sp27

1 hour ago, tropo said:

I don't have family in the US to ship stuff over. We have to rely on the price that eBay merchants charge, and it's often way more than the price of the item.

 

Does your sister lie on the Custom's declaration? How does that work at the post office in the US where she has to sign the form? ... or have you just been very lucky?

She usually writes a lower value, but in general USPS is checked less often.  I order monthly from iherb.com and I've never once paid even small tax.  They ship USPS but total weight has to be under 4 lbs.  I think if it goes over 4 lbs it's automatically in a different category for customs and gets more attention.  But that is just an assumption based on my 4 year experience.

On 9/13/2016 at 11:01 AM, seajae said:

I had a gardening  tool(not available anywhere in Thailand) sent from the US and they used fed ex, the cost of the tool was  under $90 (incl, shipping),  fed ex hit me up for 1200 baht tax on delivery

I always buy things on Amazon and ship to my sister in the US usually for free.  She sends me things by USPS and I never pay tax on anything.  Just takes a week longer than fedex for shipping but worth it if you're not in a hurry.  

On 9/13/2016 at 5:00 AM, Crossy said:

Yes, thanks indeed for the update.

 

In the last 12 months or so I've had shipments from China and the UK via DHL and UPS both of which charged the relevant duty and VAT without any significant "extras", so perhaps things are changing for the better.

 

I do still avoid FedEx after an expensive experience some years back.

For Asia EMS works great.  They are reliable and the VAT is usually lower.  

A quick update for those who might care.  Fedex only charged 7% on the cost listed by sender ($500) and not the actual value but they also charged VAT on shipping which was $100.  All in all it was actually a great experience.  I didn't have to contact them or anything, just paid 1400 baht on delivery.  I think I just got lucky this time unless Fedex changed their ways recently...not sure.  I still recommend using USPS for less valuable items, I've never had an issue with them in the last 4 years.  

35 minutes ago, OMGImInPattaya said:

I'm just curious why you would buy a relatively common (and not highly taxed/expensive) item via eBay? Unless it's something that's impossible to source locally or is very high cost due to duties/taxes what's the point...and then having to deal with these hassles. Thailand has moved on and it's not like 10-15 years ago when many things an expat might want were just not available in the stores locally. Also, my first go to nowadays for online shopping for is Lazada...it's amazing what one can find on there and often a much better selection and price than in the stores; and no driving to and fro to find what one's looking for. ??

I know all about lazada, but high end laptops are insanely over priced in Thailand.  The one with the specs I ordered would be almost impossible to find locally as well.  I always order things from USA and Korea, but never use express shipping and the import fee or tax is always fair/low.  It's just companies like Fedex,DHL that are criminal.

5 hours ago, Sheryl said:

Your best option if feasible is not to let Fedex clear it ---for which they will charge you a fee and mishandle such that you pay much more than you should and it takes forever...you can expect them to insist it needs special inspection and approval from some dept in charge of electrical safety duty etc etc and by the time you get it, you'll be paying a hefty customs storage fee to boot.

I speak from bitter experience...

That it is shipped Fedex does not mean you have to let Fedex clear it. You can inform them you wish to handle the clearance yourself. Indeed, for expensive items they will usually require you to sign an authorization for them to clear it.

If you live in or near Bangkok or other city with intnl airport clearing by yourself is feasible, I've done it. Takes the better part of a day and not fun, but possible to do.

Otherwise refuse it and seek a refund since Seller misrepresented the mode of shipment, is my advice.

In case they demand insane amount, if I refuse the shipment do they return to sender for free or is there a charge for that too?  

Thanks for the reply everyone, I'm not near Bangkok so clearing it myself isn't an option.  At this point I'd be happy paying 7-15% of the actual value, but based on my previous experience I'm not too confident about those numbers.  

Ok I know enough not to ever ship things by Fedex, but an ebay seller did this even though the listing said USPS.  I also know I am about to get ripped off big time.

The item is a laptop $1100 but marked as $500, shipping weight is 9 lbs.  Does anyone know what the actual % SHOULD be for import fee?  

I have no issue paying actual import fee but what are my choices if they demand some insane amount?  Can I refuse the shipment and have it sent back?

Any advice will be appreciated...

ok got it now. Makes most sense for me just to do my last border run as late as possible since I'm so close to the border. Thx everyone!

Can someone please clarify if this Visa can be extended and how? I have NON O marriage Visa from Savannakhet. It is the multiple entry (5K Baht)

It is my first time with this VIsa so I am not sure exactly how it works, but I was under impression that each entry can be extended by 60 days, totaling 15 months.

Is this true? I did go to Chiangrai Immigration today and was told that I cannot extend this Visa, but CR office is known for being rather strict and difficult to deal with. So basically I'd like to know if it's even possible to extend this Visa because I could easily go to CM to do it. Any clarification would be appreciated and forgive my ignorance but I'm newly married and never had to do this before. Thanks!

Yea I meant multi entry Visa, not extension, sorry I worded it wrong.

Thanks will check out the cafe. Any hotel you can recommend? I checked agoda and none of them really look that great. Only the casino one but read on here it's a rip off...Also whats the latest time you can cross the border, I'm not sure how late my flight will be....

They are pulling your leg! And they also believe in ghosts!

I figured that...can't blame them, I do kinda look like a sucker

Has there been any changes in this Visa recently? AFAIK you still don't need to show 400K in bank account, as long as you leave every 90 days. However, I was recently at a one stop Visa service and was told that I would be required to show 400K once I want to get an extension on the Visa from Savannakhet.

I'm pretty sure they just wanted me to use their service instead so they just made this up...any ideas?

Well today I got home and tried using my transformer and it works fine. No idea how or why, or if it's going to keep working since I didn't

do anything to it. As I mentioned I don't know anything about electrical but I'm guessing some sort of bad connection??

I had a converter that I bought in the US last time I was there but yesterday it just stopped working after a year or so of use. I use it for a Vitamix blender and Kcup coffee brewer. I don't know anything about electrical to be wiring stuff on my own...

Does anyone know an online store that sells a 220v to 110v transformer? I need it to be at least 2000W. I checked local Home Pro in Chiangrai

but they only had small ones.

I'm pretty sure you will need $42 USD for the Lao visa. It has to be USD. Also when you get to Thai consulate you

can get your photo for passport taken outside on the street. If you don't want to do anything yourself it will cost

you around 3000 baht (this includes your 2 entry visa) for someone else to pick up your passport next day. There are many people willing to do it

and you can just negotiate with them.

Thanks for everyone's advice, I think I like Kai Bae area the best so will look around there

Thanks for the reply, so white sand beach is in one of the main areas? I am in lonely beach now just relaxing.

It's raining so not much else to do

Hello I am in Koh Chang for a couple of weeks for vacation and to find long term rental and move here.

The island is huge and I am not familiar with it at all. Can someone recommend at least which parts of the

island are likely to have houses or town homes for rent. I am not looking for a vacation rental. Any advice

would be appreciated.....thanks

I know very well that foreigners have little to no rights here. But that has nothing to do with putting yourself in situations

you shouldn't be in. In the USA, the land of the free, people have rights....yet the murder rate is same as Thailand.

And I'm pretty sure most of those murders in the USA weren't committed by Thais...so your argument isn't a very good one.

To all the people complaining about farangs dying in Thailand....really?? I agree some did nothing wrong to deserve it.

But do you think no Thai people die under same circumstances? You just don't hear about it because nobody on Thai Visa

gives a shit about some poor Thai man dying. It has a lot more to do with people's social circles and choices than being

a foreigner.