ebay Global Shipping Program

[453path]

Hi, I'm writing this article from the UK. Can any sellers who ship internationally using the ebay Global Shipping Program (GSP), please tell me the advantages to you, 'the seller' of using this system?

I ask this because I've been purchasing from the U.S for a long time, but it seems more & more sellers are now shipping 'only' via ebay's GSP.

One of the things I see on such listings from sellers who use this system to ship items overseas is; all customs fees & charges are covered by the program! I just want to say, as a buyer in Britain purchasing items from America 'ALL'  items we purchase from overseas go through customs.

HMRC (Revenue & Customs) subject every parcel no matter how big or small & regardless of the value, to a customs inspection. They then decide whether or not to apply a customs fee to that parcel. Having regularly purchased from ebay USA the past couple of years (also Canada & Australia too), I have found customs only apply a fee to about 1 in 3 or 1 in 4  parcels.

Obviously if I've made a large purchase they often do get hit with a customs fee (but not in every case). Just to let you know; I've never had a seller declare an item as a 'gift'. Every customs document filled out by the sellers has always stated it is a purchase from ebay, plus a description of the items & the value.

Using an n scale freight car as an example (I model U.S railroading in n-scale); with ebay's Global Shipping Program, the average cost 'per' item is around $21 to ship to Britain. That charge is applied to 'EVERY' single item when shipping via ebay's GSP. However when I purchase from a seller who ships via USPS (or a courier such as UPS), the  seller can usually send 4 or 5 n-scale freight cars for about $21.

When receiving such a parcel here in the UK, HMRC sometimes charge me an import 'tax' fee, but many times they do 'NOT' send me such a charge prior to releasing my parcel here in Britain.

The way I see it; ebay is making a huge amount of money/profits from this scheme, but maybe I'm mistaken & someone could clarify that for me? I say that because I believe ebay is not only marking up the cost of this shipping option, but do they really pay a UK import tax (supposedly on our behalf) for every single item I purchase from America?

I mention America because, although most of my purchases are from sellers in the States, I do also buy from sellers in Canada, Australia & Europe. Nobody in those countries use the ebay Global Shipping Program. I don't say it doesn't exist in other countries; I simply haven't come across a seller elsewhere, who ships via ebay GSP.

Of course I know ebay now charges a commission to sellers for shipping (what we call postage & packaging in Britain; P&P). I believe that is a complete rip-off to sellers from ebay, after all, from what I've seen of shipping costs via USPS (& Royal Mail here in the UK), most sellers probably don't make any money on shipping costs after other factors such as materials & time are also factored in to the equation!

The only winner (ESPECIALLY with ebay Global Shipping Program) is ebay itself!

Just to let you sellers know; I stopped purchasing from ALL sellers who will 'ONLY' ship using the ebay GSP, soon after that system was introduced, because the cost is so prohibitive as an overseas buyer, (although it is okay if I purchase ONLY 1 item from a seller, but I don't do that very often). Now I only buy from sellers who use USPS or a courier such as FedEx etc. Unfortunately that list seems to grow smaller every few months, as more sellers seem to take up ebay's GSP.

So, I would love to know what the advantages/benefits are to you sellers in America who only use ebay GSP. I believe that even when using the ebay GSP system, you as a seller in America, still have to complete customs documents, & arrange collection of the parcel or dropping it off at some depot etc? Once again, I hope you can clarify this for me!

I look forward to your replies; especially as I would love to continue buying from ebay sellers in the States! 

[aristotles_id]

first of all, since when does the UK collect & keep taxes for amost  items sent to European countries? Items to be sent to a European country from someone in the States doesn't go through UK customs! I don't know how you can make that statement??? Do you honestly think & believe Germany or France etc are happy & content to let Britain collect & keep THEIR taxes???

I doubt if they are delighted, but that is the way it works. It is due to the EU internal market rules.

Goods destined for any EU country may enter the EU customs union area by way of any member country. With postal imports, this is always the addressee country.

But again we have the situation with freight being quite different.

All, or certainly most EU destined GSP packages arrive in the UK for distribution by road mostly to the rest of the EU. Tax is paid at the poiunt of entry, Heathrow Cargo or West Midlands Airport. The pallets go to the GSP distribution hub at South Normanton, and are sorted and transhipped from there, with no further customs involvement. In effect and legally thay have the same status as British made goods being sent to Germany would have. If the driver could keep awake he could leave Derbyshire and unload in Frankfurt without a single stop, apart from the ferry or tunnel ride. It seems odd but that's the way it is. 

THe principle is hub and spoke shipping, the UK happens to be the European hub, and I am pretty sure the only reason the GSP was extended to the UK was because the South Normanton facility already existed  for the transhipment of US itema to Europe.

Pitney Bowes rented the building next door and set up the UK GSP there, but the distribution to Europe at least was already in place, and the rest of the World stuff is distributed through existing GSP contracted carriers.

The other point is; you said ebay keeps 2 cents per dollar & PB makes $5 per item??? Really? And you said the rest of the amount goes to UK customs??? REALLY?????

Really, in essence, yes. The PB charges cover import taxes payable and a small amount  for costs and profit. This is the usual $5 PB fee, included in all shipments even if no tax is due. If there is no import tax, such as very low value items the charge is rolled into the shipping. They still have to manifest the goods even if the tax due is zero..

I have no idea where you came up with that one? HMRC informed me quite explicitly when I contacted them; whenever they make a import/tax charge on a parcel, it is ALWAYS for the amount as stated on the customs declaration by the seller/shipper/courier.

Quite correct. You may be conflating the shipping cost with the import charges. Shipping cost is often much higher than it could be because sellers do not specify size and weight. The GSP practice is to assign an average cost for the category. This means that the shippers are making more money on lighweight, small items, though some of this will be offset by losses on items both larger and heavier than avarage.

If all sellers gave full information, less guesswork and averaging would be needed. 

[aristotles_id]

it is you the seller whom the buyer leaves feedback for (positive & negative), not to mention a buyer can still leave less than 5 stars to a seller, & this is regardless of whether you as a seller shipped via USPS/UPS or ebay GSP. A buyer still leaves the seller feedback/stars for the shipping!

Sellers are immune from bad FB or low stars for GSP items , it is one of the selling points though of course it is not pointed out to buyers.

[aristotles_id]

Now let us look at Pitney Bowes! The total cost for shipping was $66. Ebay took a commission of $11.40. The parcel was sent via USPS; similar parcels cost me about $24 to ship, so therefore I assume Pitney Bowes paid that to USPS? Although I daresay they get a substantial discount from USPS for being a large commercial customer dealing with large amounts of freight. Anyway, assume Pitney Bowes paid USPS $24. It leaves me with this equation!

               ebay GSP shipping charges..................= $66

               ebay commission for shipping charge = $6.60

               USPS handlinf fee ..................................= $24   (based on same size/weight parcels)

               Total costs to ebay & USPS ..................= $30.60

Therefore based on that calculation, Pitney Bowes made $35.40 from the transaction. Of course they have some costs involved, but more than £30 worth of costs? Really? For doing not much at all?

@missjen831 I had to go back quite a way to find this but it is where the OP says the item arrived by USPS and made many erroneous conclusions from this. The only true conclusion was that the GSP made a total profit of the shipping and import charges because nothing was paid out at all.

THe GSP do not use the USPS for any services at all.

[453path]

aristoles_id you forget several things! 

Britain is part of the EU, but not in all matters. First of all, we are not part of the Euro (€). There are trade agreements between Britain & the rest of the European Union etc, but we do NOT govern, regulate or collect taxes for other  European Union member countries. & then keep those taxes? Who are you trying to kid? Not only is Britain NOT a part of the Euro Monetary Scheme, but as such, we have no control or say in what goes on with Euro taxation within the Euro member countries! This is one of the BIG reasons Britain was not involved in the monetary bailing out of Euro countries such as Greece, Spain, Italy & Ireland. Britain did come to agreements to help, but this was completely separate from the European Monetary Fund, the European Central Bank  the European Union itself!

We aren't even part of the Schengen Agreement regarding border controls in the European Union! That is why Britain can keep out those people trying to enter the country, while the rest of Europe has to contend with the issues & problems of migrants freely crossing the borders of involved member states. 

Remember, although Britain is a part of the European Union, it is only a very marginal member. Britain has NOT signed up to many things within the EU & Britain still retains opt out clauses & rights for a whole host of matters/laws/monetary/taxation/immigration etc! 

But returning to taxes; it was mentioned earlier (maybe another member) that VAT is 20% in the European Union. That is NOT correct. It is 20% in Britain (but different items vary & somes goods have no VAT at all). The VAT rate differs between European Union member countries. Not only the rate differes, but some things we may tax, other countries don't. While they may impose VAT on items which we don't here in the UK.

Yes, you are right about goods entering PB's warehouse in the UK. BUT & it is a huge BUT; as mentioned, the agreement for GSP is ONLY between the USA & the UK. So any person buying in Germany etc, would NOT be forced to pay through ebay's GSP in the first place!  Therefore their items would NOT come in via the UK. 

And even if goods arrive via the UK in transit to another country (regardless of where that country is), then Britain is only a transit point. It does NOT collect taxes on the transiting goods & retain those taxes! Otherwise it means such items would be taxed TWICE!!!

Lets us use an example; if a person in Mexico purchases an item from a person in Canada, & the item is shipped via road (or air) to Mexico but does a stop in the USA during transit; from what you say about Britain collecting & keeping taxes for other countries, then the same logic (???) applies that the U.S can tax the item as well?  

In reference to what you said about low cost items & small items paying the cost of ebay's GSP (in collusion with PB) then eventually that will make ebay's sales suffer! 

I still purchase from the States, but the number of sellers is growing thinner! I'm not sure how many people in America purchase items on ebay UK, but there are a lot of people here who purchase from ebay USA. The way I see it, for short term profits to ebay, the number/volume/value of sales (from ebay USA to ebay UK) will reduce over time. Not only will ebay's profits suffer, but individual sellers will see less sales as well. 

I have tried to ask several sellers (who use the ebay GSP) if they will ship via USPS; they have all told me the same thing. They have signed up to the Global Shipping Program & they can't change it. I think by that they mean, they can't use another service while they are signed on to the GSP.

[scga912 · Accepted solution]

So you're asking what are the advantages to me, the seller, for using GSP.

I know that the GSP isn't a good fit for all items.  It's good for weighty and/or expensive items.  I find the pricing for a 2 pound shipment to the UK via GSP or via USPS Priority to be comparable - it's often less once it goes over 2 lbs.  

I very recently had a 1 lb 9 ounce (0.765 kg) shipment to the UK through the GSP - my buyer paid $26 in shipping.  $9 was for the domestic leg  and $17 was for the international leg.   Had I shipped that directly via USPS Priority, it would've cost $51.  Via USPS First Class, the price would've been $23.80.   First Class really wasn't a great option due to potentially long travel time as it was a Christmas gift. 

I'm about mid-range distance from the GSP center.  If I were much closer, the domestic leg charge could've been as little as $5.95 but it also could've been as high as $11.55

There would be many items that I wouldn't offer to ship internationally simply because of the potential loss to my pocketbook.  If the buyer refuses to pay customs fees and never picks up the item - I can't prove delivery.  Without proof of delivery, the buyer will likely be refunded even though it is a direct result of their inaction/refusal.  The item may take several months (and yes, years) to eventually make its way back to me.  And that's the ideal situation.  Once refunded, buyers have been known to go collect their items.

While I know that not every package is going to get stopped by customs, that doesn't mean that the fees aren't owed.  If your customs' office chooses not to enforce it on every package, that's their decision.  Pitney Bowes can't make the decision to let items slide by without taxes collected on your country's behalf. 

I sell many fragiles, and I like that the GSP becomes liable for the international leg for loss and damage.  That's in international insurance policy I choose to use rather than insuring through the carrier or another third-party provider.  Also, a claim of breakage for a non-GSP item would result in a SNAD that I'd be responsible for - and I have to cover the price of return shipping too if I wanted it back. 

If PayPal and eBay weren't my financial business partners who can dip their fingers in my wallet without my input, I might feel differently.  They have to have blanket policies, but not all of them are ideal for every situation.

The GSP actually really stinks for Canadians.  They have a $20 threshold for items to be subject to duty/taxes/vat/customs (whichever).  Australia & the GSP are quite a wonderful fit.  They don't start taxing until it's over $2,000.

When sold through the GSP, I don't have to prepare any customs documents.  That has no bearing on my choice though.  The documents are all automated through eBay shipping and require hitting a print button for the most part.

I do not understand why they haven't created a way to allow for combined GSP shipping.  It makes no sense in this day and age.

If you want multiple items from one seller, you could always message them prior to purchase and ask them to create one listing for all of them.

Just a little extra info - The United States Post Office is going to raise their rates on Jan 17.  International shipping prices are going to JUMP quite a bit.  First Class Int'l will see an average increase of 21%.  Priority Int'l will see an average rate increase of 10%.  The GSP might become a better bargain for many items.

With the upcoming price hike, you might want to re-visit your thoughts on some GSP offered items.

[sayanora]

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@aristotles_id wrote:

You have a good point there, my quote on Italian customs duty on antiques 20% was before Italy joined the European Union.

Since 1958, then.. Must be the USPS International Mail Manual to be that out od date.,. 🙂

---

This is from the early days of Ebay, an italian antique dealer heard of finding antiques on Ebay and he bought 30K worth of 'antiques' from various sellers.

He asked his son,a PHD student in archaeology to wire the payments .

These sellers all shipped USPS,or whatever from US and Canada,then the Italian dealer found out Italian customs slapped a 20% customs duty on these shipments,then he found out they are not antiques but  repros.

Then he started asking those who have received payments but not yet ship to ship by UPS with seller prepaying Italian customs duty as the seller knows how much these repro costs.

Eventually he just refused t o accept the items and they were returned to the sellers.

So much for looking for antiques to resell 

on Ebay !

It must be in the mid 1990s.thats before Italy becomes part of European Union

[sayanora]

OP.

Ebay is a person to person buy/sell venue although many indviduals resell what they bought and many professional dealers hunt on Ebay.

GSP does not accept commercial shipments for this reason.

It sounds like you are a dealer and buy in large quantity from various sellers, may be you can post your thread on Ebay UK and ask other UK sellers how to bring in shipments from outside UK, do they have a mail drop off place in US which consolidate shipments bound for UK and rest of Europe,it could save you some money.

There are even local buyers who do the bidding and buying for you and then turn around and ship them to you in UK,you just have to tell them what you want to buy and how you want to ship and pay them a small %, I know there was a time some US buyers shopping on Yahoo Japan rely on Japanese to find them items described in Japanese .

There are also Japanese buyers relying on US buyers to shop for them on Ebay USA

There is even an outfit in TX which will drive across the border to Mexico, took them thru MEXCIAN customs and ship them to different parts of Mexico using local carriers.and they are looking to expand to rest of Central and South America except Brazil !!!

[scga912]

@453path

You're a bit wrong about shipping FVF calculations.  To encourage international sales (or to not prevent them), if the seller sells/ships internationally, they are only assessed shipping FVFs based on their lowest domestic option.

In the example I previously gave, the sale was through the GSP.   The buyer paid $26 in shipping.  I received $9 for shipping, but since my lowest domestic option (price based on distance) was only $5.95, by shipping FVF was .54 cents (9% - store owner).  Even had I shipped international directly for $51 (or whatever it may be) my shipping FVF would only have been .54 cents. 

http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/insertion-fee.html

Excerpt:

Final value fees on shipping

Final values fees on shipping charges are calculated using the shipping service the buyer chooses.

However, when you offer an international or one-day shipping service and it's selected by your buyer, your final value fee for shipping is calculated using whichever service is less expensive, either:

• The first domestic service in your listing that isn't one-day, or

• Your international or one-day shipping service

For example, if a buyer chooses international shipping and you specified free shipping as your first domestic option, you don't pay any final value fees on shipping charges for that item.

If international or one-day shipping is the only service you offer, your final value fee for shipping charges will be calculated on that service.

[aristotles_id]

It must be in the mid 1990s.thats before Italy becomes part of European Union

Italy was a full member of the customs union long before the 90s

I can see many other reasons why things got so fouled up, .There is a special rate for antiques but the shipper must provide proof of antique status, usually this is a letter from a recognised authority or member of an antique professional association accepted by the receiving country.

This is not possible for any postal imports and I doubt if, since the buyer did not know the proper procedure, the couriers would  have been much help either.

[aristotles_id]

Britain is part of the EU, but not in all matters. First of all, we are not part of the Euro (€). There are trade agreements between Britain & the rest of the European Union etc, but we do NOT govern, regulate or collect taxes for other  European Union member countries. & then keep those taxes? Who are you trying to kid? Not only is Britain NOT a part of the Euro Monetary Scheme, but as such, we have no control or say in what goes on with Euro taxation within the Euro member countries!

I am kidding no one, this is simply how intra EU goods  in transit work. The UK is not collecting taxes for any other country, they get to keep all they collect, in the same way as shipment of goods entering the EU from Russia for general distribution to several destinations might pay their tax in Poland, and the Poles would keep all the revenue even on items intended for the UK. 

The shipper can have items transferred in bond after a landing in the UK to some other country, in which case the items would be customs cleared in that specific country. THey would only do this if there was some specific advantage. 

When the consignment of cargo is for a mixture of destinations, and is to be delivered package by package all over Europe, enty and clearance in Britain is both practical and legal. Any tax rates and exemptions applied are those of the country of entry.

I have discussed this distribution with the manager of the UK shipping hub and the marketing manager of the UK ebay scheme, and they have confirmed that this is how goods are entered and how the network works. 

Your remarks about Britain and the EU are largely true, but just happen to be irrelevant. All that  matters are the regulations concerning and governing the free movement of goods within the EU. Schengen rules cover people, not goods.

I'm just some bloke on the internet, you need not credit what I say, or what I say others have said, but if you take the time to study the regulations or possibly this Wikipedia article and the sources they cite, I think you will find that things do work as I state.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internal_market

[sayanora]

I ship many small packages to UK and rest of Euriope,I dont use GSP ,even with large packages, I ship USPS with third party insurer,next year I am thinking DSL.

But I have read many posts on this forum, overseas buyers complaining of US sellers using GSP,some such as greed -Ebay,Pitney Bowles are not justified.

Overseas buyers haveto comply with their country customs rules, if the seller ship USPS ,versus GSP, there is still a chance the buyer has to pay customs duty, it is not the choice of which shipper you use, it has to do with the content and value of the item shipped.

Buyers are just wishfully hoping with USPS, they can get lucky and pay no customs duty   !

Some get angry and refuse to pick up the package,so it ended up coming back to the seller.and the seller ended up  losing money on shipping.

The OP's example of paying $21 with USPS instead of $70 with GSP is an example of above, $21 does not cover customs duty  and misc fees by GSP,US sellers does the leg work of packing and taking it to the post office and filling out the form,.while GSP charges for doing so.

Quoting what Ebay always tell us when a buyer files INAD or returning a box of rocks and win the dispute, we sellers are here to make money ,so expect to lose some money as well.so applying to this thread,OP is here to buy and resell them in UK,and it sounds like OP is doing quite well,she would do better if the shipping cost is lower and may be she does not even have to pay UK customs fee !

So, the choice is with OP, find a seller who does not use GSP or find a dropship service which accept packages for her in US and bundle them ,shipped to her in UK or ask the GSP seller to relist the item with local pickup,cash or Paypal and offer to pay cash and have the item shipped USPS .

Overseas buyers offering to pay cash is not that easy,unless you have a US checking account or oodles of cash sitting in your drawer ,wiretransfer fee here is now US$45 and Western Union and intl cashier check and money order all cost money,and she is taking a chance that the seller is honest as there wil be no Ebay or PAYPAL buyer protection.

No seller has the magic bullet to help her avoid UK customs,even declaring as gift may not work,as for avoding GSP fee, what buyers are asking seller to do is to work for free when it comes to packing,packing material, driving to post office adn stand in line and filling out the customs forms and risking the chance that buyer may refuse package due to high customs fee.

[sayanora]

I have to agree with Aris, Uk collects all the GSP shipments duty fee  going to the other Euro countries ,there is a German buyer who always complain about GSP ,he thinks German duty would be lower if GSP shipments come to Germany instead of entering UK first.

He also have another gripe against GSP, when he bought a laptop in US and GSP remit the customs fee to UK customs, he thinks now he can take his laptop out of Germany say to France and Austria with no problem,until he returned to Germany and the German customs officer looked at his GSP receipt and refuse to honor it.it did not state what the fee is for and it looks like a bar bill????

So he ended up paying German customs duty just to bring his laptop back to Germany.

Then there is a Scandinavian buyer who paid UK customs duty for a US item and when it arrived in her country,her country customs office slapped on its own duty,making her pay twice,she appealed and lost.  

[453path]

Actually aristotles_id what you have said is irrelevant or misguided. I think you are confusing VAT as opposed to (local) import duties!

VAT is a European Union form of taxation on ALL goods & services in/within the EU. In one aspect you are correct, each country collects VAT (which varies in rate & for which particular goods/service from country to country), but generally speaking it is around 20%. But the country collecting the VAT (lets say Britain in this case) does NOT get to keep that revenue! The VAT is controlled by the central European commission, ie: the European Parliament in Brussels! 

It is they who decide what happens to the VAT; where it is spent & used, how much & for what purposes etc. They distribute funds to each & every member of the European Union! So yes, Britain may collect the VAT, but Britain doesn't get to keep it. The same happens in France & Germany & Spain & Italy......etal. 

As far as local import duty/country levies, then that is up to each country to apply & collect. That is another system which can be quite complicated. Private buyers are not usually hit with the extra import duty (such as purchasing an item/s on ebay USA & shipping it to the UK). But, businesses who purchase from outside of the EU in larger quantities are landed with an import duty bill as well as the VAT. 

I love Wikipedia too, but you must be careful what you read on there! Don't take everything in as gospel! Wikipedia, while as good as it is & I say that with all my heart; it is subject to flaws & innaccuracies (quite often you see tags on many articles on Wikipedia, citing confirmation needed etc). I say it can be subjected to flaws because it is 'largely' written by the lay-person. In most cases they are very good with their knowledge, but they are after all, simply people writing an article because they may have an interest in a particular subject matter, but many of these subjects are so in-depth & complicated (regardless whether it is history/medicine/science/technology/law/tax etc), not to mention things change so rapidly in the world these days!

[aristotles_id]

He also have another gripe against GSP, when he bought a laptop in US and GSP remit the customs fee to UK customs, he thinks now he can take his laptop out of Germany say to France and Austria with no problem,until he returned to Germany and the German customs officer looked at his GSP receipt and refuse to honor it.it did not state what the fee is for and it looks like a bar bill????

So he ended up paying German customs duty just to bring his laptop back to Germany.

Obviousy nonsense, no one checks good in these transits, or people for that matter. I have made many entries into the EU from outside the EU, and have never had anything I was carrying questioned. 

Then there is a Scandinavian buyer who paid UK customs duty for a US item and when it arrived in her country,her country customs office slapped on its own duty,making her pay twice,she appealed and lost.

Possibly something sent direct by the buyer,  mistakenly. I suppose they could be Norwegian, but even then I doubt if any customs exam applies to goods entering from local EU member countries. 

 I must confess that is something I am not sure about.

[453path]

sayanora, you mentioned a member in Germany; first I agree that VAT can vary from member country to another member country. The rates can vary for the same item & as I mentioned in a previous thread; not only do the rates vary but some things which are charged VAT in Germany may not be charged with VAT in Britain etc. Example; ALL printed matter in Britain is exempt from VAT but other EU countries charge VAT (or their equivalent) on books etc. 

You also mentioned about the German taking a laptop (I thought you called them notebooks in Amercia???); anyway, this fellow from Germany can take whatever he likes into France & back again into Germany. He will NOT be stopped by customs in Germany let alone charged a VAT fee for his laptop! Germany & France are in the Schengen Agreement! The people can move between any Schengen country they want with complete freedom & almost no hassle! Provided of course they have a European (German/French etc) passport!

Since when do people carrying personal items get hit with a customs fee for carrying such items? How many Americans have visited Britain or Europe & been told they have to pay a VAT/import fee for their personal computers or cameras or clothes or perfumes etc??? 

I travel to & through many European countries & I've never been stopped a single time! Oh except one time I arrived in Gatwick Airport from Frankfurt; a customs officer brielfy asked me where I've just come from & I told him Frankfurt. That was the end of the matter! That was the ONLY time I've ever been asked by anyone in any European country in the past 25 years, when travelling through a 'so called' border!

You also mentioned a person in Scandinavia paying a second import duty? From my last post on here, you will note I mentioned a brief difference between VAT & local import duty? The same can happen here; I could be charged both VAT & a separate import duty. VAT goes to the EU, while the local import duty goes to the British Tax Office. However, as a private buyer I'm not usually charged the UK import duty! 

Scandinavia is a slightly complicated issue. First, not all Scandinavian countries are part of the European Union. Second, not all those who are members of the EU are also members of the Euro (monetary union & single  currency). Norway isn't in the EU. Denmark isn't in the Eurozone, they still use the Krone; they have separate rules about taxation etc. Sweden is classed as an 'other Euro member' the same as Britain; they have different laws & regulations regarding VAT & other taxation. 

Please don't ask me to explain any better than that; it is all a rather complicated mess & even I'm confused by it all.