How can I minimise import duty on my personal use musical instruments?

[jimmybcool]

13 minutes ago, Celsius said:

Good luck with humidity and your instruments. Waste of effort and money. And you will get taxed. 

 

I kept a very high end acoustic guitar (SCGC VJ)  in my condo for 10 years.  And I spent 3 months on and off being there so half the time the AC wasn't on.  That guitar (and the Fender Stratacaster) was fine when I sold it.  I have more issues with humidity here in Arizona where I have to insert humidipaks into the cases to prevent them drying out and cracking.  

[DrJack54]

28 minutes ago, jimmybcool said:

I kept a very high end acoustic guitar (SCGC VJ)  in my condo for 10 years.

From the OP...

"Weight probably less than 700kg.

It won't be solely music gear, some useful but inexpensive domestic stuff too".

 

[Celsius]

49 minutes ago, jimmybcool said:

 

I kept a very high end acoustic guitar (SCGC VJ)  in my condo for 10 years.  And I spent 3 months on and off being there so half the time the AC wasn't on.  That guitar (and the Fender Stratacaster) was fine when I sold it.  I have more issues with humidity here in Arizona where I have to insert humidipaks into the cases to prevent them drying out and cracking.  

 

Nonsense. You will see.

[jimmybcool]

2 hours ago, Celsius said:

 

Nonsense. You will see.

 

What part is nonsense?  I mean I simply wrote what I experienced.  Did I imagine it?  Do you think I am unaware of what humidity or lack of does to expensive instruments?

[Tunesmith]

18 hours ago, Celsius said:

Good luck with humidity and your instruments. Waste of effort and money. And you will get taxed. 

This is a very pertinent point @Celsius – one hopes for the best but could be in for the worst. Do you advise against this from your own experience of humidity damage or are you conveying the most likely outcome?

 

My stringed instruments are all in cases (not gig bags) and I had in mind to add decent-sized desiccant packs. Maybe I'd get away with it, or perhaps I'd just be delaying the inevitable.

 

The experience of @jimmybcool seems encouraging but maybe condos do a better job of environmental control. 

 

It wasn't exactly planned, but I do have a brand new electric guitar in Hua Hin. Back in January, I visited BeatSpot for the first time and bought a budget model that kept me entertained during my stay. I left it properly packed away in its box at a mate's place, not far from the shop. Maybe it's too early to tell, but I will definitely be eyeing its condition on my return.

 

Anyway, I came on this forum to get advice and so I'm definitely taking note. As much as it pains me now, "cull baby cull" may save me a lot of pain later.

 

I'll have to let this sink in for a while, but I can already see my next post topic:
Seeking grief counselling in Hua Hin.
😉

[Tunesmith]

18 hours ago, jacnl2000 said:

Documentation proving the country of manufacture of a guitar is the key that unlocks any FTA benefits ...the FTA only applies to EU-origin goods, not U.S.-made instruments.

I don't think I own a guitar that was made in Europe. Perhaps it's time I started trying out a few Hofners. 🤔

But seriously, this is very informative, thank you. No doubt what you have explained in few lines took up 50 pages in the FTA memorandum. 🙃

[CFCol]

On 6/23/2025 at 6:48 AM, frank83628 said:

When moving to Thailand you have a 6 month window to move your personal affects, without incurring duty costs. 

 

I forget the name of the site but you will find it under Google search 'import charges Thailand'

 

 

When

 

On 6/21/2025 at 9:14 PM, Tunesmith said:

Hi all, I plan to move from the UK to Hua Hin on a non-immigrant O visa.

As far as personal possessions go, my collection of musical instruments, recording equipment and tech gear is all I want to bring with me. I just want to use them for my own projects, not for anything commercial. However, I'm concerned that Thai customs might not see it that way.

I also read the "Non Immigrant Quota" posting by @MangoKorat which, while fascinating, was inconclusive, alas.
 

Can anyone advise me on the best approach? Maybe the contents needs to be documented in some preferred way. I also read somewhere about 'brokers' of sorts, who hang around the ports and negotiate the duty charges for you. Obviously I'd prefer not to pay anything but I suspect that's unlikely, I just don't want to overpay.
 

Incidentally, I will probably use Seven Seas Worldwide 'MoveCube' for shipping to BKK, but am open to suggestions. Thanks.

If you want duty relief on used personal and household 

effects on change of residence, you would have to be on a long term visa I believe, eg non O retirement. Then you have up to three months after you arrive to import the goods, usually only paying T money as used effects are tax free on change of residence. A non O is only valid for 90 days.

[jimmybcool]

11 hours ago, Tunesmith said:

This is a very pertinent point @Celsius – one hopes for the best but could be in for the worst. Do you advise against this from your own experience of humidity damage or are you conveying the most likely outcome?

 

My stringed instruments are all in cases (not gig bags) and I had in mind to add decent-sized desiccant packs. Maybe I'd get away with it, or perhaps I'd just be delaying the inevitable.

 

The experience of @jimmybcool seems encouraging but maybe condos do a better job of environmental control. 

 

It wasn't exactly planned, but I do have a brand new electric guitar in Hua Hin. Back in January, I visited BeatSpot for the first time and bought a budget model that kept me entertained during my stay. I left it properly packed away in its box at a mate's place, not far from the shop. Maybe it's too early to tell, but I will definitely be eyeing its condition on my return.

 

Anyway, I came on this forum to get advice and so I'm definitely taking note. As much as it pains me now, "cull baby cull" may save me a lot of pain later.

 

I'll have to let this sink in for a while, but I can already see my next post topic:
Seeking grief counselling in Hua Hin.
😉

Electrics will be a lot more impervious to humidity changes.  The guitars I kept in my condo were a Fender Stratacaster Eric Johnson made in America.  The acoustic was a Santa Cruz Vintage Jumbo.  Both would be placed in their cases and stored when I wasn't in Thailand (3 months at a pop) with the AC turned off for the time I was gone.  They did have desiccant paks.  When I was there (3 months on) they would be hanging from the wall easy to grab and play.  But I also ran the AC 24 hours.  I had zero issues with them related to humidity. 

 

I actually have more problems here in Arizona because it is so dry all the time.  None of my wood guitars are out of their cases unless they are being played.  And I maintain humidipaks in the cases with them.  Have to change every few months.  The electrics I sometime have out for a few weeks at a time and so far no fret sprout or other issues.  Even after that I had one guitar with a split on the top that needed repair and recently an R Taylor had a bridge lifting (might have not been humidity related).

 

Now I will say whenever I would return to Thailand after 3 months the Santa Cruz would be slightly duller sounding for a week until I guess it dried a but from the AC.  

 

Last after I sold both of those I felt bereft of guitars and bought a Yamaha ACR5.  It was in my hotel room (condo sold) without AC when I was out.  Then lived 10 months in friends house with AC all the time until I returned.  No problems there.

 

I'm not saying ignore the warnings.  You do have to take humidity into cponsideration and I always feared finding problems on return.  Not with the electrics just the acoustics.  I might have been lucky.  

 

 

[Tunesmith]

12 hours ago, jimmybcool said:

I actually have more problems here in Arizona because it is so dry all the time...

Thanks for sharing your real world experiences – great taste in guitars too. I asked a friend who runs an instrument sales and repair shop in Holland for his take on humidity damage and what he said chimes with your experience in Arizona:

The average humidity in Holland is 77% because most of Holland is below sea level, with water everywhere. The difference, of course, is temperature but we have no problems with humidity here.

Guitars don't mind high humidity. The killer is if it's too dry – then they crack. The first thing to fail if the guitar dries out is the binding, it will separate. The binding being plastic doesn't move but the wood shrinks.

So it seems that if high temperatures can be minimised, guitars that are reasonably well looked after should survive unscathed.

I've drifted off-topic a bit, as my post was about customs duty costs for instruments. Still, I am grateful for the advice on here, which has spanned from "should be fine " to "fuggedaboutit". Indeed, customs duties aside, how well this equipment will fare after an extended period in the tropics does focus the mind on whether the game is worth the candle.

[Tunesmith]

22 hours ago, CFCol said:

When

 

If you want duty relief on used personal and household 

effects on change of residence, you would have to be on a long term visa I believe, eg non O retirement. Then you have up to three months after you arrive to import the goods, usually only paying T money as used effects are tax free on change of residence. A non O is only valid for 90 days.

Thanks for the timings info. Would that be three months from date of entry on an over-50s non-immigrant O visa? Or three months after signing a rental/property agreement in Thailand?

Also, shipping can sometimes take more than 90 days. So does this import time period refer to a window for a shipment collection date from the country of origin? Or do you really need to ensure it arrives 3 months after setting foot in Thailand with an O visa? One last thing, please excuse my newbie ignorance but what is "T money"... or is that a payment of sorts that is perhaps best left undefined? 🤔