I’m done with German customs!

Having a non EU based company (UK) and importing into Germany has been painful, to say the least.

Shipments constantly get inspected (i would say at least 50%). Last shipment (UK to Germany) was refused entry and I was told the tariff was wrong. I showed proof the tariff was correct and was still delayed weeks. Eventually it was cleared after second inspection and got a nice fat bill for inspections and storage for my troubles.

Now, I have a small shipment (China to Germany) of total landed value of €9500 and they want to charge me €11500 in duty and VAT based off my hiked Amazon price because I was running out of stock.

I need a new base in the EU. I was thinking about Poland, the Netherlands, or France, and I have a couple of questions:

1. Do you guys have positive experiences (as a non-EU company) with shipping into any of those countries?
2. Do they charge you Duty & VAT based on the invoice or retail price?

Thanks!