Do not send "Art"-in-the-Mail to me!

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

or at least Do Not Label it "Art" ,"Artwork", high value!!

A wonderful "gift" arrived in Greece from California,

It is "mail art" on canvas 30x23 cm, with postage stamp collage

and drawing from "Horseman"...

I spy a doggie on Greek postage :-)

A really nice fantastic HORSE head with postage and ink drawing!

However, it is canvas on double wood framing, heavy, costing Horseman $28 in shipping postage...

and HELLenic Postal Services charged me about $42 in Custom Tax = $70 to send and receive!!!

Never ever label "art" on large envelopes and packages to Greece,

call it "designed cards", call it "printed matter", "paper craft",

but if you send it as "art" , there will be a high customs charge here in Greece.

In fact, never send mail art larger than postcard size to me 10x15cm, so this ol' lady  need not go all the way to the not-so-friendly post office, and not pay any extra postage or custom fees. Keep mail art small and light weight, "downsize" and economize, thanks :-)

And the sad part of this story is that the Greek Post sent me a notice to "pick up" a package at the local post office, with no information as to what it is, how big it is, where it is from, who sent it...so I had to pay the customs fee and was obliged to accept it. 

I appreciate the gesture by Horseman to send it, however it was a very expensive "gift" to receive.

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

where mail art arrives for MomKat...

on Ancient Athenian marble stairs :-)

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

True, the new Greek custom tax for items coming from outside the European Union (that means from Brexit UK as well) are extremely high...even if marked "gift". Sooooo, we pay and no dispute :-)

However, long ago I informed most mail artists to send only "small" letter-size mail art to MomKat , for various reasons, one being that larger pieces are not delivered by the Greek postman. I cannot walk-the-walk, wait-the-line, carry-the-weight, to pick up at the post office anymore (I have sold the car of course) :-(

Soooooo...keep it small and light weight , good to be tossed-on-the-stairs :-)

[Predrag Petrovic]

...same would happen in many other countries... and once you paid custom and postal fees, there's hardly any way you'll get your money back. Labeling ''art'' some amateurish piece of work actually is welcomed by almost each local Postal system in EU, then they can apply their price-book on your little piece of framed art. Especially if it is framed and then it looks even more ''art'' ...Sad but true. Even avoiding  to mention or label something as ''art''  sometimes will inflict the same.

[Mail Art News]

Can you dispute these charges with the post office?