Customs Duty On Own Clothing!

[madmitch]

I have put this in the Phuket forum as I would like to know if anyone has any idea how to handle this from here.

One of our customers has had a shipment of additional clothes plus a sleeping bag, nothing new, sent to her as she will be attending a Muay Thai camp. Overall value probably less than 5000 baht. Her parents shipped it via DHL.

DHL arrived with the package and a bill from customs of over 5,000 baht!

The girl is on a tourist visa. There was no value assigned to the package, though Thai customs have created a value of GBP160. She should not be paying anything as she is not importing anything into the country as when she leaves it will be going with her.

She has rightly refused to pay but it's now in the hands of Bangkok customs though the parcel is still in Phuket at the DHL office, wherever that is.

Do Customs just pick parcels at random to try to extort money? Could it also be that someone at DHL is in on this as well.

Anyone else have any similar experiences and any ideas how to sort this cheaply from Phuket?

[onnut]

My sister sent my shoes to me a few years back. 4 pairs altogether and they were all used. That cost me another 4k to get the package out. I don't think it is coruption as such it is just some silly tax on what they think it is worth.

[gotlost]

TIT, expect the unexpected

[imaneggspurt]

" There was no value assigned to the package, though Thai customs have created a value of GBP160. She should not be paying anything as she is not importing anything into the country "..WRONG....They ( customs ) see it as in import full stop,whether its used, new, worthless or not, they WILL tax on it,they will also assume that as you have spent considerable money on sending it with an international courier that it has a value higher than that ( the courier charges ), and yes DHL will be in on it as they get a handling fee on the taxes charged,.importing anything into thailand can be very expensive, ive had 2 boxes with a value of 4000 baht and ive paid up to 6000 baht in charges, and it wont make you feel better but DHL are probably the best of the lot !

Edited October 31, 2009 by imaneggspurt

[imaneggspurt]

" Do Customs just pick parcels at random to try to extort money? Could it also be that someone at DHL is in on this as well." No, and Yes

[steelepulse]

If going through an int'l carrier such as as DHL, once duty and tax has been assigned, there's no getting out of it.  Have them ship it back to sender. 

[toptuan]

In the future, send it by registered mail and mark it "GIFT." Worries will be over.

[grumpyoldman]

Anyone else have any similar experiences and any ideas how to sort this cheaply from Phuket?

yes, received two pairs of Levi's from the states a couple years back, cost me 800thb to get them from the shipping co.

[madmitch]

Thanks.

Good info from all respondents, if not what my customer might like to hear.

She can buy what she needs cheaper here so I'll suggest she gets the package returned to the UK.

I personally rarely get anything posted or couriered, relying on friends to bring items out and will continue to do so.

[nidge]

Why was there no value assigned to the package? I just had a $450 garmin shipped in. It was labelled as a gift and value was $50. Customs ignored it. Not putting a value allows them to decide it's worth.

[Capex]

I have put this in the Phuket forum as I would like to know if anyone has any idea how to handle this from here.

One of our customers has had a shipment of additional clothes plus a sleeping bag, nothing new, sent to her as she will be attending a Muay Thai camp. Overall value probably less than 5000 baht. Her parents shipped it via DHL.

DHL arrived with the package and a bill from customs of over 5,000 baht!

The girl is on a tourist visa. There was no value assigned to the package, though Thai customs have created a value of GBP160. She should not be paying anything as she is not importing anything into the country as when she leaves it will be going with her.

She has rightly refused to pay but it's now in the hands of Bangkok customs though the parcel is still in Phuket at the DHL office, wherever that is.

Do Customs just pick parcels at random to try to extort money? Could it also be that someone at DHL is in on this as well.

Anyone else have any similar experiences and any ideas how to sort this cheaply from Phuket?

Having had several experiences of the negative kind with DHL, I will never use them. Anything sent via them always has a Customs charge, while items via other couriers seldom do, which leads me to believe that DHL are in on the scam.

On one occasion, I refused to accept delivery of a parcel clearly marked "Samples - no commercial value", which came with an 8,000 baht customs charge. To my surprise, 2 weeks later the item was delivered by DHL with no further request for duty and no comment.

[imaneggspurt]

Why was there no value assigned to the package? I just had a $450 garmin shipped in. It was labelled as a gift and value was $50. Customs ignored it. Not putting a value allows them to decide it's worth.

This is exactly correct, they have "estimated " a value, also probably taking shipping charges into account, im sure as you say if personal effects ( clothing ) was declared at say $50 it would have sailed through .

[imaneggspurt]

Thanks.

Good info from all respondents, if not what my customer might like to hear.

She can buy what she needs cheaper here so I'll suggest she gets the package returned to the UK.

I personally rarely get anything posted or couriered, relying on friends to bring items out and will continue to do so.

Iwould add, it may be worth a call to them and explain it was declared wrong and that its personal effectswith no resale value and if they dont renegotiate please can you return to sender,.i did bluff them once

[McGee]

I had this Situation some Month's ago when a Friend from the States tried to send me a few T-Shirts with his Company Logo. The Parcel came by Post and the Customs wantet 3,500.- baht Duty. I certainly refused to accept the delivery

[LivinLOS]

If anyone bothered to research they would know this was going to happen..

DHL and the other couriers give the items to customers and pay the tax to customs, hence they become liable for it, hence they charge the max they can to cover any unexpected losses.

Second hand clothing is still clothing, it still incurs taxation.. DHL are perfectly correct in applying the fee, however unpleasant it may be to pay it, and they have no way of knowing the items will be taken out of the country later, so are duty bound to bill for it.

Having dealt with DHL in the problem multiple times she will pay it, or she will lose the items, its only 5k, so pay it and consider it a purchased lesson.

[ESB7]

I had to pay when I had P.G.Tips sent by post....its import tax..simple

[Jangot]

I had to pay when I had P.G.Tips sent by post....its import tax..simple

No, for PG Tips, that really was tea money.

[pagallim]

I recently ordered a maintenance manual from Mercury outboard engines (in the US). It was despatched via UPS, and when the courier turned up at my house, there was an additional bill for circa 600 baht (import duty). I wasn't amused, so refused to accept the delivery, and sent an email of complaint to UPS. A couple of days later, got a phone call from them asking if I could pick up from their office, and no charge. Firstly, complain to the courier, and I'm sure they'll find some reconcile with customs rather than bear the expense of returning to the originator.

[choppychugger]

Why was there no value assigned to the package? I just had a $450 garmin shipped in. It was labelled as a gift and value was $50. Customs ignored it. Not putting a value allows them to decide it's worth.

This is exactly correct, they have "estimated " a value, also probably taking shipping charges into account, im sure as you say if personal effects ( clothing ) was declared at say $50 it would have sailed through .

Thats all good untill its Damaged - then you get the value back for whats stated on the parcel - trust me I know.

choppy

Edited October 31, 2009 by choppychugger

[MisterMan]

But what about having it sent to a Thai Person in a Thai name or to a Company? I am about to order something big from the states, not expensive but will be a large box:

My address options are and all in a Thai Name:

PO BOX at the post office

Hotel Address

Working address of my friend

[LivinLOS]

I find the size of the box doesnt make the difference you might expect..

I send everything just regular airmail.. With a value of 20 usd or less and if its important registered (recorded / signed for) and I 9 times from 10 dont pay taxes. Just mark it as gift, or equipment, spares, or something generic and non luxury.

That way the recorded stops it vanishing and or being nicked, and the value is under the tax threshold and the PO is much more relaxed than the customs.. I often have to pay a couple of baht (7??) processing fee !!

Sent via courier is a nightmare.. taxed 9 times from 10.. Sent the above way mostly its OK tho the larger or more 'posh' the box the more attention it will attract. If it looks valuable etc.

[Jingjok]

I find the size of the box doesnt make the difference you might expect..

I send everything just regular airmail.. With a value of 20 usd or less and if its important registered (recorded / signed for) and I 9 times from 10 dont pay taxes. Just mark it as gift, or equipment, spares, or something generic and non luxury.

That way the recorded stops it vanishing and or being nicked, and the value is under the tax threshold and the PO is much more relaxed than the customs.. I often have to pay a couple of baht (7??) processing fee !!

Sent via courier is a nightmare.. taxed 9 times from 10.. Sent the above way mostly its OK tho the larger or more 'posh' the box the more attention it will attract. If it looks valuable etc.

My experience exactly.

DHL is a nightmare, plus remember import duty and VAT is added to the (usually high) shipping charges as well as the made-up value of the goods. And in my case they used the fixed IATA air shipping rate, not the real discounted rate which is actually paid.

I received some sanitaryware into Phuket a few years back. I suggested they returned the goods to sender rather than my pay a huge charge. The customs guy said it was not possible and the goods would be seized if I didn't pay. Total rip-off. Never again.

Goods by post are, in my experience of over 100 small packets from the UK, not interfered with or charged for, apart from the THB 7 handling fee.

[MisterMan]

Great thread and great advice. How about Thai's , do they get stuck with huge fines if they order from over seas? Does anyone know?

[frenchFARANGbkk]

Thai have the same problem, the only solution is to order cheap things from abroad, as it seems that small size parcels and parcels with declared value lower than 20$ are not charged (too much paperworks for little money?).

It's also a good thing to write GIFT on the parcel, but it doesn't always help.

[wolf5370]

I got a box sent via normal postal service from the UK - it had in it, FrontLine for my dog and cat (several tubes), worming tablets (from Spain as they cover heartworm also), five new T-Shirts with card labels etc still attached, a dog brush, a couple of work shirts, some sweets for the kids and some other bits and bobs. This was in July (ish) - postman rang - bill - 7 Baht!!!! They even had opened it and repackaged it in an outerbox (dunno why)

Why use UPS?

Edited November 1, 2009 by wolf5370

[MisterMan]

I got a box sent via normal postal service from the UK - it had in it, FrontLine for my dog and cat (several tubes), worming tablets (from Spain as they cover heartworm also), five new T-Shirts with card labels etc still attached, a dog brush, a couple of work shirts, some sweets for the kids and some other bits and bobs. This was in July (ish) - postman rang - bill - 7 Baht!!!! They even had opened it and repackaged it in an outerbox (dunno why)

Why use UPS?

Frontline is very cheap in Thailand by the way..

I have gotten lots of packages over the years and never had to pay more then the 2 or 7 baht charge.. just worried with this new one coming. Will be a 17 pound item. Does not look fancy. but is expensive. hmmm I am trying to see if I can get is shipped to a friend in the us first, as US shipping is free and have her include a dummy invoice and of course declare the value at $20. It is a kitchen item.

[Briggsy]

Jeez, I must have been very lucky.

I was sent an FHM helmet from the UK by regular air mail. (original cost price £150) though it was several years old. Delivered to the door. No questions asked. Beginner's luck, I expect.

[CTM]

Thai have the same problem, the only solution is to order cheap things from abroad, as it seems that small size parcels and parcels with declared value lower than 20$ are not charged (too much paperworks for little money?).

It's also a good thing to write GIFT on the parcel, but it doesn't always help.

Shipments under B1000 have no duty. Trade samples of no commercial value have no duty either.

This is a ripoff by DHL to pad their profits. Thai Customs is not individually inspecting the thousands of items a day that a big courier company like DHL brings into Thailand. Nor are individual shippers cleared separately. Everyone's goods are cleared under one Master Airway Bill. It is all done electronically. If every item was individually inspected and processed the whole global postal/courier system would breakdown in a week. It is just not possible from a labor standpoint. Customs will spot check items here and there but mostly just goes by the electronically submitted paperwork.

The real question is does DHL actually pay the claimed duties or are they filing one set to Customs and creating a different set for customers. The charges are so outrageous it is highly suspicious to me.

[thefalang]

I have put this in the Phuket forum as I would like to know if anyone has any idea how to handle this from here.

One of our customers has had a shipment of additional clothes plus a sleeping bag, nothing new, sent to her as she will be attending a Muay Thai camp. Overall value probably less than 5000 baht. Her parents shipped it via DHL.

DHL arrived with the package and a bill from customs of over 5,000 baht!

The girl is on a tourist visa. There was no value assigned to the package, though Thai customs have created a value of GBP160. She should not be paying anything as she is not importing anything into the country as when she leaves it will be going with her.

She has rightly refused to pay but it's now in the hands of Bangkok customs though the parcel is still in Phuket at the DHL office, wherever that is.

Do Customs just pick parcels at random to try to extort money? Could it also be that someone at DHL is in on this as well.

Anyone else have any similar experiences and any ideas how to sort this cheaply from Phuket?

I once sent a box of used clothing etc via UPS from the US to Phuket which contained a bottle of vitamin C, manfactured in Samutprakran and purchased at Lotus for 38 baht. Thai Customs stated I needed an import license for the vitamin C. I replied that I was merely bringing back vitamin C that was manufactured in thailand, purchased Thailand and that they could just throw the vitamin C away.

Customs replied that they could only allow everything in or I must return all items to the US, which I later did at a total cost of over 20,000 Baht roundtrip. True story! You figure it out but I'll never send anything else to Thailand again.

I once asked the customs office at the Don Muang airport what the duty rate was for used personal items. The officer replied "it's up to the customs official". Need I say more? Customs officers have a license to steal!

[bellachg]

Thai have the same problem, the only solution is to order cheap things from abroad, as it seems that small size parcels and parcels with declared value lower than 20$ are not charged (too much paperworks for little money?).

It's also a good thing to write GIFT on the parcel, but it doesn't always help.

Now that the Thalang Post Office has cleaned up the problems that they had a few years back I always have articles sent to me from abroad by ordinary sometimes certified) air mail. Sometimes it comes through without any tax and duty charged sometimes I have to go to the Customs House to collect it. In that case I take all the documentation with me that I can (E-bay pictures and description, PayPal bill etc.) and I am only charged a reasonable amount, mostly electronic goods at 5% duty plus 7 % VAT. I figure the Customs Department have really cleaned up their act, before they demanded I employ a Customs agent, now they do the declaration etc. themselves. No under-table either. Sometimes you are really lucky. A year ago I had an electronic instrument sent from a company in China. The box measured 60x60x60 cm and it weighed some 20 kg. Bill was attached to the box. I was able to collect it at the post office. It did not go through Customs at all! Courier charges are too high, according to the law you pay Import Duty and VAT on the value PLUS shipping costs. Therefore much better to ship by mail.