Import Duty Exemption For Non-Immigrant Visa

[dancw3]

I enrolled in a language school in Thailand and will be traveling to Thailand on a non-immigrant ED Visa. Can I bring personal/household items with me without being subject to import duties? I've heard conflicting answers depending on who I talk to.

[merijn]

I don't know for ED visa extensions.

But when I moved over to Thailand ( about 21 years ago ) on my NON-O Business visa I was able to import my household goods one time without paying any import tax.

This was organized by a international moving company.

The stuff had to be used goods so officially no new goods where allowed to go together with the household goods.

But the container was never inspected or even opened.

[Maestro]

dancw3, there is no import duty exemption on personal effects for living in Thailand to study.

[garyh]

Try reading this

[dancw3]

Yes. I'd read the Thai customs link. It just says that non-residents who make Thailand their residence can get the exemption. If residence means a resident visa, I'm out of luck. I've had people tell me various things. That only a non-immigrant business visa qualified for the exemption. I had someone tell me they thought that a non-immigrant ED would qualify me. Then on this forum that no non-immigrant visa would qualify.

[Mario2008]

It doesn't mean residence visa, but as said, it doesn't apply to people studying in Thailand.

You have to have a job and work permit and be on a 1 year extension of stay, your first one at that

.

1. Nonresidents resuming residents in Thailand must be granted a non-immigrant quota as shown in a passport or a Nonresident Identification Card; or
2. Nonresidents granted to work in Thailand will be regarded as resuming residents in Thailand provided they have a one-year non-immigrant visa issued by the Immigration Department. In case where the non-immigrant visa has not yet been granted, either of the following documents may be accepted:

[LivinLOS]

Even with a non O.. And it being in my wifes name as a returning Thai outside of Thailand for over 5 years..

They still just got my stuff and ransomed it back to me.. The rules didnt matter, when I printed the rules from the website they just responded by saying maybe they needed to crack my marble speakers open to 'see what inside'..

Use a good shipper and they can usually pay a token fee to get it through untouched.

[kurnell]

This argument always reappears. You need a work permit or Thai missus, simple as that.

[dancw3]

Thai missus? First I've heard of that. My wife is Thai. Can you provide me more details on this?

[Mario2008]

A Thai, having lived abroad for at least 1 year, can import her used (= older than 6 months) household goods duty free when returning to Thailand to reside there again. All items must be of course be imported in her name.

Read the same link again.

[dancw3]

A Thai, having lived abroad for at least 1 year, can import her used (= older than 6 months) household goods duty free when returning to Thailand to reside there again. All items must be of course be imported in her name.

Read the same link again.

That won't help me. My wife is currently living in Thailand and I'm moving to Thailand.

[kurnell]

A Thai, having lived abroad for at least 1 year, can import her used (= older than 6 months) household goods duty free when returning to Thailand to reside there again. All items must be of course be imported in her name.

Read the same link again.

That won't help me. My wife is currently living in Thailand and I'm moving to Thailand.

T-money is the only option then. Recommend you send your stuff by sea freight as it is much cheaper in every respect

[dancw3]

A Thai, having lived abroad for at least 1 year, can import her used (= older than 6 months) household goods duty free when returning to Thailand to reside there again. All items must be of course be imported in her name.

Read the same link again.

That won't help me. My wife is currently living in Thailand and I'm moving to Thailand.

T-money is the only option then. Recommend you send your stuff by sea freight as it is much cheaper in every respect

T-money?

[kurnell]

As opposed to tax and duty. Where you been? Google it

[lopburi3]

Normally spelled tea.

[dancw3]

As opposed to tax and duty. Where you been? Google it

I did. Wikipedia definition.

"T-money is a rechargeable series of cards and other "smart" devices used for paying transportation fares in and around Seoul and other areas of South Korea. "

[Mario2008]

A good shipping agent can negotiate a very favorable price for you.

By the way, you know that if you are married to a Thai you can easily get a non-O visa, on which you can get a work permit and will be allowed to work?

The ED-visa in your case is only useful if you can't meet the income requirements for an extension of stay based on living with your Thai wife. (Income of 40,000 a month OR 400,000 baht in the bank).

[garyh]

I am about to find out how much it will cost us, our household goods should be in bangkok any day now. Santa Fe are the agent on this end, I am on Non O visa but only my wifes name is on the shipment, she has lived in Australia for the last 7 years. Santa Fe seem to be very good on the phone and have given us some advice how to minimize the duty as tools and a few items that we have 2 of (Computers and TV) will be dutiable.

[kurnell]

As opposed to tax and duty. Where you been? Google it

I did. Wikipedia definition.

"T-money is a rechargeable series of cards and other "smart" devices used for paying transportation fares in and around Seoul and other areas of South Korea. "

Good work, well thought out

[samran]

I am about to find out how much it will cost us, our household goods should be in bangkok any day now. Santa Fe are the agent on this end, I am on Non O visa but only my wifes name is on the shipment, she has lived in Australia for the last 7 years. Santa Fe seem to be very good on the phone and have given us some advice how to minimize the duty as tools and a few items that we have 2 of (Computers and TV) will be dutiable.

If you are coming through with an established company (and Santa Fe is one of them) you'll be fine. They all have their relationships with customs pre-oiled so that day to day business carries on without a hitch. If you paid for door to door service in OZ, then that is all you will pay, bar perhaps a couple of hundred baht for port storage (if that).

We moved our stuff from the UK to Thailand in 2005 using the Thai national exemption and it went without a hitch. All they do is stamp the Thai passport with a mark saying that the tax free exemption has been used. Our DVD player was dutiable, but nothing was charged.

[maswov]

I am here on an ED visa, my HHG were subject to duty however all I paid was a flat 10K administration fee, none of my belongings were assessed individually.

[maxman71]

When I moved to Phuket from Taiwan (I am a US citizen and was finishing up an overseas assignment in Taiwan), I entered on a tourist visa and soon thereafter got a non-imm B and WP when I set up a Thai Ltd co. I didn't move any furniture, TV's but I did haul in 2 bicycles, a bunch of boxes with personal effects, multiple suitcases with clothes, etc. that filled 2 large over-sized baggage carts at the Phuket airport.

The Customs guy asked what all the stuff was for and I just told him I was coming for a long holiday and wanted my bikes, books and lots of clothes. He waved me through with no further questions and no inspections. Not that there was anything nefarious to find; what I told him I was bringing in was indeed what I was bringing in.

Not saying this is the way to do it now as I don't know if they would allow this to happen in present times. But it worked in 2005.

[Arkady]

I know people who have attempted to clear household goods from customs themselves and it is a nightmare experience. You end up having to pay the customs bribes yourself or you will be charged excessive duty even on goods that should be duty free and things will be broken deliberately during the inspection. Then you have to move the goods from the warehouse to main gate of the customs yard and you are not allowed to bring your own vehicle inside. This means you have rent a pick-up truck at an exorbitant rate from one of the aggressive clearing agent touts whose services you rejected on the way in for the 500 metre trip. Use a reputable freight forwarder and when they call to tell you that you have to pay a few thousand baht to bribe the jerks at customs department, agree immediately. Unfortunately the customs dept, like the police, is a mafia organisation with no hope of redemption that should be razed to the ground and re-built with new materials from scratch for the greater good of the rest of Thai citizenry.

[dancw3]

I am about to find out how much it will cost us, our household goods should be in bangkok any day now. Santa Fe are the agent on this end, I am on Non O visa but only my wifes name is on the shipment, she has lived in Australia for the last 7 years. Santa Fe seem to be very good on the phone and have given us some advice how to minimize the duty as tools and a few items that we have 2 of (Computers and TV) will be dutiable.

If you are coming through with an established company (and Santa Fe is one of them) you'll be fine. They all have their relationships with customs pre-oiled so that day to day business carries on without a hitch. If you paid for door to door service in OZ, then that is all you will pay, bar perhaps a couple of hundred baht for port storage (if that).

We moved our stuff from the UK to Thailand in 2005 using the Thai national exemption and it went without a hitch. All they do is stamp the Thai passport with a mark saying that the tax free exemption has been used. Our DVD player was dutiable, but nothing was charged.

I contacted Santa Fe. No go. They said I had to have a non-immigrant B visa to ship personal and household goods without paying duties.

[Mario2008]

That is correct, you have to pay duties, but they can negotiate a very favorable fee for you.

[samran]

I am about to find out how much it will cost us, our household goods should be in bangkok any day now. Santa Fe are the agent on this end, I am on Non O visa but only my wifes name is on the shipment, she has lived in Australia for the last 7 years. Santa Fe seem to be very good on the phone and have given us some advice how to minimize the duty as tools and a few items that we have 2 of (Computers and TV) will be dutiable.

If you are coming through with an established company (and Santa Fe is one of them) you'll be fine. They all have their relationships with customs pre-oiled so that day to day business carries on without a hitch. If you paid for door to door service in OZ, then that is all you will pay, bar perhaps a couple of hundred baht for port storage (if that).

We moved our stuff from the UK to Thailand in 2005 using the Thai national exemption and it went without a hitch. All they do is stamp the Thai passport with a mark saying that the tax free exemption has been used. Our DVD player was dutiable, but nothing was charged.

I contacted Santa Fe. No go. They said I had to have a non-immigrant B visa to ship personal and household goods without paying duties.

I'm not sure I undertand your point.

As i've implied, you need the right visa or have Thai citizenship (and have been away > 1 year) to qualify for an exemption.

Using an established company will ensure you will basically get that entitlement.

Going to DIY route, despite having the right visa, is a recipe for disaster.

[61guitarman61]

It seems that no one with experience has answered. If you would like to hear from one who has actually gone through this process then I shall reply.

I came back to Thailand on Sept 23rd poorly informed and even more poorly prepared. I came on the 30 day tourist stamp. Before leaving the USA, I carefully packed and shipped via sea a pallet of my personal belongings as I plan to stay for an extended period of time. I started to ask questions like yours and got different answers from every person I asked. In the same immigration office I got a different answer from each person. On these blogs I got lots of good advice from people who really have no idea what reality is. I started to dig into the Thai paperwork and also looked at the different decrees and stated laws pertaining to immigration and specifically volunteer work as this was going to be my tool to get the visa I wanted. I got the statements and relevant paperwork all in order and signed by the administration of the non-profit I am going to volunteer for. Then I printed off the application paperwork for the Thai embassy at Vientiane, Lao as this was where I was going for my visa run. I filled out two sets of paperwork as I was not sure whether they would put through a non "O" for me. They did indeed approve my 90 day non "O". (Visa runs are a whole other topic - just be careful wherever you go.)

Having my non "O" in hand, I went to the local work authority and applied for my work permit. I received it. Finally I was prepared to go to Bangkok to try and get my things from the immigration port warehouse. I went to the shipping company's office first and got my release paperwork. Then I went to customs and spent the next 4 hours clearing the paperwork through all the channels there. I got exemption on used personal belongings. There is a grey line drawn as to what personal belongings means. The other items were classified as household items and those are NEVER exempt. The kind lady there who was helping with the all Thai paperwork devalued most items and in the end I paid $30 duty. After all the scare stories and dark expectations, these were very helpful people and the duty does not kill you. (TIP: Let THEM devalue your things. I was veryyyyy friendly and humble through the whole process and when she asked me to put down the values I cringed and put down a modest value. She looked at them and said "You can put less if you want." I told her that I do not want to try to cheat but I do not want to pay a lot of duty either. SHE put down an ungodly low number and put it through.) Next I went to the port authority for warehouse paperwork and for customs clearance for my vehicle to go into the port warehouse. (TIP: I was told by customs brokers that I was not allowed to pick up my items as I could not take my own vehicle into the secure customs area. LIE. You just need to do things by the numbers and it all works out.) (TIP: BE P A T I E N T!) In the warehouse I asked around a while and found what appeared to be a warehouse foreman who took me under his wing. He helped fill out the paperwork there and also talked to the customs commander and the customs officer who was to inspect the pallet of goods. A 100 baht bills slipped into his hand and he looked in one bin of my choice and sent me on my way. At that point 2 100 baht bills slipped from my pocket into the foreman's hand and slick as can be I was loaded and headed back home with all my things.

I hate to have people that want to LOOK like they know what they are talking about give me advice when they know nothing. I hope this helps you.

[thomaz]

can anyone help me with the correct information on non immigrant ed type visa,, can i import my used house hold stuffs without duty?? it was a bit confusing today at the customs .they said that i have no one year visa.

of course for non immigrant ed type ,, its every 90 days you get a new stamp. but the course i took up is a one year master program at a uni. even though the customs lady didnt understand my visa type..and said all duties will be implied. am worried , already spent a lot on those stuffs.(used books, used cloths, used carpets..) how much can the duty b, and any other help appreciated,, suggestions welcome. just worried and depressed.

[lopburi3]

You do not have a one year visa or a work permit so your best bet - if you must import anything - is to use a shipping company for the whole process who will arrange a reasonable duty. The duty can be very high.