2EeyeGuy;
(about Norway)
As much as I believe in taxes to benefit the society, there has to be a limit. The way a small item is taxed here is actually more stealing from us than anything else. Let me tell you about how it is here.
If the item is more expensive the fees make more sense, but it does not only go to the goverment. Our postal service takes a good chunk of the tax simply for putting into a computer if it needs taxation or not.
Anything below 35usd and its tax and vat free. But once it goes one dollar above there is suddenly 25% vat/import duty to the government, and suddenly the Norwegian postal service wants a "toll handling charge" of 20 friggin dollars just to add the 25%.
That's in addition to the charge it takes for normal shipping.
You also pay value added tax for the shipping that is +25%.
But even without that a 35.5 dollar item suddenly becomes 35.5+25% =44,4usd + 20usd handling charge = 64usd.
I think I pay enough already without doubling the price to make some companies pocket thicker. Its not about getting better schools or anything, its about easy money for the postal service. Can I use a different mail delivery service to avoid this? No they have a monopoly. They don't just use toll to protect Norwegian companies, they actually have import bans.
For example grocery stores cannot import certain types of cheese and butter.
And about the money I use to pay with. I pay close to 50% taxes on my income.
Just to own a tv, you have to pay a yearly license fee of 500 dollars + price and taxes on whatever subscriptions you have.
I am sounding like I am anti-taxes here, but don't get me wrong. I just want to illustrate how extreme Norway is compared to other countries and somehow explain why many people are sleezing out of the minor things they can.
Our government has _zero_ debt. In fact our government has a growing fund of money presently at more than 700 billion dollars in total. That's our money, and its a more than 140 000 dollars per citizen.
Now I think it would be a stupid idea to hand it all out, I am simply saying that Norway is a special case and given how much we pay in income taxes and a crazy amount of fees and charges - the government will not suffer from some people sleezing their way out of the vat/toll charges from time to time.
In the case of Oculus Rift btw, it is a very valid discussion as it is in fact not a normal consumer product even if treated as such.
It is closer to a tool for developing a platform and having developers do research and feedback to Oculus + develop content.
I would say its in the gray zone as a prototype. Please don't read this as a rant, I am not the type to rage on the internet.
I just find this discussion interesting. Btw, I am not personally complaining, I am just defending some others.