Import duties and jewellery

[NorthernGravy]

No idea which is the best group to post on, but I have a niche question.

I have a ring, I want it resetting and love a jeweller in California. I want to post my ring to him (you can’t get insurance on loose stones), then have my diamond reset and the new ring sent back to me. For insurance I’d need to get the full value of the ring covered, not just the value of the remodel, however import duties are based on the value declared on the packaging. This seems unfair as I’ve already paid tax in the UK on the purchase of the diamond. Is there a way to get my ring sent back to me but only pay tax on the remodel?

Is this something you can claim back? I know my (American) SIL had to pay import duty on her wedding dress when she came over here for the UK leg of her wedding, and then claimed it back afterwards.

If not, and depending on the cost difference between the stone and the setting, I'd be tempted to post it out and then take a holiday to go and collect it! Would also mean you could have it properly sized - when I had a ring custom made we still had to size it, even after several trial runs.

Is it victor canera? 😍😍 If so and you are looking at about $4000 for the setting then I'd just book a flight and go and collect it yourself.

There are great jewellers here! This is such an odd thing to do. Why have all this worry.? Do better research here.

No, not VC, he’s definitely nowhere near my budget!!! (I think I’d go for Leon Mege if I had that much to spare!!!)

BubblesBuddy- I am so bloody fussy about minuscule details- from the shape of prongs, size of bezel, I want to go with somebody who can do it properly. I’ve spoken to 10+ jewellers in London and the same closer to home and it’s the tiny details that get me. People on here recommend London Rocks and Hatton garden bespoke on here all the time and I look at them and think they are slightly messy compared to people I like in America.

Honestly, I’d just get on a flight yourself or arrange for a trusted friend to bring it back to the U.K. if the jeweller will send it to a UPS store.

We have bought a number of diamonds in NYC (lucky me) and it’s straight forward to have it sent to a UPS, which you then collect the next day. The jewellers in NYC routinely offer to post to Hoboken to avoid state taxes. Costs about $50 from memory.