Sept 2025: Tariffs for US customers purchasing from German auction houses
worldcoinguy
Posts: 3,038 ✭✭✭✭✭
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
Good information. I am looking at a few upcoming items coming to auction and I know I'll be hit a little bit as well. I guess it's the name of the game. Everyone has their hands out.
Thank you everyone for the input.
Collecting world gold, German State silver Marks and other things of interest
if the auction houses or dealers within the EU ship to your friend within the EU, then the the country specific Tax (Vat, GST, MWST etc....will be added.
and if your friend then ships to the US??? where is the advantage?, not being subject to the tariffs?
maybe I did not understand what you are saying? please can you explain?
are you suggesting that Kuenker will absorb the taxes?
H
This is a good thread. I am interested in a coin that is being auctioned in France, but I'm hesitant to bid for all the reasons mentioned above. So I hope other US-based buyers can post their continued experiences on purchases from other countries.
I am not sure but are we not talking slightly different topics. The sub-$800 range of coins came over under the de minimus rules. Since this has now been eliminated you pay the 15% customs fees on those orders. Then we have the tariff issues that can vary dramatically based on country of manufacturing.
I assume they only collect the one that is higher?
I agree that if you just ship to a friend in Europe you pay the VAT and what ever else they could charge non-export items. I think the only way to avoid substantial customs is they declare low values on the package and I guess hope they don't open it to confirm the contents. Alternately, to pick them up someday and just put them in your backpack and "forget" to mention them.
A third option is to wait to see if this all blows over in the immediate future. If that happens a lot of people will have a higher cost basis in those items which might be difficult to recover since new material out of Europe will not be burdened by those costs anymore.
I have shut down buying off MA Shops and directly buying from auctions right now. I will have my dealer friend hold coins for me and he can bid for me (I will pay the VAT) at auctions.
I have seen MA Shops, but have never purchased anything from their website. Have you been satisfied with the coins you purchased from them, and with their delivery to the USA? (am referring to your experience prior to the current tariff issues)
I think you hit the nail on the head.
If you buy a coin worth more than $800 from a dealer in Europe, my understanding is that it must be declared upon import to the USA, but is not subject to any tariff. At least that’s what a Google search and ChatGPT tell me. But as you say, there’s a lot of confusion right now, so anything might happen.
I have been buying from them since 2015. I had to check and total so far 225 coins. Only 1 dealer to stay away from. Service is great and shipping very fast. Most 5-7 days. Last one before this all stated at end of July order it on a Friday and had it on Wednesday! I have had some outliers take 2 weeks but these mostly got hung up in US Customs. I could not be more pleased.
Not exactly. There has never been a Customs duty on coins of any amount.
Coins below $800 came in free easily due to de minimus rules.
Coins between $800 and $2500 came with a processing fee of 0.3464% with a minimum of ~$33.
Coins over $2500 require Formal Entry and a Form 5106 along with the proper HTS codes. There is also a processing fee of 0.3464% with the same minimum of ~$33.
None of these come with any Customs fee, only a processing fee.
NOW, there are tariffs on top of these fees, which I do not understand. But there is still no Customs charge on coins.
Thank you for this clarification. This has been very helpful.
May I assume that cgb.fr is not the firm to stay away from?
No they are great. Probably 5-10 coins from them over 3-4 transactions.
A German dealer selling mostly raw coins.
You spend time going through the listings looking for nicely toned coins. You place the order and when received most totally different. Emailed them and they directed me to very fine print that you might not get the coin shown in the pictures. They just grab the first one in the box of that date and mint. Sent them all back and did get a refund.
Well, like everything else that MAGA spouts, these tariffs and reciprocal tariffs should be gone in 3-4 months. Just like hot air dissipates, so will this tariff battle.
Correction. I should have said INVOICES over $800, etc. not COINS over that amount.
Good to know. Thank you.
so, can you name or hint at who the German dealer is to stay away from.
I think if it is that bad, we should know?
maybe just use a link of an item that is for sale there?
thanks
"In case of coins with more than one in stock what could, however, happen is that it will not be exactly the coin illustrated that will be shipped, but rather a coin of absolutely identical quality.
I wish you luck and success for your search on the Internet.
Guy Franquinet"
From MA Shops Info/FAQ section
I can confirm with absolute certainty that a taler purchase coming from Germany to US will be charged the 15% tariff. FedEx will invoice direct to you subsequent to the delivery. Plan and budget accordingly.
FYI that ChatGPT agrees with you, ChatGPT classifies your coin (a taler coming from Germany) as falling into category 3 below.
1. New U.S. baseline and reciprocal tariffs
As of April 5, 2025, the U.S. has imposed a 10 % baseline tariff on virtually all imported goods.
2. Exemptions for bullion / precious metals
U.S. Customs provides that gold coins, medals, or bullion are not subject to duty (i.e. no duty) but must be declared on import. However, there is ambiguity in how this is applied under the new tariff regime.
3. Numismatic / non-bullion coins may not be exempt
For older or collectible (non-bullion) coins, punitive tariffs may be triggered, especially if the coin was struck in a country subject to higher tariffs.
15% (rather than 10%) is the rate since that is the relevant "reciprocal" rate for an item inbound that was made in the EU. The rate would vary based upon the current reciprocal rate for the country of origin of the item's manufacture (which is not connected to the country from which it is being sent). For example, a Swiss-made medal from a German auction house is at the Swiss reciprocal rate, while a German taler from a Swiss auction house would be the general EU reciprocal rate.
Numismatics does have an exemption code which, when applied to the same line item as the harmonized code on the customs form, will wipe out the reciprocal rate and allow the inbound item to enter with no added duty. That said, when most of us are using FedEx to receive the item(s), we're also using FedEx to file the customs paperwork with the US and clear it. FedEx has shown essentially without fail that they will not apply the exemption code, so the recipient gets stuck with the added reciprocal rate(s) plus fees. The bigger auction houses domestically utilize a broker to deal with such customs matters, and have communicated the relevant exemption code to be applied, and so that is how they are able to continue receiving inbound material of foreign manufacture with no added fees. But, a broker of course is a fee in and of itself, so if you were already using one, there is no effective change to your bottom line. But, if the carrier, like FedEx, was taking care of customs processing for you, you just get dinged.
Jeremy Bostwick
For exceptional works of medallic art, check out our current inventory at Numismagram!
That does mean you have to pay the local country's taxes though, right? From Kuenker's terms and conditions:
_For goods subject to the regular taxation scheme and delivery within the EU, the premium is 20% plus VAT on the total amount (hammer price + premium) in the respective EU member state.
For buyers, who are residents of non-EU countries, the following rules apply: The premium shall be 20 % (where the goods are exported to a non-EU country by the buyer himself or by a third party, the statutory VAT will be charged but reimbursed on presentation of the statutory evidence of export. If we ourselves effect the export to non-EU countries, no VAT will be charged). _
So to ship to a friend in the EU, you pay 20% Kuenker premium and then on top of that VAT. That last part is a bit unclear to me, despite using copilot and chatgpt to try and explain it. From what I gather, it will be a hefty sum. E.g. if you ship to a friend in the Netherlands, Dutch VAT is 21%. Chatgpt says it could also be 19% VAT in Germany, and then no VAT in the Netherlands.
~20% VAT tax on top of 20% auction premium on top of your winning bid is a significant chunk. It would be cheaper to send it to the US and just deal with the tariffs in effect...
Or you could just shut up and keep politics out of this.
At the moment, a good customs broker or high end security transport company like Malca can help you navigate around most tariffs. But it’s not easy, and they don’t work cheap. Of course the rules are likely to continue changing, so be careful.
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
Interesting and I do not actually and to put it bluntly, as it is my first time buying more ex. USA ... my friend is not in the EU. And I pay a small import duty when Kuenker (and also Sincona) ships to his country.
Then every time ... 5 times now ... he sends it to me in the USA and I always tell him not to use FedEx or UPS. He uses his local mail service and gets to me in a week, with no tariffs fees.
He declares it as a 10 dollar item, and it is good, so far?
As I type this one just passed through NYC ISC and it is on the way to me this week, via my favorite USPS.
Anthony the Coinman
_Keen Collector, Avid Researcher, Occasional Dealer
_
Instagram: @anthonythecoinman
If he is declaring the value is only $10, I would assume you can't insure for a different amount. You might be carrying the risk yourself with no recourse if it never arrives.
I've got 3 packages with a possibility of 8 more. I have no
non dealer contacts who could help. Two other dealers
shipped the coins thinking they were exempt. FedEx charged
me $300+ and the USPS charged me $450. I don't see a
refund from either.
Received from Kunker today...
Dear Bidders and Coin Enthusiasts,
As you are all aware the US government has introduced tariffs on all goods that were manufactured in a non-US country and are being imported into the US. We were successfully importing over the last couple of months coins and medals duty free under the known exemption regarding informational materials.
After the European Union and US Trade and Tarif Deal from July 27th of this year. we at Künker still think strongly that all collector coins and medals (except of Russian and Chinese origin) are not subject to US import tariffs.
The actual import into the US is still done by the shipping companies or a broker (i.e. FEDEX) in the name of the receiving party.
For shippers with dedicated brokers that have experience in valuable shipments (i.e. Malca Amit, Brinks etc.), we have not had any issue of being charged an import fee after July 27th. This is good news especially for higher value shipments, that need a special broker service like Malca Amit to begin with. For lower value shipments we continue to use mostly FEDEX. Those shipments are under the same legislation and should be import free, but we did have smaller shipments being charged the import duty in the past. Those cases were from or knowledge revisited and contested with the shipper.
The difference in price for the shipping cost is of course drastic between firms like Malca Amit and FEDEX, so please contact our customer service team if you wish to have your goods shipped not by FEDEX and they can provide you a quote. The standard shipping costs remain as before dependent on insurance value, weight and workload within the shipping and customs department.
In any case, we will do our best to also import the lower value shipments free of import charge but we want you to make the most informed bidding decision from the info we have combined.
For this sale we would go ahead and ship the items at your requested address as usual right away after the sale. If you wish to speak to our shipping experts for other options, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Thank you very much for your consideration and your trust in us.
Best regards from Osnabrück,
Your Künker team
I contacted Kuenker a few days ago about tariffs, as I plan to bid on some high-end coins in an upcoming auction. I wonder if that triggered them to send the email
Just a note - about a year ago I won some coins with them. They flew an employee to the US with the coins, and shipped them domestically with Malca Amit. The cost was significant (almost 1K). It's my understanding they now have more clarity into tariffs and do not plan to send an employee to the USA with coins for American bidders, but that does mean the hefty cost for Malca Amit shipping would get even higher as they'd be used for the entire EU to US trajectory.