Thai Customs and Immigration - Are They Serious ?

[ozbanglamung]

I recently purchased an Omron BF511 Family Body Composition Monitor (essentially fancy body weight scales) on eBay. The seller is in the UK, so it was sent from there to Thailand via DHL. To my amazement, I got an email from DHL last Friday stating that Customs has requested I get an Importation License from the Central Bureau Of Weights and Measures before they will release the parcel. This takes bureaucratic retardation to a new level. Now I only bought one for these things for the princely sum of ninety-three pounds plus courier charges, and I have no intention of buying more than one. Has anybody else come across this lunacy in Thailand when buying things online? Mind you I should have known better, I bought some Silicon Lube from the US (to use on my squeaky doors, cough) which was couriered in by UPS and Thai Customs wanted me to supply them with an MSDS (Materials Safety Data Sheet) from the manufacturer, needless to say, the doors are still squeaky.  What astounds me, even more, is that other items I have bought online that have been sent through the post get no attention whatsoever.

[Crossy]

Customs, duties and tax are a fact of life when trading internationally as are import restrictions (try importing Kinder Eggs into the US).

 

The issue was that your seller used DHL, any of the couriers are bad news as they invariably follow the rules to the letter (and add a few too). It will be racking up storage charges too.

 

Your "Family Body Composition Monitor" is likely classed as medical equipment which requires an import licence. It is worth getting a Thai speaker to talk to the Central Bureau Of Weights and Measures, getting the necessary paperwork for a one-off import may be quick and easy. It may not, but unless you ask you won't know.

 

In future get stuff sent by regular post / EMS, >90% of small packages get through with no tax/duty or other hassle.

 

[ezzra]

It's a whole foreign and <deleted> world out there when it comes to Thai

custom and Immigration common sense and reasonable and

acceptable norms, it's well known that every pagakge comes in

with a courier service is open, the onus is on us to know how

to sent our mail in to this country so we don't incur the wreath

of the taxman.... 

 

 

[hml367]

I ordered Vidal Sassoon shampoo and conditioner for personal use on ebay.  The shampoo came through the postal service, no customs and no tax.  The conditioner came via DHL and it is stuck in Bangkok and DHL is asking for the same things as the OP posted. 

 

I have ordered these things before and they were delivered.

 

[yellowboat]

Customs and immigration in Thailand makes one pause and say: "Do I really want to do this in Thailand"?

[cornishcarlos]

10 minutes ago, hml367 said:

I ordered Vidal Sassoon shampoo and conditioner for personal use on ebay.  The shampoo came through the postal service, no customs and no tax.  The conditioner came via DHL and it is stuck in Bangkok and DHL is asking for the same things as the OP posted. 

 

I have ordered these things before and they were delivered.

 

 

Your hair must be so dry by now... Can't believe they made you go through this trauma ?

[Formaleins]

Anything coming from the West seems to attract attention - and duty. If however you purchase from the East, like China, Hong Kong etc. they virtually never question it. The other problem of course is using DHL, they are probably the worst for having the receiver cough up.

 

(I receive hundreds of items from E Bay, mainly from the East and have only ever been charged once, and that was for 5 Baht excess postage. From Europe and DHL- I received a gift of T-shirts that we were giving free to local schools, customs wanted almost 500USD for a value of 90USD, that was DHL.

[Pilotman]

2 hours ago, ezzra said:

It's a whole foreign and <deleted> world out there when it comes to Thai

custom and Immigration common sense and reasonable and

acceptable norms, it's well known that every pagakge comes in

with a courier service is open, the onus is on us to know how

to sent our mail in to this country so we don't incur the wreath

of the taxman.... 

 

 

Not just LOS.  I ordered an NFL T Shirt from the US to be sent to UK.  UK customs wanted double the price in tax.  I told them to stuff it.  That by the way, was the EU poking its nose in. Go BREXIT! 

[recycler]

I got many things in easy for years via post, but in recent months I seem to have caught attention and have to pay tax on every parcel.

It can also be that the rules or enforcement of them has been tightened recently.

For bigger things I now buy it in my home country have it delivered there and take it here on my next trip, many things are way cheaper anyway in western countries than in Thailand by now.

[khunano]

51 minutes ago, hml367 said:

I ordered Vidal Sassoon shampoo and conditioner for personal use on ebay.  The shampoo came through the postal service, no customs and no tax.  The conditioner came via DHL and it is stuck in Bangkok and DHL is asking for the same things as the OP posted. 

 

I have ordered these things before and they were delivered.

 

Try buying shampoo in Thailand instead, there is a huge selection in every supermarket....

[eliotness]

Don't ever use DHL . They not only took off all the bubble wrap off my packages and then presented me with a 5000 baht customs bill ( for purely personal items). When the boxes finally arrived many items were damaged.

[Old Croc]

I fail to see what importation of goods has to do with Immigration. (They have there own unique way of annoying expats!)

 

I once had some clothing sent to me from Australia, Customs here demanded duty equivalent to about twice the cost of the items. I refused to take delivery, they sent it back, and a friend on a visit brought them up in his suitcase without any problems. 

I would have paid a reasonable amount of tax, not the extortionate amount asked. 

[holymoly]

Yes, same thing happened to me about three months ago. Probiotics from Canada with DHL. Customs demanded import permit.

Did not have. Had to abandon the probiotics since shipping back too expensive.  !@#$%^& ......and so on........

[seabear]

1 hour ago, khunano said:

Try buying shampoo in Thailand instead, there is a huge selection in every supermarket....

Really? Is that so?

[Suradit69]

4 hours ago, Crossy said:

The issue was that your seller used DHL, any of the couriers are bad news as they invariably follow the rules to the letter (and add a few too). It will be racking up storage charges too.

 

In future get stuff sent by regular post / EMS, >90% of small packages get through with no tax/duty or other hassle.

Agree. If at all possible I avoid buying anything on eBay or Amazon or whatever that provides something like a global shipping service. The shipping charges are always exorbitant because they use DHL or FedEx or UPS and then they "help you out" by charging the maximum duty and tend to even screw that up as well. The only ones who benefit from the "service" is the courier and the selling platform that takes a cut. 

 

8 hours ago, ozbanglamung said:

This takes bureaucratic retardation to a new level.

More of the blame needs to be put on the courier rather than Thai Customs. Probably if it had been sent through the post office it would have attracted a reasonable import duty (and quite often nothing will be charged) and none of the other nonsense. The couriers act as agents for Thai Customs and always go overboard with the letter of the law or regulation.

 

 

 

[sjbrownderby]

DHL seemingly act as agents of the government, not only collecting taxes and fees but also charging a 'handling fee' for doing so. To add insult to injury the handling fee is also subject to VAT, which they also collect. When purchasing through ebay I now look for sellers who use the regular postal service and not couriers to deliver. Couriers will calculate fees based on the price (or estimated price/value) of the goods being sent plus the cost of shipping which for import duty purposes is calculated together. To that is added import duty, VAT, handling fee (for collection of fees) and VAT on handling fee. 

[Suradit69]

33 minutes ago, Old Croc said:

I fail to see what importation of goods has to do with Immigration.

Many people seem to conflate customs and immigrations for some reason, although I guess in some countries they are intimately related.

 

To be fair some people on TV blame Customs for their visa woes and whine about Immigrations regarding work permits.  I guess for some, "they all look alike" (anyone wearing a uniform or wielding a rubber stamp). 

[RBOP]

Complain to eBay and demand a refund. But there is probably some fine print about import licenses etc. Worth a call to the Bureau. All they may want is a letter from you to say its for personal home use. Good luck.

I always check local availability and price before considering ordering offshore.

[jgarbo]

6 hours ago, Crossy said:

Customs, duties and tax are a fact of life when trading internationally as are import restrictions (try importing Kinder Eggs into the US).

 

The issue was that your seller used DHL, any of the couriers are bad news as they invariably follow the rules to the letter (and add a few too). It will be racking up storage charges too.

 

Your "Family Body Composition Monitor" is likely classed as medical equipment which requires an import licence. It is worth getting a Thai speaker to talk to the Central Bureau Of Weights and Measures, getting the necessary paperwork for a one-off import may be quick and easy. It may not, but unless you ask you won't know.

 

In future get stuff sent by regular post / EMS, >90% of small packages get through with no tax/duty or other hassle.

 

Thai customs are no worse than anywhere else. They are strict and their classifications may vary from Western ones. I used to import water filters. My agent (always use a Thai agent) explained that the filter hose was "medical" quality,  charged at a higher tax rated than the filter body. If both were attached the cheaper filter body would attract the higher medical tax. Importing them separately, then joining them saved me thousands of USD. Good advice - get an agent and listen to him.

[TKDfella]

3 hours ago, khunano said:

Try buying shampoo in Thailand instead, there is a huge selection in every supermarket....

Yes, although I'm not sure, I think one of the problems is that if you something abroad that might have another brand in Thailand then you have to go through the paper work. It's only when you purchase something from abroad that can't be purchased in Thailand that it is easier to receive. These days, I would think, but don't really know, that BKK has most things. I purchase non-fiction books from abroad but do check with a Thai bookseller first and if they haven't got what I want then usually I have no problems.

[nobodysfriend]

2 hours ago, eliotness said:

Don't ever use DHL . They not only took off all the bubble wrap off my packages and then presented me with a 5000 baht customs bill ( for purely personal items). When the boxes finally arrived many items were damaged.

Same happened to me ... no more DHL , they are the worst .

[ozbanglamung]

Thank's folks that's pretty much the response I was expecting. I will see what eBay says and probably end up writing off the 126 pounds and not be such a dumb ass as to expect any of these customs muppets to ever have any common sense. There are reasons why some.countries cant climb out of the third world and this kind of nonsense is one of them. 

[Older and Wiser]

2 hours ago, Suradit69 said:

Agree. If at all possible I avoid buying anything on eBay or Amazon or whatever that provides something like a global shipping service. The shipping charges are always exorbitant because they use DHL or FedEx or UPS and then they "help you out" by charging the maximum duty and tend to even screw that up as well. The only ones who benefit from the "service" is the courier and the selling platform that takes a cut. 

 

More of the blame needs to be put on the courier rather than Thai Customs. Probably if it had been sent through the post office it would have attracted a reasonable import duty (and quite often nothing will be charged) and none of the other nonsense. The couriers act as agents for Thai Customs and always go overboard with the letter of the law or regulation.

 

 

 

I have an apartment in Thailand so I like to read Thaivisa, though actually resident in the Philippines most of the year.

 

Believe me, I is no different in the Philippines, maybe worse. Some overseas couriers use AIR21 in the Philippines, a real rip off. When a package arrives they tell you must pay a certain charge for customs before they will release the goods. They show no evidence that the customs levy such a charge and give no receipt for the payment. Customs have been well known for corruption in the past, so even if it were a legitimate charge, AIR21 may not pay that. Much better use mail; it's very slow (it's not called snail mail for nothing), but stuff has always arrived, eventually.  The charge always seems to be the same no matter the value of the item, and only a couple of quid.

[natway09]

In this particular case it may be the "weight & measures" problem.

Even a tape measure here needs to have a calibration licence

[Rockhopper]

An MSDS can usually be downloaded from the manufactures Web site. 

[hatyaiair]

Under no circumstances ship anything by a courier, especially DHL - they are the worst.  I have horror stories I can share for days about this company in Thailand.  Ship everything by post only!

[keithpa]

12 hours ago, ozbanglamung said:

I recently purchased an Omron BF511 Family Body Composition Monitor (essentially fancy body weight scales) on eBay. The seller is in the UK, so it was sent from there to Thailand via DHL. To my amazement, I got an email from DHL last Friday stating that Customs has requested I get an Importation License from the Central Bureau Of Weights and Measures before they will release the parcel. This takes bureaucratic retardation to a new level. Now I only bought one for these things for the princely sum of ninety-three pounds plus courier charges, and I have no intention of buying more than one. Has anybody else come across this lunacy in Thailand when buying things online? Mind you I should have known better, I bought some Silicon Lube from the US (to use on my squeaky doors, cough) which was couriered in by UPS and Thai Customs wanted me to supply them with an MSDS (Materials Safety Data Sheet) from the manufacturer, needless to say, the doors are still squeaky.  What astounds me, even more, is that other items I have bought online that have been sent through the post get no attention whatsoever.

I pay a coupla baht outside 7 11 to get my body weight.

[Suradit69]

1 hour ago, hatyaiair said:

Under no circumstances ship anything by a courier, especially DHL - they are the worst.  I have horror stories I can share for days about this company in Thailand.  Ship everything by post only!

I remember once tracking an international shipment online that was being sent via DHL. Eventually it reached Bangkok and I expected it would reach me in a day or two. Checked online tracking again when nothing arrived. Instead of proceeding from Bangkok to Pattaya it went from Bangkok to Kathmandu Nepal. Checking with their customer service was as productive as self-flagellation. 

[ukrules]

3 hours ago, hatyaiair said:

Under no circumstances ship anything by a courier, especially DHL - they are the worst.  I have horror stories I can share for days about this company in Thailand.  Ship everything by post only!

 

I've found both DHL and FedEx to be very useful for shipping documents. These incur no customs charge and the service is fast, reliable and fully trackable.

[thaiguzzi]

14 hours ago, Crossy said:

Customs, duties and tax are a fact of life when trading internationally as are import restrictions (try importing Kinder Eggs into the US).

 

The issue was that your seller used DHL, any of the couriers are bad news as they invariably follow the rules to the letter (and add a few too). It will be racking up storage charges too.

 

Your "Family Body Composition Monitor" is likely classed as medical equipment which requires an import licence. It is worth getting a Thai speaker to talk to the Central Bureau Of Weights and Measures, getting the necessary paperwork for a one-off import may be quick and easy. It may not, but unless you ask you won't know.

 

In future get stuff sent by regular post / EMS, >90% of small packages get through with no tax/duty or other hassle.

 

Indeed.

I have a lot of stuff sent regularly from the West. Machine tool spares, motorcycle parts etc etc. I insist that the seller sends by registered Post Office. Some stuff gets hit with duties, others not, no problem. DHL, Fed Ex, UPS = no sale.