Da jeg begynte å undersøke denne saken var jeg sikker på at Nordisk Express hadde tatt seg tilrette fullstendig på egen hånd, uten jeg kunne ikke finne noe bevis.

Til slutt fant jeg de oplysningene jeg lette etter. I USPS sine bestemmelser om postforsendelser utenlands står det oppgitt at det vil bli krevet inn en tollklareringsgebyr av mottaker:

For most countries, there is an administrative fee, in addition to duties and taxes, that is collected from the recipient to cover the costs of clearing the item through customs.

Noe pussig er det jo at vi i Norge er tilnærmet alene om å måtte ut med nesten dobbelt så mye som de andre europeiske landene. Er det fordi vi anses for å være et lett offer som ikke motsetter oss gebyrer?

Men - leser man litt lenger ned på USPS sin side, om Air Parcels Destined to Europe, så blir det litt innviklet, men i avsnittet om Air Parcels Mailed by Businesses (f.eks. varer som du bestiller over internett ) står det:

Business air parcels delivered by GLS to Norway valued at NOK 200 ($27.79 as of December 9, 2002) are not assessed customs duties, taxes or an administrative fee.

Tilsvarende, i avsnittet om Air Parcels Mailed by Consumers (f.eks. gaver du får av venner og kjente) står det å lese at:

Consumer air parcels delivered by GLS in Norway valued at NOK 500, ($67.47 as of December 9, 2002) are not assessed customs duties, taxes, or an administrative fee.

Døm selv!

When I started investigating this case I was quite sure that Nordisk Express had acted on their on will and totally arbitrarily, but I had no proof.

Finally, I found the answer I was looking for. The USPS web site states that for most countries, there is an administrative fee, in addition to duties and taxes, that is collected from the recipient to cover the costs of clearing the item through customs. Fair enough, provided that the item is in fact dutiable:

For most countries, there is an administrative fee, in addition to duties and taxes, that is collected from the recipient to cover the costs of clearing the item through customs.

It is somewhat puzzling that Norway must pay almost double the fee compared to most other European countries. Are Norwegians so easily fooled and complacent that we do not oppose any fees imposed on us?

Anyway, reading a bit further down on the same page, in the paragraph on Air Parcels Mailed by Businesses (i.e. items you order from amazon.com) it says:

Business air parcels delivered by GLS to Norway valued at NOK 200 ($27.79 as of December 9, 2002) are not assessed customs duties, taxes or an administrative fee.

Similarily, regarding Air Parcels Mailed by Consumers (i.e. gifts) it reads:

Consumer air parcels delivered by GLS in Norway valued at NOK 500, ($67.47 as of December 9, 2002) are not assessed customs duties, taxes, or an administrative fee.

You decide who's right or wrong.