I thought extortion was illegal? International shipper does it again

[Liverpool Lou]

11 minutes ago, mokwit said:

You are the person who was telling everyone how easy it was to reclaim incorrectly assessed  duty - you then admitted you had never done it. Told us all you just 'phoned the hotline, explained how it was wrong and they sent you a cheque if I remember rightly. That doesn't sound like how things work in Thailand.

Wrong, that was not me.

[Liverpool Lou]

12 minutes ago, mokwit said:

So please tell us how you go about dealing with an incorrect assessment (I remember now I was charged 100% by Thai Customs, but that is unusual). there is a normal rate  often 15-30% but the schedule for each category allows for up to 60 or even 100%.

You tell the delivering courier, that you dispute the duty rate/amount charged and want a duty re-assessment.  They will then hand it over to Customs.

[Liverpool Lou]

16 minutes ago, mokwit said:

29 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Complete nonsense, that is not what happens with correctly declared/valued items.

The 5x may have been changed because it was so unfair

There never was 5X penalty for items that had their value correctly declared.

There was a penalty for deliberately under-declaring the value of imported items.

[rwill]

4 hours ago, bbko said:

How is this extortion? Sounds more like a import duty/tax.

My wife wanted some candy canes one year.  I ordered some on amazon with prepaid customs included.  DHL instisted I mail my passport to them, which I refused.  They also wanted to add more fees, including a storage fee.  They also said they could not return the item.  I ended up refusing it.  Luckily when I showed amazon the correspondence from DHL they agreed to refund it anyway.  There shouldn't have even been any customs on a $13 box of candy.

[mokwit]

1 minute ago, Liverpool Lou said:

There never was 5X penalty for items that had their value correctly declared.

That is why there was a cacophony of complaints by Thai businesses about it, Liverpool Lou a foreigner on a retirement extension (probably)  knows better than them. They were complaining about something that didn't even exist according to Lou. Correctly declared or not is decided by Thai Customs who are the judge in the case. Again, there is a "normal rate" but the schedule allows for duty up to 60% or even 100%.

 

Thai customs are looking for things that have been wrongly declared or deliberately mislabeled in an attempt to evade the correct duty because that is where they can extract the most money, but it can come down to an interpretation by one officer whether the declaration (value or description) is correct or not. The situation was (don't know if it still is) that if you felt that interpretation was wrong you could appeal but if Customs who were the judge in the matter ruled it was correct you were charged 5x the duty.

 

[mokwit]

19 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

There never was 5X penalty for items that had their value correctly declared.

There was a penalty for deliberately under-declaring the value of imported items.

So it never happened that someone correctly declared the value or description and Thai Customs applied another value (or category) - which they do - they have set values for some items.

[Liverpool Lou]

9 minutes ago, mokwit said:

So it never happened that someone correctly declared the value or description and Thai Customs applied another value (or category) - which they do - they have set values for some items.

If you say so...I didn't.

[Liverpool Lou]

21 minutes ago, mokwit said:

Liverpool Lou a foreigner on a retirement extension (probably)  knows better than them.

I'm glad that I'm so appreciated.

What the 'uck has my visa/extension got to do with anything? 

 

Do you have anything to support your assertion of a

"cacophony of complaints"?

[mokwit]

2 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

I'm glad that I'm appreciated. 

Do you have anything to support your assertion of a

"cacophony of complaints"?

It was an article in the Bangkok Post many years go.

[Liverpool Lou]

1 minute ago, mokwit said:

4 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

I'm glad that I'm appreciated. 

Do you have anything to support your assertion of a

"cacophony of complaints"?

It was an article in the Bangkok Post many years go.

Ah, so you do not have anything to support it.

[mokwit]

4 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

I'm glad that I'm so appreciated.

What the 'uck has my visa/extension got to do with anything? 

 

Do you have anything to support your assertion of a

"cacophony of complaints"?

Because someone on a retirement extension doesn't work here and thus doesn't get exposure to aspects of how things work here and certainly is not immersed in things as a Thai running a business would be.

 

 

[mokwit]

5 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Ah, so you do not have anything to support it.

What do you have to support your claims? You'll be showing us all the documentation to support your claims of correct duty by couriers and your successful reclaim of duty from Customs in that case.

 

 

[Liverpool Lou]

1 minute ago, mokwit said:

Because someone on a retirement extension doesn't work here and thus doesn't get exposure to aspects of how things work here and certainly is not immersed in things as a Thai running a business would be.

 

 

Who said that I am on a retirement extension?

 

You seriously think that people who live (visa is irrelevant) here cannot be exposed to the delights of courier companies and Customs and that it is an area of which only those with a job can experience?

[Crossy]

Spectacles should attract 5% duty on the CIF (Cost Insurance Freight) value plus 7% VAT on the total.

 

The couriers often also charge a handling fee.

 

If you can get stuff shipped DDP (Delivery Duty Paid) then there "should" be no further charge, but I don't know if DHL offer that service from the US.

 

In reality, the good old postal system offers a pretty decent service for small fairly low-value items which often get through with no additional fees.

 

EDIT It seems that DHL do in fact do DDP.

https://www.dhl.com/th-en/home/our-divisions/global-forwarding/customer-service/incoterms-2020.html

 

[Liverpool Lou]

2 minutes ago, mokwit said:

10 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Ah, so you do not have anything to support it.

What do you have to support your claims?

You're the one who started the "5X penalty for requesting re-assessments" nonsense, not me, so you're the one who should be backing up the claim that is wrong.   

[JBChiangRai]

If you're shipping anything bulky or expensive from China (AliExpress etc, but not Lazada) then ask the shipper to quote you a freight price for "Thailand Special Line" it includes duty and all other fees, it's basically a country specific terms of DDP (Delivered, Duty Paid).

[Myran]

Tell me about it. Yesterday when I was at 7-Eleven, the automatic doors closed after I entered the shop, basically IMPRISONING ME in the store. I intend to write a strongly worded letter to the president of Asia regarding this FALSE IMPRISONMENT!

[ignore it]

D** sucks!

[kuzie57]

From my experience here I have found it sooo much easier to just send via normal post, granted it takes a little longer but way less hassles.

 

[Zapitapi]

4 hours ago, PeterA said:

I don't know what that is.

 

You might find FOB or CIF on your documentation.. these letters state the terms of your delivery..if its not DDP you are responsible for customs and duties

[NoDisplayName]

4 hours ago, PeterA said:

Glasses are two years old. No receipts. The post office does not have them, D$L does. 5 hour drive to fight with customs is not worth it.

You have a copy of your prescription?

Order a pair from Zenni online.

You'll get them in about a week, delivered to your door with no customs charges.

 

In future never use courier services.  I've shipped in dozens and dozens of boxes by post, never charged customs.

[CecilM]

Seems legit.

There’s 30+USD tax for $200 orders from US to Canada.

Depending in the item, you can expect around 25% import tax into Thailand, which is calculated on the value of the item PLUS the cost of shipping. (Yes, you’ll be taxed on the cost of shipping.)
You can contact Thai Customs if you want the exact percentage. They are very helpful. 

[madox66]

Never use DHL, never !

[BusyB]

8 hours ago, Tropicalevo said:

They have been extorting from us here on Samui for at least 20 years.

I (and some neighbours) have written to DHL in Bangkok and in Germany to no avail.

DHL use agents. It is the agent that is the problem.

For one parcel, I was instructed to go to Bangkok to to pay the duty. (No receipt.)

We all refuse to use them now.

I'm surprised. They used Thailand Post for the things I imported from Germany. A parcel not a letter. Both DHL and TP were fast and efficient several times, with no hold ups.

[The Patriat]

8 hours ago, PeterA said:

I was sent the other day some glasses I forgot and left at my families home in the US. They were sent via D**.  Paid in full at the time of shipping.

Tracking shows clearing the customs in Thailand then being ready to ship to me at my home in Thailand.

Then on the day of expected delivery, I get an email from D**, that they need more money for "services", to the tune of 1,025 THB.

I thought extortion was illegal here?  This is the 2nd time this shipper has asked for extra funds for services.

As a consumer, do I have any rights or should I process this legally? Or suck it up as another screw job?

Thanks

You need to Contact the National Anti Corruption Commission in Nonthaburi there Hotline Number is 1205 incountry or you can Dial there Direct Telephone Number at +(66) 2 - 528 - 4800 this is the Real People to talk with they are a non related connection to the local government they are a totally Independent investigation organization ,there good to expose your problem to they get you good results 

[radiochaser]

6 hours ago, mokwit said:

Because someone on a retirement extension doesn't work here and thus doesn't get exposure to aspects of how things work here and certainly is not immersed in things as a Thai running a business would be.

 

 

He told me he works on the internet.

[richard_smith237]

10 hours ago, swerve said:

What is the best courier company to use for Thailand deliveries?  Sounds like it is not D$L.  I have used D$L in the past, and I know they are expensive.

Not $HL or £edEx.....     those are notorious for getting hit with import / customs tax... 

 

Obviously it depends on the value of the items getting posted... But usually, I would get something sent to my parents address, have them de-label it and repackage it into something innocuous (brown packaging back) handwritten label...  and post normally. 

 

I've sent numerous items this way - medication...  (decent football boots etc)... 

Never an issue... 

 

 

I ordered some Pyjama's from Next Thailand (for my Son)...  they were about 1100 baht... 

We got hit with an 700 or 800 baht customs charge, never quite understood it as it was below the taxable threshold... 

 

Ultimately, these guys (customs) are an utter law unto themselves, but when they flag something that it, the only option is to play their game or loose it.

 

The $HL or £edEx are ultimately the biggest flags for them, as is a professionally looking package !

 

 

 

 

 

[oldestswinger]

If it's of interest to anyone, here is how to calculate import duties and taxes for just about everything in all countries.

https://www.simplyduty.com/import-calculator/

[Albaby]

On 8/18/2023 at 3:11 PM, Liverpool Lou said:

Thai Customs import duty/VAT is calculated on the CIF value and the category, not the weight.

Lived experience old mate. They pull everything out, weigh the items by category ie clothes, then charge by weight. They then repack, seal and shrinkwrap. Some 30 boxes later without a single drama here we are Liverpool Lou. But according to Lou. it was all a dream.