VAT double charged by Queenonline Shop to EU citizens... and nobody realizes it

Received a confirmation today that VAT will be refunded within a few days...

Got a replacement for my picture disc, had to pay VAT and customs again. 84 euros down the drain for double VAT and customs and no reply from the QOL store yet. Amateur hour all over again, but as long as they keep putting out unique products we'll all buy it

Not yet, I only got a message from customs that I had to pay VAT. Now that I've paid it, it can take up to a week (or more) to be delivered, they say.

I received everything in the Netherlands on the day of release (July 14). 

Same here! Got an answer from Universal stating they have no answer to my question about the status of my order…..

Now that the Queen I boxset is out, it is good to remind people of this ongoing issue once more.
I ordered the PictureDisc+7" bundle and the Cassette, and I saw in my order that taxes are already paid, according to QOL.
So that means that QOL should mark this on their package and we should not receive an invoice from customs for extra VAT to the EU.
Let's keep an eye on this to check if they've finally done it correctly.
And in case customs charges VAT, I will (again) ask it back from QOL and demand (again) that they will sort this out for future sales (which they are legally obliged to)

Of course its still happening and will continue to happen. I've also written to them many times about this and they always ignore. They do return the extra tax money without a peep if you ask for it.
It's like only a proper lawsuit or smth would actually make them stop this practise.

Its very weird that they just dont seem to care, but do return the money if you just ask for it and add a proof you were double charged.

On what grounds did they reject it?

That's simply bullocks!
It is simply not possible to claim VAT back through the local customs office, because the only reason they charge VAT is the fact that QOL/Universal are obliged to state on the package that VAT was already paid, and they are obliged to do that DIGITALLY using IOSS. That is not a choice they can make, they are OBLIGED to do that!
When they do not digitally register the VAT using IOSS, customs simply will NOT register it and thus they will charge VAT again.

That they refuse to refund the double VAT is really scandalous!
They say: "For your order, the €58.16 VAT is included in the price of €299.00. We are unable to action a refund for this charge, as this fee is required for all customers."
Now that is correct, but only for UK customers. And what they are concealing is that for international (or at least EU) customers they are also OBLIGED to register the VAT digitally by using IOSS, when they do charge VAT. As said, that is not a choice for them to make, they are OBLIGED to do that!
Since they have failed to do that, THEY are the ones who should refund you, NOT customs.

QOL/Universal is a big company and they should known that, especially since by now multiple customer have made them aware of this!
If they genuinely don't know that they are obliged to register VAT digitally using IOSS, they are acting like amateurs. There's really no other word for it.
They would not hold up in court in any way, but they simply known that no customer would ever start a lawsuit against them for this, so they keep on doing this, which is technically ILLEGAL!

I remember that they once answered me that they are not IOSS-registered.
Legally it's simple: If they charge VAT, they are obliged to register this digitally using IOSS.
If they can't do that, they are not in the position to charge VAT.
It's just as simple as that.

shop.brianmayguitars.co.uk/the-bmg-special.html
'Brian May Guitar Shop' is doing it correctly, see this example:
"UK PRICE £895.00 INC. 20% VAT, WORLDWIDE PRICE £745.83"
So non-UK price is lower and does not include VAT.
This means that no VAT will be stated on the package, and as a result customs will charge the VAT.

This is exactly the reason why I refuse to buy anything at QOL/Universal directly nowadaysa, except some QOL-exclusive releases.

In my case, I ordered the signed Roger Taylor poster. It was delivered but in addition to VAT charged by the Queen Store at point of sale, I also had to pay VAT and additional charges upon delivery as they don't mark the item as VAT paid and apparently aren't Import One Stop Shop (IOSS) registered which would prevent this situation.

Short answer: No.
If QOL had their 'IOSS-shit' in order, customs would simply scan the barcode of the package and see that VAT was already paid and let it through.

But since QOL doesn't have their 'IOSS-shit' in order, when customs scan the barcode they see that VAT isn't paid, so it goes to customs service where it will be handled, so logically additional costs will be added by them.
That QOL already has charged VAT doesn't matter, because they haven't electronically declared this on the package (which can only be done by IOSS) so customs is unable to see this.
That's the reason why simply writing a message on the package "VAT already paid" doesn't work either. The barcode scanner doesn't read written text, only barcodes. And the barcode doesn't state that VAT is already because it wasn't digitally declared by IOSS.

If you could share, that would be great. I've followed up a few times and they have rejected my refund request.

This was the latest:

"Unfortunately, payment of VAT is required for all customers. However, the VAT rate is adjusted automatically depending on the region.

In this case, the standard VAT Rate in Ireland is 23%, which I can see was applied to your order as €58.16 EUR. This charge is unable to be refunded, I do apologise.

You may find more information regarding VAT in our Terms & Conditions as well as our FAQ page via the link below:

umusicstoresupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/25253650422423-Ordering-Outside-of-the-UK-Do-I-Pay-VAT"

Hello!
For some years I was a quiet reader to this topic and while writing the first post, I would like to thank you guys for a good job informing people about issue and what to do!

I just revieved my package (living in EU) and until the Courier came, I was quite impressed that no email came regarding VAT fees, silently hoping they resolved that matter finally...
And now I know why the silence - this time, QOL basically decided to not put any mail/telephone data on the shippment and thus I learned about having to pay just when getting the package. Usually, I was getting a DHL email informing about the payment a day before.
A new low achieved - buying at QOL is not only more expensive, you also get the package late and have to pay usual double VAT without getting informed beforehead. In essence, they are now doing even less than before. I just hope VAT return policy will still work as before.
I guess that was the last time buying on QOL (unless again I'm fooled by a thing like rest of Cool Cat 7" stock...).

Imagine that ... the same "einstein" mistakes ... over and over.

Unfortunately, this is real life and all too common today for anything.