vat and duty tax on books bought from japan

I’ve bought some books (books that introduce castles ) and stationeries from different sellers in Japan for personal use. Since the Japanese sellers do not ship internationally, I used a local Japanese courier to collect, repackage, and ship the items to the UK. The courier has informed me that they won't pay the duty tax and VAT on my behalf, so I will need to pay these myself when the items arrive in the UK. I understand that books bought from outside the UK are exempt from VAT and duty tax. If I am charged VAT and duty on all the items, including the exempt books, how can I get a refund? 1)There are two forms available for tax refunds: form C285 for CDS and form C285 for CHIEF. Which form do I need to fill out for the refund, and does it depend on the form used by the local Japanese courier to ship to the UK? 2)I am confused about the information needed to complete the C285 form. It asks for "Representative or Declarant details," which is the company that invoiced me. Does this refer to the local Japanese courier that I paid for shipping from Japan to the UK, or the UK courier that may later ask me to pay the VAT and duty charges before delivering the goods to me? 3)For the information I need to fill in on the C285 form, like the EPU number or EORI number, should I ask the courier for this information, or are there any links provided by HMRC that can help me find it? Thank you for your time

Firstly if any duty or import VAT is due it will be based on the applicable duty and VAT rates. It is quite normal that an overseas company won’t pay duties or clear customs in a foreign country. Therefore whoever the Japanese couriers UK counterpart is will notify you of any charges if any. Check with the Japanese courier who will be making the declaration. If it’s one of the international courier companies such as FedEx, dhl etc they will have a uk counterpart. Most books are usually zero rated for VAT and do not have any import duty. You would only use a c285 if you have been overcharged in error. If the goods haven’t even been dispatched yet why worry that you are automatically going to be overcharged. The information being requested on the application is so HMRC can identify the import declaration made on your behalf in the UK. The information will be available from the uk courier making the delivery to you.All uk imports are now under CDS as CHIEF has been decommissioned.

Hi
I would advise contacting the Customs and International trade helpline on 0300 322 9434 for help.