Send Excess Items Back To Thailand (Avoiding Getting Stung At The Other End)

[POAK]

Hi, I was wondering if anyone could help and or point me in the right direction.

My partner has been with me here in Australia for 10 month’s now and she is planning to head back to Thailand in February 2013 for about a month, to visit her family.

In the past I have sent to her via Australia Post several parcel’s which contained second hand/used clothing, so she could distribute amongst her family.

Each time I have posted this via EMS (not cheap) I have made sure to declare the items as gift’s (second hand clothing), but when they arrive at her parent’s home (Korat), the local post office charge her mother a few thousand Baht to allow her mother to collect the box from the post office.

I’m sure this is not correct and they are not allowed to do this, as they see it coming from a falang in Australia, so they charge the mother for it.

So, this is my dilemma at the moment. I have telephoned a few freight companies’ here in Brisbane and they have all charged me a fair price (over 100KG) of excess baggage to be sent to Thailand. The item’s will be sent a week before my partner arrives, so it is easy for her to go to custom’s at the airport, show her paper work and sign for it and collect the boxes/suitcase and off she goes home.

The only thing is, the freight company’s cannot guarantee me that she will not get charged at that end by customs?

So if anyone has had this sort of experience (from Australia), we are trying to find out who could assist us in Brisbane to send clothing back to Thailand so that we don't get charged exorbitant customs duties or tariffs on the used clothing?

Also, should I consider using an Import/Export export to do all the paper work for me to avoid any hidden cost’s/charges when my partner goes to pick up the items.

Any help/suggestions or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

[CharlieH]

I have have received many many parcels and never ever had any charge of that size made. The most I had to pay is 7 baht.

I would suggest something is wrong somewhere. Everyone knows of the extortion present with the couriers like DHL and FED Ex etc.and their "duty" but I have never heard or experienced it with regular or EMS mail.

[POAK]

Thanks’ CharliH for your reply. I have already mentioned this to Australia Post on several occasions but they tell me that there is nothing that they can do from their end (here from Australia) and have suggested that I take it up with Thailand Post.

Only problem is that the village that my partner is from is about an hour from Nong Ki, so Thailand Post send the parcel to Korat and from there it's sent to the post office at Nong Ki and from there the post man delivers a delivery note and my partner's mother has to go into Nong Ki to pick up the parcel and then get's stung with a fee?

[arthurwait]

Import tax on anything is about 30-40%. What I've been charged on small ebay purchases a couple of times. It's just a matter of whether it slips through the net or not.

It doesn't matter that they are second hand clothes as every market is full of stalls selling of secondhand clothes. It's a large business here, not seen as a charity shop clobber like in the west. Not to mention all the shops selling secondhand designer clothes and handbags.

If you don't declare a value on them, customs will do it for you.

Sorry if I'm reading your post wrong, but if you are sending 100 kg of secondhand clothes to Thailand don't be surprised if your wife gets a bill form the tax man for income tax.

[POAK]

Thanks’ arthurwait for your reply. I have been told that a Thai person who has been outside of their country for more than a year and is returning home can bring back with them personal belonging (which also includes clothing) at no excess by custom's. I cannot confirm this and the Thai Customs Web page is vague.

There are many custom brokers here in Brisbane, but each one that I speak with give me a different explanations to what you can bring into Thailand.