I very much doubt that US Customs will require 30% to be withheld on imported goods. That would be a logistical nightmare for them. Any package valued at less than $2,000 is processed as an "informal entry" and is usually not subject to any type of duties. This information comes from the cbp.gov website.
However, there MAY be 30% withholding for foreign eBay sellers who sell to USA citizens. I can see the argument being made that if US Citizens must report their earnings and pay taxes on their pprofits, then why should foreign sellers earning a profit selling in the US not be subject to the same tax? Because, technically, they already are.
I mean, if I - as a US Citizen - opened up a company in China and earned profits in China, then I would have to pay taxes to the Chinese government on those profits.
But 30% on the gross DOES seem a bit harsh considering the average profit on a sale of any size wouldn't even amount to 30%.
But who knows? The government is getting extra-greedy. In fact, they are getting double-extra-greedy. And grasping too....
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