Sept 2025: Tariffs for US customers purchasing from German auction houses
worldcoinguy
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I hate to beat a dead horse on this topic, but looking to navigate expectations for the purchase of world coins from German auction houses. Are numismatic coins treated as general merchandise (thus subject to country's general tariff), or are they exempt? Any input or recent experiences or link to meaningful info is appreciated.
As of Sept 2, the facts I have collected are as follows:
1). Shipping from Germany to US is limited to FedEx; DHL and Deutsche Post have indefinitely suspended shipping to US. Expect higher costs as a result if you want to receive lot immediately.
https://group.dhl.com/en/media-relations/press-releases/2025/new-us-customs-regulations-temporary-restrictions-on-postal-goods-shipping-to-the-us-for-private-and-business-customers.html
2). De Minimis law eliminates duty free exemption on shipments less than $800 (starts Aug 29, 2025). Assuming this means massive delays but I have not seen articles to quantify how broken the system is right now.
https://usatoday.com/story/money/2025/08/29/de-minimis-exemption-end/85888111007/
3). Current default tariff for goods from Germany is 15%; similar for other European countries
https://britannica.com/money/US-import-tariffs-by-country
4). US Customs & Border Control:
Coins of precious metals, including silver and gold, do not fall into the definition of “monetary instrument” or “currency.” However, coins of precious metals must be declared as merchandise if they are acquired abroad.
https://help.cbp.gov/s/article/Article-1413?language=en_US
In summary, we know we will incur the auction house premium (20%+ depending on house) and the EUR to USD conversation (17% + fees). We can assume we will incur higher shipping (due to less options). Unless clarifications are received, we can also expect to pay a general tariff (15%) on the coin's hammer + premium (I assume this is on the country is which the auction house is located and not the original country of manufacture of the coins).
What am I missing? Other risks and considerations?
Comments
Fixed bad link under #3 above.
Tariff is on country of manufacture, not country of origin. But yeah, you pretty much got all of it.
It’s not going to be pretty, which is why US bidders will be dropping like flies on pretty much all international auctions for the foreseeable future.
Dropping like flies indeed.....
Applying tariffs on coins based on the country of manufacture sounds ludicrous at best. Lets say I win an auction at ABC auction house in Germany. The invoice is comprised of 3 lots for a Swiss taler, Great Britian crown, and an Austrian taler. Am I correct in interpreting that the single invoice would require the application of 3 different tariff rates since the 3 lots have different origins? Current rates I see are Swiss tariff = 39%, UK tariff = 10%, and Austrian tariff = 15%. Bless their hearts....this will be some impressive math. I can't image the logistical nightmare unfolding in the numismatic world alone......and this is a tiny percentage of world trade.
Ok lets take it one step deeper. What happens with world coins struck by the US mint? Coins struck for one country which later fell to another country? Coins struck in defunct countries? So many endless variations of the same question here. I wonder what authority is tackling these questions with "plain English" guidance and answers. I hope I have misinterpreted all of this and I am just going down a pointless rabbit hole.
I recently bought a gold German coin from a Swiss auction house in July. To my understanding, even in July, Switzerland (and Germany) was subject to the base 10% tariff rate. The shipment was over $800, and the shipment was taken into US customs, I had to fill up a form for customs and attach the original invoice. Nowhere on the invoice was the HSN code mentioned (there are a lot of exemptions based on HSN codes in Annex II of the general tariffs order 14257) I waited for 3 days with no news. Finally the coin cleared customs with no duty! I don’t know if it was an exception/mistake or the official rule, but I’ll take it.
One code seen in the tariff exemptions is
HSN code 71081210, which describes “gold bullion, non-monetary and dore”. If customs used this code, which would fit what I bought, then no tariff would apply.
It's been a mess. I have had different rates applied even by the same carrier (FedEx) from the same auction house (Kuenker). But, I think your analysis is correct regarding bidding in overseas auctions - weaker dollar, addition of tariffs raises the price.
I am curious if this means more US based buyers of world coins will focus on US auction houses. The recent HA and SB auction prices seemed high to me and I think fewer overseas options is playing a role?
My current "Box of 20"
Most of the Canadian coins I collect were struck in Britain. What are the chances I could claim the lower UK tariff rate? Slim and none methinks.
I posed the hypothesis back in February that the prices of foreign coins sold inside the U.S. would rise because of the tariffs, and most here thought I was wrong. I wish it wasn't, but I think it is beginning to happen.
http://www.victoriancent.com
I've only bought in the sub-$800 range, so my coins came over under the de minimus and were not tarriffed. I think I will only bid smaller amounts for the time being in the German auctions.
I also used to bid more speculatively on coins under the assumption I could get my money back on them later if I had to resell them. That sort of approach is a little less secure with the tarriffs.
IG: DeCourcyCoinsEbay: neilrobertson
"Numismatic categorizations, if left unconstrained, will increase spontaneously over time." -me
What makes this matter worse than it already is is that there is no consistency with how it is applied, in that, numismatic items have been shown (by the auction houses here in the US) to continue to be duty-free into the US, just as before all of this nonsense. But, in order to "qualify," a special exemption code (9903.01.31) must be included on the same entry line as the normal 9705... code for the item(s). When this is done, the items come through without any applied tariff (whatever the relevant "reciprocal" rate for the item's origin country may be at that particular time). However, things go sideways from there, as FedEx, for example, has no interest or concern with working with anyone to apply such exemptions. They'll simply enter the item's 9705... code (if they even do that properly), generate the relevant country-specific reciprocal tariff, and send you a bill at some point down the road. You can then fight it, paying a fee to have the exemption applied, which, some months further down the road, should net you your inappropriately-applied tariff back, less that initial $90 fee of course.
If you're a big enough operation to already be working with a customs broker that can work with you (and has a vested interest in doing so), then your imported numismatic items will continue to come through as before with no added fees. However, if you're relying on FedEx's brokering, they'll simply ding you, and that's that. Possibly, as this goes on, enough grumbling and familiarity with the exemptions will cause them to be more helpful, which would at least nerf the fees from being added. Also, other postal services may "pre-collect" the relevant duty that a package would incur upon entering the US, and if those systems are integrated enough to have the exemption applied correctly to begin with, then the reciprocal duty may be waved before the package is even sent from the international auction house/dealer. But, we're at the early stages of this, so it's pretty chaotic right now. Basically, if you already work with a broker, you've likely already figured out how to navigate this with essentially no changes or added fees. If you don't, like me, it's the wild west, and best to just plan on extra fees if participating. I'm hoping to delay the sending of some winnings where possible to at least see how the fallout from the elimination of de minimis may shake out over the next month or two.
Jeremy Bostwick
For exceptional works of medallic art, check out our current inventory at Numismagram!
I am following this as purchased various lots from Kuenker and honestly and being transparent: they told me to ship to a friend or contact in Europe and that is what I have done with Swiss and German Auction houses. I have them sent to a friend and he just sends them to me and puts a super low declared value like 10 dollars honestly and it's no problem at all. But I wonder how the de minimis will affect that but I got my first batch of four coins from my European friend and its okay, thus far. Knocking on wood!
Anthony the Coinman
_Keen Collector, Avid Researcher, Occasional Dealer
_
Instagram: @anthonythecoinman