How Customs values your goods

Rule one: the price you actually paid

Customs values goods on the transaction value, which is the price actually paid or payable for them. Not the list price, not the price in Nassau, not what the officer thinks it is worth. The price on your invoice, as long as you can show it.

So the single most valuable thing you can do is keep the invoice and the proof of payment. A screenshot of the order confirmation with the price, the item and the seller’s name does the job for most online orders. For a car or anything over a few thousand dollars, keep the wire receipt too.

What gets added to the price

• Shipping and insurance that appear on the seller’s own invoice. They are part of the value Customs taxes.
• Freight you paid separately to a courier is not added to the dutiable value. It still joins the landed cost that VAT is charged on.
• A discount you really received counts. A “retail value” printed for insurance does not.

No invoice? Here is what happens next

If you cannot show what you paid, or the price looks far below what the goods sell for, Customs does not guess. It follows a set order, and each step only applies if the one before it cannot be used:

• The value of identical goods imported at about the same time.
• The value of similar goods imported at about the same time.
• A value worked back from the selling price in The Bahamas, less the usual costs and profit.
• A value built up from the cost of producing the goods.
• Failing all of those, a reasonable value based on the methods above.

In plain terms: without your invoice, your $300 used phone can be valued as a $300 phone or as a $600 phone, depending on what Customs has on file. The invoice is your say in the matter.

The values Customs will not use

The rules also bar certain shortcuts, which protects you as much as the Treasury. Customs may not use:

• The selling price of goods made in The Bahamas.
• The higher of two possible values, just because it is higher.
• The price of the goods in the exporting country’s home market.
• A minimum customs value for a type of goods.
• Any arbitrary or made-up figure.

If a valuation seems to break one of these, say so politely at the counter, and ask for the method used in writing. Your broker or courier can do this for you.

Gifts, used goods and things you already owned

A gift still has a value, and it is still charged. If there is no invoice, tell Customs what the item would cost to buy and be ready to back it up. Used goods are valued as used goods, so a receipt from a secondhand seller is worth keeping. Personal effects you travelled out with and are bringing home are not imports at all, but be ready to show they are yours if asked.