Can I Import My Bike?

[gordgrrr]

I would like to strip down my motorbike and ship it to Bangkok from Canada. I have lived in Cha am for two years now. Is it worth my time and money? I would like to have a bigger bike than I have now (Phantom), but they seem to be a lot of money to buy there, with all the paper work. Any ideas

[H2oDunc]

Hi.importing your bike will be a lot of expense and trouble. It will cost you more in the long run than to buy a big bike here with a book. It all depends what you want and what you call expensive. Look about and ask the locals. Join a club or check out the Thai/farang bike mag Ride Thailand Its got a for sale section at the back. Let me know what you are after and I'll ask about for you. Cheers Dunc

[PeaceBlondie]

If you google the automobile forum of ThaiVisa, you'll find nearly unanimous opinion that it's best not to import. That includes bikes. You don't say what you have back home, but it hardly matters. Dunc is right - better to buy here if you absolutely must have something bigger than a Phantom 200.

[dkstoney]

This is from SiamSuperbike:

Please note that even in this article the Import Duty varies (accidentally???) from 60-80%.

Q: I want to import my motorcycle from home, can it be done?

Answer: This question I get asked almost every day While It can be done, but it's a difficult and expensive process, particularly if you are a non Thai. Temporary import for touring purposes seems to be relatively easy. Below is this same question answered on the Phuket Gazette website.

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Rules for importing a motorcycle I have an old 750 cc motorcycle, year 1982, in my home country. I would like to ship this bike over to use here. I have a type “B” visa but am thinking of applying for a “retirement” visa. What are the rules for importing old motorcycles under each type of visa? If there is a duty, how is it determined? Is there a book or a pamphlet I can refer to before I ship the bike?

“If you want to import a motorcycle, it makes no difference whether you have a B visa or a retirement visa. First, you MUST get a permit from the Ministry of Commerce to import the bike, otherwise it may be confiscated by officials. You must also provide a certificate from the country it is being imported from, verifying that the bike is roadworthy.

Import duty will be 60% of the value of the bike, which will be determined after consideration of its make, model, engine size, condition and other factors. In addition, excise tax of 35% will be levied on the value of the bike PLUS the import duty. Then, 7% value-added tax will be levied on the value of the bike PLUS the import duty PLUS the excise tax.

Although there are no pamphlets with details about customs procedures for importing a motorbike, more information is available at the Thai Customs website at http://www.customs.go.th ”

Friday, August 15, 2003 Pichai Duaengdangchoti, Customs Chief Inspector 6, Chief Customs Officer Formality & Legality Division, Phuket Customs Office.

Below are set out typical duties for vehicle importaion.

CIF value of the import = 1,000,000 Baht * Import duty = 80 % * Excise tax = 35 % * Interior tax = 10 % of excise tax * VAT= 7 %

The total import duties and taxes imposed on this import are calculated as follows:

1. Import duty

= (CIF value * Rate of import duty)

= (1,000,000 * 0.8)

= 800,000 Baht

2. Excise tax = (CIF value + import duty) * {Rate of excise tax/1-(1.1 * Rate of excise tax)}

= (1,000,000+800,000) * {0.35/1-(1.1*0.35)}

= 1,800,000 * 0.5691057

= 1,024,390.20 Baht

3. Interior tax = Excise tax * Rate of interior tax

= 1,024,390.20 * 0.1

= 102,439.02 Baht

4. Base VAT = (CIF value+ Import duty+ Excise tax + Interior tax)

= (1,000,000 + 800,000 + 1,024,390.20 + 102,439.02)

= 2,926,829.20 Baht

5. VAT = Base VAT * VAT Rate

= 2,926,829.20 *0.07

= 204,878.04 Baht Total taxes and duties = 1+2+3+5 = 2,131,707.20 Baht

[LivinLOS]

Although its very easy to import it for 'touring purposes' and just visa run each 6 months on it..

I know multiple US registered Harleys here on Phuket used that way.

[xbusman]

Here is the simple and short answer. NO

Do a simple search for all the others that have wailed against the unreasonable prices of real motorcycles in Thailand and looked for that secret crack in the wall that will let you slip through. It aint there.

If you have a big enough wallet, anything is possible in Thailand. If you are asking the question on Thaivisa, the odds are very sure that your wallet is not big enough.

Buy yourself a nice Honda Phantom, have lots of fun and save yourself a world of grief.