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Once again, import fees for USA buyers of Japanese equipment post August 29, 2025


L, lot's of what is for sale is mundane. I'm not saying Canada is a bigger market at all, but consider wealth distribution, places like Switzerland, Hong Kong, Singapore certainly have a lot of disposable wealth. BTW have you seen the "Black Leica" book by Douglas So from HK ? huge collections there...
 
The issue is the tariffs are charged to and paid by the buyer. In today's trade conditions, the seller has no idea what the tariff will be at the time of the item's entry into the U.S. So, unless the seller has offered to reimburse the buyer after the delivery and has been made and the tariff charged, there is little that can be done beyond lowering the price to compensate for a guess at what the buyer might have to pay on the receiving end. A mess.
 

Why would sellers in another country lower prices ? Especially since the president of the buyers country just finished insulting them??
 
gbroadbridge said:
Maybe they want the item off their books and sold
Stock turnover is what keeps small businesses alive.
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GB, I have a hard time believing that the japanese used camera economy sinks or swims on the strength of sales to the usa.
 
Stock turnover only keeps small businesses alive if there is sufficient profit attached to the turnover.
The percentages at issue are far from minor!
 
MattKing said:
Stock turnover only keeps small businesses alive if there is sufficient profit attached to the turnover.
The percentages at issue are far from minor!
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If you have a slow moving stock item you would rather sell at a loss as you can use that money to buy something that will move with a higher profit.

Not all items would fit that description, but I'll bet those that do would be discounted and presented as a bargain.

I've done that on Epay many times.
 

At the same time GB, are you paying rent, utilities, wages ?
I've seen bargain bins in Japanese stores which makes sense.... but why sell for a loss & then pay for packing materials and tie up a staff to package that item...?
 
I have bought a lot of stuff from Japan

Japan sellers have beautiful items

A couple years ago I bought a Leica MP, like new from MAP camera. $3500.

I paid 6% Iowa sales tax, no duty owed, used 35mm film camera.

Dollar was much stronger than today.

I remember thinking that if I wanted such a camera I'd better act. I was right.

After the dust settles those days are long gone.

Free trade is gone. Very sad.

The little people always pay the price.

MHOFWIW
 
GregY said:
At the same time GB, are you paying rent, utilities, wages ?
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Yes, absolutely.

GregY said:
I've seen bargain bins in Japanese stores which makes sense.... but why sell for a loss & then pay for packing materials and tie up a staff to package that item...?
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Because creditors like to see cash flow if they cannot see profits.

Cash flows means a creditor such as a bank, will continue a line of credit rather than shuttering a business. A trading business is a far better than a dormant one.

At the moment people will dig into their own pockets for operating expenses as long as the creditors allow them to continue trading.
 

This is king of annoying to me--a lot of what I've looked at on eBay recently has that eBay notice that the sale price includes everything, which is presumably an option the seller can select because not every listing shows it, but also has an image or text saying tariffs aren't included and the buyer is responsible. To me its a bit deceptive, since the seller should be able to turn off the eBay notice, but they don't.

I bought a Rittreck Bellows recently that was made in and shipped from China, and that had the eBay notice that I wouldn't pay a tariff, and sure enough I didn't. They basically used that painfully slow (3-4 week delivery time) OrangeConnex shipper. everything gets bundled into shipping container, and OrangeConnex acts as the importer so they pay the tariff (which they presumably collect from the seller). The items are then posted to USPS on this side of the ocean.
 
gbroadbridge said:
At the moment people will dig into their own pockets for operating expenses as long as the creditors allow them to continue trading.
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From a business point of view, that would sound like the business is insolvent.

The idea that any small business would lower prices just to sell to one market sounds, to me, very poor business sense.

See this very simple example (forget taxes etc).
  • Selling price is €50 and cost price is €30 = profit of €20
  • Reduce selling price to €40 and cost price is still €30 = profit of €10
So in theory, I would need to sell twice the amount at the lower price to achieve the same profit as the higher price. In other words, twice the work for the same profit.

Like the old saying: turnover is vanity, profit is sanity. (yes I know cashflow is king, but only if you are making a viable profit)
 
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Then again, some sellers are stopping shipments to the US altogether:

 

Welcome to Photrio!
 
I used ChatGPT to check the total cost of importing a Leicaflex SL from Austria to the U.S.:

What is reliably correct (as of Nov 2025)​

  • U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) — under an executive order effective 29 August 2025 — suspended the longstanding “de minimis” exemption (under 19 U.S.C. § 1321(a)(2)(C)) for most imported goods. That means even packages under US $800 must now be declared, and may be subject to customs duties, fees or applicable charges.
  • For film still-cameras (e.g. 35 mm analog) imported to the U.S., the relevant tariff classification is generally HTSUS 9006.59 (or a closely related sub-heading under chapter 90 of the harmonized tariff schedule) — “Cameras for roll film …”
  • Under that classification (valued “over $10 each”) — which covers typical used cameras far above $10 — the “General” rate of duty is listed as free (0 %).
  • That suggests that even after removal of the de minimis exemption, used film cameras properly classified under 9006.59 should — in principle — remain duty-free, provided there is no special surcharge (e.g. under special trade programmes or country-of-origin restrictions).
 
The cost to import depends on the country of origin, not the country you are sourcing from.
So if you purchase from Austria a Leica camera built in Germany and a Leica lens built in Canada, different tariff rates may apply.
And in addition, there are a bunch of charges that at least in the short term have been added but are not reflected on the basic tariff classification - sometimes referred to as "reciprocal tariffs".
It seems to be a mess.
 
I did the check for a Leicaflex SL made in Germany, and if properly declared, the duty seems to be zero.
 
Unfortunately, things are so in flux that you probably can't rely on the tariff tables to provide the total answer - like I say, it is a mess.
 
Across the range of all imported products, that might be the case.

What is the concrete situation for pre-owned 35mm cameras, for example?
 
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The dealer will charge the appropriate tariff amount to the end user. It's not much different than a US company like B&H Photo having to add 50 different sales taxes on their products shipped to the 50 states. Each state imposes their own amount different than all the others.
 
RezaLoghme said:
Across the range of all imported products, that might be the case.

What is the concrete situation for pre-owned 35mm cameras, for example?
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Obviously I am most familiar with the effects on the price of goods produced in Canada and then exported into the USA.
And outside of some Leica lenses, plus some Canadian Kodak manufactured cameras back when Canadian Kodak made cameras, there aren't many photographic products that that applies to.
The same rules apply to used and new goods - import duties and taxes are based on market values.
And discussion about how frequently those rates have been changed - usually with little or no warning - is so political as to make that subject inappropriate for Photrio.
 

Actually, most overseas dealers are refusing to sell to US buyers except on ebay, etc

Too much work…
 

Look, I get the point about “flux” and politically motivated trade uncertainty — but let’s get real.

A German-made 35 mm film SLR from the late ’60s or ’70s? This is not an EV, semiconductor, or anything that has politicians watching for “reciprocal tariffs.”

Here’s what matters:

  • HTSUS 9006.59.91.00 covers used roll-film cameras valued over $10. Duty? 0 %. That hasn’t changed.
  • De minimis gone? Yes. You must declare it. That’s it. You’re not suddenly paying a hidden tariff.
  • Country of origin counts, not where you buy it. German-made camera bought in Austria = still duty-free.
  • Random CBP quirks? Maybe a $5–$15 handling fee. That’s it.
  • “Flux” in practice? Non-existent for this category. Saying it’s in flux is just a way to sound cautious.
So yes — if you import a used German 35 mm SLR, declare it under 9006.59.91.00, you’re essentially safe. The only “risk” is the usual bureaucratic shrug, not some sudden tariff apocalypse.
 
cowanw said:
Duty and Tariffs are two different things.
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Yes, technically duties and tariffs aren’t quite the same:
  • Tariff: The classification system and rate applied to an imported good (HTS code, etc.).
  • Duty: The actual money you pay when that tariff is applied at the border.
In practice for a Leicaflex SL 1969 German 35 mm camera? It’s a trivial distinction. You find the HTS code, check the corresponding duty rate, and pay what’s owed (or zero). No endless speculation required.
 
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