Importing Personal Effects - Retirement Visa

[Jen65]

Can anyone advise on or give me the customs regulations on importing my personal effects on a Retirement Visa .   I was of the understanding that one is allowed one free shipment? 

[Sheryl]

As far as I know there is no customs provision specific to people on a retirement visa.

[essox essox]

ALL pesonal effects ARE FREE OF DUTY anywhere in world....I brought mine here 2008.

My charges were delivey from Lam Chabang

54 boxes I had...

 

[glegolo]

What they do is, they accept a thai national that have stayed outside Thailand for more than 1 year to bring personal effects back home to Thailand free of duties....

 

Next problem.... They have a very sofisticated way of minimising this "free import". They are just aceepting a VERY FEW COMMODITIES as personal effects, so in reality everybody pay something to the thai customs.

 

But Yes, much better to have a thai national do the import if they have stayed outside Thailand than a falang, that is for sure.

 

glegolo

Edited November 2, 2019 by glegolo

[ubonjoe]

There is no duty free allowance for retirement. It is only for Thais and those working here.

See: http://www.customs.go.th/cont_strc_simple.php?ini_content=individual_F01_160426_01&ini_menu=menu_individual_submenu_02&lang=en&left_menu=menu_individual_submenu_02_160421_01

[essox essox]

9 minutes ago, glegolo said:

What they do is, they accept a thai national that have stayed outside Thailand for more than 1 year to bring personal effects back home to Thailand free of duties....

 

Next problem.... They have a very sofisticated way of minimising this "free import". They are just aceepting a VERY FEW COMMODITIES as personal effects, so in reality everybody pay something to the thai customs.

 

But Yes, much better to have a thai national do the import if they have stayed outside Thailand than a falang, that is for sure.

 

glegolo

rubbish read my post....I used to work in export/import business.....

[essox essox]

4 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

There is no duty free allowance for retirement. It is only for Thais and those working here.

See: http://www.customs.go.th/cont_strc_simple.php?ini_content=individual_F01_160426_01&ini_menu=menu_individual_submenu_02&lang=en&left_menu=menu_individual_submenu_02_160421_01

wrong I brought in 54 boxes of personal effects.....all duty free....it is a worldwide thing......clothes 4 dvd players, pioneer sound system, tvs, binoculars all kinds of things...panasonic microwave....cutlery....frying pans .....pans.....golf clubs, mountain bike, fishing boxes and tackle.....thats about it....OHHHHHHHHH and bottles of Malt whiskey....some sobrano.....odd bottle of wine...

Edited November 2, 2019 by essox essox

[Sheryl]

14 minutes ago, essox essox said:

ALL pesonal effects ARE FREE OF DUTY anywhere in world....I brought mine here 2008.

My charges were delivey from Lam Chabang

54 boxes I had...

 

 

Definitely not true.

 

I have imported and exported personal effects to/from 4 different countries all of which applied  duty to personal effects. Luckily for me, by virtue of my work, mine were exempted but it is in no way true that personal effects are automatically duty free everywhere. Far, far from it.

[ubonjoe]

1 minute ago, essox essox said:

wrong I brought in 54 boxes of personal effects.....all duty free....it is a worldwide thing......

When? Not sure what you mean by a worldwide thing. Every country has its own  laws, regulations and etc.

Read the info I posted a link to. 

 

 

[essox essox]

Just now, ubonjoe said:

When? Not sure what you mean by a worldwide thing. Every country has its own  laws, regulations and etc.

Read the info I posted a link to. 

 

 

have you heard of The Brussels Nomenclature ????????????????????

[Sheryl]

2 minutes ago, essox essox said:

have you heard of The Brussels Nomenclature ????????????????????

 

That merely specifies the classification/categories. (And there is no category called "personal effects" - The items would be separately assessed by category e.f\g. used clothing, furniture etc etc).

 

the tariffs for each category are set independently by each country.

[essox essox]

6 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

 

Definitely not true.

 

I have imported and exported personal effects to/from 4 different countries all of which applied  duty to personal effects. Luckily for me, by virtue of my work, mine were exempted but it is in no way true that personal effects are automatically duty free everywhere. Far, far from it.

 I brought in 54 boxes of personal effects.....all duty free....it is a worldwide thing......clothes 4 dvd players, pioneer sound system, tvs, binoculars all kinds of things...panasonic microwave....cutlery....frying pans .....pans.....golf clubs, mountain bike, fishing boxes and tackle.....thats about it....OHHHHHHHHH and bottles of Malt whiskey....some sobrano.....odd bottle of wine...

[moe666]

Go threw your stuff and throw it all away, just bring your clothes that are for warm weather. Learn to live a more frugal life you can buy all the junk you want once you get here

[UKresonant]

Waste of time to try bring anything more than what you can get in your checked luggage.

 

Posting is useless, sent a small parcel last year, (as my foot was still fragile after wound), so I could bring a smaller case. The shipper at this end, stated the postal cost was more than double, what I paid to send it from the UK, and of course they charged tax at something like 37% of the fictional stated shipping cost. Ended up with a demand for something like 75% of what the package contents was worth (mainly parts of my sons train set). Waste of time trying to send stuff here.

Waste of time trying to own anything here anyway I have concluded, retirement / long stay appears to have a different meaning here, from 2019 on, compared to the historical view, it would seem ????.

[ubonjoe]

A flammatory post containing a disguised profanity has been removed. Please keep the discussion civil.

[LivinLOS]

1 hour ago, essox essox said:

ALL pesonal effects ARE FREE OF DUTY anywhere in world....I brought mine here 2008.

My charges were delivey from Lam Chabang

54 boxes I had...

 

The law states one thing.. Customs ransom your goods back to you and thats entirely another.. 

 

Mind you the ransom I paid was less than a clearance agent charges to get is through 'free'.. 

[glegolo]

2 hours ago, essox essox said:

have you heard of The Brussels Nomenclature ????????????????????

No, but what about the Haag ones??? I am currently working with shipping and started when I was 16 years old, I am 68 this year, do the math...

 

We all are talking about the rules and the law, and we are NOT talking about paying yourself into getting stuff inside this country....

 

4 DVD players there is NO country within the EU or elsewhere that I have met, that accept that numbers of DVD players for free impotconsiderated tio be personal effects THAT is pure rubbish..... That is considerated to be commercial goods due to the actuel number of players...

 

glegolo

[ivor bigun]

3 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

There is no duty free allowance for retirement. It is only for Thais and those working here.

See: http://www.customs.go.th/cont_strc_simple.php?ini_content=individual_F01_160426_01&ini_menu=menu_individual_submenu_02&lang=en&left_menu=menu_individual_submenu_02_160421_01

I came here with the clothes on my back ,mind you the wife brought ,half a container load ,no charges whatsoever . no problems either .

[007 RED]

3 hours ago, essox essox said:

ALL pesonal effects ARE FREE OF DUTY anywhere in world....I brought mine here 2008.

My charges were delivey from Lam Chabang

54 boxes I had...

 

2 hours ago, essox essox said:

 I brought in 54 boxes of personal effects.....all duty free....it is a worldwide thing......clothes 4 dvd players, pioneer sound system, tvs, binoculars all kinds of things...panasonic microwave....cutlery....frying pans .....pans.....golf clubs, mountain bike, fishing boxes and tackle.....thats about it....OHHHHHHHHH and bottles of Malt whiskey....some sobrano.....odd bottle of wine...

I appreciate that you may have been in the import/export business (at some time in the distant past), but with no disrespect, what Thai Customs allowed back in 2008 was one thing.  Remember, that was 11 years ago, and their regulations have changed several times since then.

Today, unless you are a Thai returning to the Kingdom after having spent 6 months or more abroad, or a foreigner with special skills coming to work in Thailand for a specified period of time, you stand little or no chance of escaping having to pay hefty import duty and VAT.

When I finally retired and moved here back in 2013 from the UK, I considered shipping my personal belonging here.  I got several quotations from very reputable shipping companies and was shocked when each informed me that even having declared my affects as second hand, Thai Customs would charge me import duty based upon their estimate of current as new price of the items.

The agents also advised that the way Customs calculate import duty is based upon their valuation of the items, plus the cost of transport, plus insurance.  That total figure is then used to calculate the duty at whatever import rate is going at the time.  If I remember correctly it was in the order of 20%

It doesn’t end there. There is the small matter of VAT.  They (Customs) then take their estimated value of the items and add the import duty to it.  They then take that total and calculate the VAT at whatever the going rate is for that day.

As well as having to pay the import duty and VAT there is also the little matter of the local agent’s negotiation fee which is normally a percentage of the Customs dues.

If you are not aware, Thai Customs Officers are paid a ’bounty’ (X%) of the revenue they collect, so it is their personal interest to ‘screw’ you for as much as they can.  Also, if you don’t accept their valuation of duty payable they (Customs) will hold the items in ‘bond’ for 3 months and then they will be sold at auction.

[Myran]

3 hours ago, essox essox said:

have you heard of The Brussels Nomenclature ????????????????????

The Brussels Nomenclature hasn't been in use for 45 years and even its successor has been replaced. The current HS system establishes categories to make it easier to classify imported objects, but it does in no way, shape or form dictate what tariffs a country charges for them (and neither did The Brussels Nomenclature).

 

You should really get your facts straight before giving incorrect advice and calling people out.

[Tony125]

23 hours ago, essox essox said:

have you heard of The Brussels Nomenclature ????????????????????

Yes but below is quote from Google . That law hasn't been in affect since 1976 , over 40 years ago.

The Brussels Tariff Nomenclature (BTN) refers to a classification system for imported goods that was used internationally before 1976. BTN is a standardized system of classification for imported goods, it is used in the specification of tariffs and statistics for the goods.

[agrow]

its a real crapshoot sending items by mail,been sending items that i can't find in Thailand from oz, prior to my move here first box  3kg no charge,2nd 8 kg 1400 bht,3rd 12 kg 3000 bht, latest 2 1x 19 kg,1x 15kg passed through customs Bangkok no problems sent to our local post office sized by local customs had to send daughter to pick up,it was a aus 90 dollar steel vice cost to send from oz aus 400,customs then charged me over 5000 bht, but hey it had sentimental value ,just glad i got it back. 

[soidog99]

I brought 4, 40 foot HC shipping containers from the USA in a span of 12 years. Total costs door to door $5500-$6500. Never had a problem, pay the right people. It’s all who you know ????. One was work permit, 2nd retirement,  3rd and 4th under Thai wife. If you put the right things in it you can sell them and pay for the entire shipment and get your stuff here for free. 

[atyclb]

there are freelancers hanging around the port customs that speak enough english to help get your stuff out. few years ago tried to pickup all 2nd hand personal belongings sent by sea on a pallet. despite showing the customs agent their own rule book stating with the visa i had my personal belongings were exempt from duty he was being a <deleted>. gave a few thousand baht to freelance guy and within 1 hour had my stuff. freelance guy also helped greatly getting a small truck to transport me and stuff to condo. very reasonable cost.  likely the freelancers tip customs

Edited November 3, 2019 by atyclb

[soisanuk]

On 11/2/2019 at 11:38 AM, ubonjoe said:

There is no duty free allowance for retirement. It is only for Thais and those working here.

See: http://www.customs.go.th/cont_strc_simple.php?ini_content=individual_F01_160426_01&ini_menu=menu_individual_submenu_02&lang=en&left_menu=menu_individual_submenu_02_160421_01

Several years ago there was a provision for retirees shipping personal effects here within a specified period of time.  But, as Ubonjoe points out, that changed and the provision is no longer there for retirrees.

[Kopitiam]

3 hours ago, soidog99 said:

I brought 4, 40 foot HC shipping containers from the USA in a span of 12 years. Total costs door to door $5500-$6500. Never had a problem, pay the right people. It’s all who you know ????. One was work permit, 2nd retirement,  3rd and 4th under Thai wife. If you put the right things in it you can sell them and pay for the entire shipment and get your stuff here for free. 

You did not "get your stuff for free", you have already paid $5500 to $6500 up front.

[khunPer]

On 11/2/2019 at 5:18 AM, Jen65 said:

customs regulations on importing my personal effects on a Retirement Visa .   I was of the understanding that one is allowed one free shipment?

When I was importing my household items about a decade ago I found the information from Thai customs by searching the Internet, I believe the link already given by ubonjoe in post #5 is the same.

You are allowed two shipments, one (smaller) by air, and one (larger) by sea; the latter could be a container, I had a 20' container shipped.

 

You are allowed one of each item only – i.e. knives and forks for twelve in a cutlery set is one item; or a collections of something, like CD's or records, is one item – and all stuff has to be used items, now new.

 

The trick is a very detailed packing list, and clearly numbered boxes and items; some stuff might not be box-able. For electronics the brand, model, and serial number are required. An estimated value for each specified item (or set), and a total value must also be stated.

 

Expect to pay both a small amount of duty, and little v.a.t.

 

I had my shipment (surface/sea only) send c.i.f. Bangkok, and a local company to do custom clearance and transport to the final destination. I needed to head up to Bangkok (I live south, so "up") upon custom clearance and hand over my original passport to the agent. Duty and v.a.t. was paid cash and I got a customs receipt. Furthermore, on my agent's advice, we paid a small "overtime fee" for the customs – I call that kind of service for "same-day express VIP-fee", it was in the morning, just like using EMS instead of snail-mail...???? – so all was done hassle-free within short time, and with a very reasonable amount of duty and v.a.t. to be paid. The container door had been opened, and a corner of one cardboard box wrapped up, so they actually did "carefully" check the contents of the shipment...????

????

[mokwit]

On 11/2/2019 at 2:48 PM, 007 RED said:

Also, if you don’t accept their valuation of duty payable they (Customs) will hold the items in ‘bond’ for 3 months and then they will be sold at auction.

You could appeal, but if you are found against you have to pay 5x either the duty levied or the total assessed value - forget which.

 

It seems Customs are getting very tough - I just got hit for GBP 100 on clothing which represents 70% duty on what I paid and 30% on their assessed value. When I went to waste an hour of my time queing up 3 times to pay and collect I saw a new sign saying Customs duty nothing to do with postal service and it is a month wait for query to be answered by customs. Looks like alot of people have been complaining after the Govt said they would be enforcing collection on goods valued over Bt1,500 more forcibly.

 

I find the importation situation a very big negative to living here. 

Edited November 3, 2019 by mokwit

[Pilotman]

On 11/2/2019 at 11:30 AM, essox essox said:

ALL pesonal effects ARE FREE OF DUTY anywhere in world....I brought mine here 2008.

My charges were delivey from Lam Chabang

54 boxes I had...

 

sorry, not true, they are subject to customs duty in Thailand.  The only way to avoid it is to get your returning Thai wife, if you have one, to import personal and house hold effects under her name.  Even in that event, some things, such as controlled woods, are still subject to duty. We did just this, 3 years ago when we had a 40 foot container with our stuff. .  We paid an agent to do the paperwork at this end (5,000 Baht) , paid 1,000 'Administrative Fee' to the customer officer, through the agent and paid duty of 150 Baht for our oak furniture, yes, 150 Baht, for 4 oak bookcases, an oak table and 8 chairs.  Not a  bad deal all told. . 

Edited November 3, 2019 by Pilotman

[CNXexpat]

On 11/2/2019 at 11:51 AM, moe666 said:

Go threw your stuff and throw it all away, just bring your clothes that are for warm weather. Learn to live a more frugal life you can buy all the junk you want once you get here

If you have nothing expensive it´s ok. I sent in the name of my wife, who lived 10 years with me in Germany, around 30 boxes, each 30 kg for 109 Euro each. So it´s 3,63 Euro per kilo. We had by example a wok from WMF, price in Germany and Thailand more than 100 Euro. So it´s easy mathematics. I could sell it for 30 Euro at Ebay in Germany and buy it new for 109 Euro in Thailand or I put it in a box and pay for the 3 kg around 10 Euro. Same with a high quality sound system, expensive brand clothes and so on. If the price is much higher than 3,63 kg/piece to buy the item in Thailand, it was sent. 

We had not a single problem with customs. 

And I don´t like frugal life ????