the UK.
 
If you don't have the receipt and any other papers associated with the new phone, you can put the original box in your luggage. And one more advice, don't verbalize, don't get into details when passing cusotms check why you have to phones etc. Just behave naturally without a word.
 
I've brought a AT&T a1633 model back to the UK several weeks ago. All working fine on the three network including 4G.
All ways travel to the USA with spare capacity in my luggage as I know I will be bringing shopping goodies back with me. Never been stopped at customs and excise but I'm sure they are looking for bigger fish to fry then someone who's treated themselves to a new iPhone.
 
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