Where do you see that you are charged at least $1 GST? I've always paid 10% no matter what the total (price + shipping). AliExpress is registered in Australia and is obliged to collect GST.
Shipping charges are a different matter, it's up to the seller and some sellers tempt buyers with cheap prices but the shipping is expensive. I look for companies that will sell multiples units or items with minimal increase in shipping cost.
PCB orders fly under the GST radar because the firms are not registered in Australia and the GST is too small to collect.
In the EU, they will just slap a ~20 EUR import tax + VAT administration fee to your item. And then VAT to the administration fee. So your 1 EUR item would be ~26 once it gets here.
Exactly, and that administration VAT fee would make low-value purchases extremely difficult.
So its a big plus that sources like Aliexpress, Banggood, and also eBay handle the VAT on the fly when you purchase items outside EU that are below a certain value, so you're not getting choked by that ludicrously high VAT administration fee, that here in Denmark is 160DKK (22€) +25%VAT of the shipping cost. and item value.
Items from Aliexpress that are over the limit (around 200US) will not be VAT handled at checkout, so on those we will get that 22€ handling fee + 25% VAT of item value and shippingcost when the item arrives and you have to transfer the relevant amount before it will be delivered.