Hello. I plan on ordering a book set weighing around 40 pounds and costing around 450 dollars from Amazon.com. In the shipping window Amazon reminds me that I may be charged extra by customs in "my country of residence".

Has anyone ordered large and expensive items from Amazon (or similar online retailers) and encountered issues with customs?

Any help is much appreciated. Thanks!

I typically have items sent to friends or family in the US and then have them ship the items to BKK via USPS and have never had any issues with customs duty. I've never tried to deal directly with Amazon or other online retailers that will ship here because I do fear the hassle and/or extra cost of customs delay. I seem to remember reading on TV that many parcels sent via a courier service (e.g., UPS, FedEx) do wind up in customs and the recipients are charged duty on the value of the items whereas a good number of items sent via USPS (direct from merchants) often escape this fate.

Hopefully others will chime in to help.