market trader Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 As I have posted on TV before both my wife and I are suffering from cancer. In my case non curable, but treatable. My wifes cancer is actually with chemo and luck curable. Neither one of us is willing to give up. So in addition to chemo and radiation we are very willing to try alternative cures. recently we have read many articles about Sabah snake grass which basically is available in Malayasia and Singapore. We found a grower in Malayasia and ordered an initial small quantity to see if we could take it without problems. Well the shipment arrived at our door via FedEx and injesting the product seemed to cause us no problems. Therefore we ordered a slightly larger quantity. 400 grams. Now this shipment is stopped by customs in BKK.In order for us to receive the shipment we have to pay 30% duty and pay FedEx customs clearance fee of 1500 bahts and pay a customs overtime fee of 200 bahts.Well if we don't try more of the product we won't know if it works or not. So we agree to pay all fees and within days the product arrives. I am the one with the non curable cancer and my wifes chemo and radiation seemed to have stopped the progress of her cancer at this time..So we decide that I should be the one that takes the Sabah snake grass..Well I took the product for one month and then went to the Chiang Mai Ram for an X-Ray. Not expecting any difference in solid tumour size I was shocked that it had decreased significantly. Doctor at the Ram has no explantion. So we decide to order a further shipment of 450 grams.. Well shipment arrives in Bkk and FedEx phones me and says customs wants duty of 60%..So what the heck what is 30% more if the product works. So I agree to pay the 60%... Well guess what customs is not satisified. They now want me to get an import permit. So I advise FedEx that I am not a commercial enterprise but a private individual. So I tell FedEx to return the shipment to Malayasia. Now here comes the Wow, Wow and Wow again. For me to return the shipment to Malayasia.. I must pay- import duty and tax 1169 bahts service charge 1284 bahts. Customs fee of 400 bahts Advancement fee of 185 bahts ( whatever that is) Return freight charge to be deterimed Litigation charge to depend on Thai customs export tax 1000 bahts Fed Ex export charge 3745 bahts So now I send Fed-Ex an email and tell them that either they or customs should destoy the product. Well I receive an email back and it says that even if product is destroyed I am still responsible for all the above charges. Now as we would we would say in Canada. How do you like those apples. The actual cost of the product in Malayasia was 2000 bahts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post OldeBellPedr Posted February 27, 2013 Popular Post Share Posted February 27, 2013 My sympathies to you. you've found something that seems to work and now customs has cottoned on to a nice little earner,. At the prices you quote, would you not be better served going down to Malaysia and bringing a decent amount of the stuff back in your case? Sadly Thai customs has a reputation (deserved or not) for being the most corrupt institution in a corrupt country. If you believed the duties were going to the Thai state to pay for legitimate expenditure, you might feel better, but the suspicion that it may be going in some rich mans pocket makes things far worse. Whatever happens, I do hope you can get more of this stuff without customs insisting on a large cut, and that it continues to cause your health to improve. God be with you and your partner. 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hellodolly Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 Some times all you can do is throw up your hands and shake your head. Tao Garden healing towards Chiang Rai now has a cancer clinic complete with alternative as well as traditional healing programs. Can't be very specific but going out the North Gate quite a ways there was a monk who reportedly had a lot of success with cancer treatment. All I can remember was it was out a ways and on the way back in we stopped and visited a cave. Best of luck with what ever you do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
market trader Posted February 27, 2013 Author Share Posted February 27, 2013 My sympathies to you. you've found something that seems to work and now customs has cottoned on to a nice little earner,. At the prices you quote, would you not be better served going down to Malaysia and bringing a decent amount of the stuff back in your case? Sadly Thai customs has a reputation (deserved or not) for being the most corrupt institution in a corrupt country. If you believed the duties were going to the Thai state to pay for legitimate expenditure, you might feel better, but the suspicion that it may be going in some rich mans pocket makes things far worse. Whatever happens, I do hope you can get more of this stuff without customs insisting on a large cut, and that it continues to cause your health to improve. God be with you and your partner. Thanks olde belle for your thoughts. We are well aware that we live in one of the most corrupt countries in the world..My wife is Thai and much to my surprise she just told me tonight that we cannot live in this country any longer..I love it here and I hope to convince her to lets give it a little more time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 That's a very frustrating story to hear about. I do have an idea that might not be practical as I don't know about such things, but just in case, here goes. Perhaps through this thread a businessperson that is a commercial enterprise can get an import permit (or already has one?) and can order this product for you, and then resell it to you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
market trader Posted February 27, 2013 Author Share Posted February 27, 2013 That's a very frustrating story to hear about. I do have an idea that might not be practical as I don't know about such things, but just in case, here goes. Perhaps through this thread a businessperson that is a commercial enterprise can get an import permit (or already has one?) and can order this product for you, and then resell it to you? Well that may or may not be a solution..But I must confess that I have wanting to leave Thailand for some time now. The only thing holding me back was my wife. Thai born and bred..Sure she has been to Canada, U.S.A. , Denmark but even she is finally seeing the light. It was just one hour ago that she told me that I will go where ever you want to but she said she would prefer Canada. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muchogra Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 market trader, I admire your spirit knowing the both of you are not even in good shape. Sending mail via couriers into Thailand has always have problem with taxes. I had had them before. Try ask the supplier to send via registered airmail instead. Sorry that I can't offer more help that this! Good luck to the both of you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dancealot Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 Health is the most important thing in life. Even if it means leaving the Kingdom. Good luck for you MR. market trader. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THAIJAMES Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 Often it is not just customs, but the shipping company (FEDEX, DHL) that causes the problem. They make money from customs searches. Please try shipping by regular parcel mail and more than likely it will not be stopped. (over 100 shipments and I have never had to pay customs duty) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canman Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 I agree with most of the above posts. Thai customs are the most corrupt institution which I had to deal with when working in Thailand. We used agents to import and export equipment and vessels several times a month. Two line items which were always on the agents invoice was misc. charges & facilitating fees. These were back handers to customs officals and would have amounted to 7 figures a year. Op, I do hope that you find a way to get the Sabah snake grass. Another poster has suggested having it poisted to you, definately worth a try. Fedex is well known to be tied up with the customs scams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post TommoPhysicist Posted February 28, 2013 Popular Post Share Posted February 28, 2013 Don't contact them again, don't answer any attempts by them to contact you. What they gonna do? 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarnicaleBob Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 Sorry to hear about you and your wife's cancer and I wish you the best in gaining control of it. I have noticed when things have been shipped to me via Fed-Ex that I seem to have the same problem. Once I told them there was no way I could pay what they were asking for (9,000 baht) and after much going back and forth over week of daily communications the price went down to 4,000 baht. When I later intructed my family in the States to start using the postal service rather than Fed-Ex the problem ended. Yes, the postal service will charge you a reasonible import tax sometimes but never anything outragious like Fed-Ex. I somehow have the feeling that there is some sort of a scam operation going with the Fed-Ex employees that amounts to extortion in Thailand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyL Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 (edited) My heart goes out to the OP and his wife. It's bad enough to be suffering from cancer, but then to be jerked around by FedEx and Customs! Once every 90 days I place an order with Drugstore.com for vitamins, supplements -- one bottle of this, one bottle of that for Hubby and me. It's send to our U.S. mail forwarding service and they reship it to us here in Chiang Mai, usually via FedEx. I've done this for four years with few problems. Sometimes a small charge of a few hundred baht, but usually nothing. Things changed with the October shipment -- big, huge duty. Then, the February shipment was totally refused -- same excuse as the OP received, something about how we need an import license, but an individual can't get an import license. We refused the shipment. Fortunately, the mail forwarding service has leverage with FedEx, so the charges to us for the return will be minimal. We're going to ask them to ship via the postal system in the future. Edited February 28, 2013 by NancyL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KRS1 Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 (edited) OP, dont give up, send it regular air mail...there will be less problems. registered mail will also induce import taxes sometimes, regualr air mail is the way to go...and address the package to your wifes thai name....declare it a gift if possible. FEDEX is a corrupt agency in Thailand, even the FEDEX office in America recommends not to send items to thailand via FEDEX. FEDEX routes are ran by private individuals, it is not owned solely by FEDEX corp. Also declare it as an herbal remedy, they do not need clearance to get through customs. Drugs do, and from what it sounds like it really is a herbal remedy. Edited February 28, 2013 by KRS1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post rebo Posted February 28, 2013 Popular Post Share Posted February 28, 2013 My wife, a hedge witch, grows Sabah snake grass (Clinacanthus nutans) in our garden but only in small quantities for our personal demand.It's very easy to grow. Let me know in case you want some stems for cloning. Our best wishes for you and your wife! 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dante99 Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 Don't contact them again, don't answer any attempts by them to contact you. What they gonna do? That sounds like an appropriate plan unless you somewhere along the ordering process agreed to pay import duties but even then Fedex is unlikely to have that information so they can probably do nothing legally. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CobraSnakeNecktie Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 welcome to the Kleptocracy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kleptocracy I would agree to ship post or make a trip etc. When laws and practices are so corrupt then all it leaves is to work around it. Unfortunately it also undermines everything else because nobody believes in the government's intent in relation to voters etc. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhiteCadillac Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 Hi You have been a forum on Thaivisa for a long time. You have been warned about Fed Ex & co plenty of times. The desperate situation you are in causes you to let people advantage of you. Just ignore them from now on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greenside Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 (edited) You have been warned? I think that during the eight months the OP has been a member of TV it's more likely that his personal situation has resulted in his reading TV posts that appear to have something to do with the issues he and his wife are facing. Cautionary threads such as "How Do I Import A Kindle?", "Postal Package Contents Swiped" and the riveting "Craigslist or Amazon - Which Do You Use?" probably didn't even appear on his radar. Just a thought, mind you. PS To the OP: I sent a link to this thread to a friend who used to work in the PR department of FedEx with a request that he pass it on to their management. It will be interesting to see if there is any comment. In the meantime, regular mail and home cultivation seem like your best bets to get a supply. Hope it helps! Edited February 28, 2013 by Greenside 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommoPhysicist Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 Apparently The local US embassy will arrange delivery of drugs from the USA for collection by US citizens. Not any use to the OP, but may well help out others in a similar situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post market trader Posted February 28, 2013 Author Popular Post Share Posted February 28, 2013 Thanks to Rebo, post #16. We have been in contact regarding his kind offer and we are to meet tomorrow 1 March. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 It's great that sometimes people can be helped in real life ways from the forum. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
market trader Posted February 28, 2013 Author Share Posted February 28, 2013 Some of you have suggested using postal services. Well my Canadian neigbour in our mooban had been using postal services for years to bring in some medications and vitamins. All was well until a few months ago when he started to receive notifications that his products would not be allowed into Thailand unless he had proper import permits. That is the reason I had the product shipped by FedEx. With luck in the future I will be growing my own product. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommoPhysicist Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 No import permit is required for 'books'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
realthaideal Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 http://thaiherbinfo.com/en/herbal_detail.php?id_herb=59 This Thai herb company seems to know about it..... Actually many pharmacists know of this herb too. I know 'cause there's an herbal balm with it that I use as an aftershave. it's not easy to find, but everyone who I asked about bai phay-ya-yor about knew what it was. It's known for it's heating and cooling effects on the skin. I bet, that like others have suggested, that if you find a couple traditional Chinese herb dealers or ask around deep inside the big building in Warorot you can find some. If not there, there's got to be somebody in BKK. Ok... maybe I'll do a search for you in Thai... now I'm curious what I'll find..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post realthaideal Posted February 28, 2013 Popular Post Share Posted February 28, 2013 (edited) Not easy to find the capsules at all as most are selling rubs/balms. There are some tinctures out there as well, but it's not clear if they're good for ingestion as a few drops under the tongue or in tea, vs external application only. Fortunately, I found one company once I got my words right, and turns out they're nearby in Lampang. They're selling capsules, as well as leaves in a sachet form for consumption as a tea. I'll post the link and contact info. If you call and don't have any luck, I speak Thai and am happy to call on your behalf. (You might owe me an ice coffee though !) And btw... 100 capsules for 100 baht !!! No more of this 2,000 baht stuff for you. Try tomorrow and then pm me if you need some assistance. | Tel. 054-350787, 054-313918 | Fax. 054-313128 | Mobile. 081-9924814, 081-8845080 http://www.herblpg.com/thai/node/46 Glad to help someone save money, and wishing you and your wife continued good health ! Edited February 28, 2013 by onthedarkside email removed as per forum rules 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post market trader Posted February 28, 2013 Author Popular Post Share Posted February 28, 2013 Not easy to find the capsules at all as most are selling rubs/balms. There are some tinctures out there as well, but it's not clear if they're good for ingestion as a few drops under the tongue or in tea, vs external application only. Fortunately, I found one company once I got my words right, and turns out they're nearby in Lampang. They're selling capsules, as well as leaves in a sachet form for consumption as a tea. I'll post the link and contact info. If you call and don't have any luck, I speak Thai and am happy to call on your behalf. (You might owe me an ice coffee though !) And btw... 100 capsules for 100 baht !!! No more of this 2,000 baht stuff for you. Try tomorrow and then pm me if you need some assistance. | Tel. 054-350787, 054-313918 | Fax. 054-313128 | Mobile. 081-9924814, 081-8845080 http://www.herblpg.com/thai/node/46 Glad to help someone save money, and wishing you and your wife continued good health ! Hi realthaideal. First let me say that I used to watch the TV program Alice quite often..Thank you for your effort today in finding a Thai source of snake grass. My wife and I are feeling like complete idiots now. We had looked many times on google for a supplier of snake grass in Thailand. But of course always came up empty..Because we were entering the english name..It is only today after a telephone conversation with rebo's wife that my wife now has the Thai name for snake grass. We also found today the supplier of capsules in Lampang. The problem with buying capsules we don't know how the product was dried and how old the capsules are. To be most effective one should use fresh leaves and blend them in a small amount of water. Second choice is newly dried leaves. Which I was able to find in Malayasia and also blend them with water. Now the hunt is on for a source of fresh or newly dried leaves here in Thailand. As I reported earlier rebo and his wife grow snake grass and have offered us some cuttings so that we can grow our own. However I am sure it will take at least 3 months or more before we can harvest our own leaves. Thanks again. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PoodMaiDai Posted March 1, 2013 Share Posted March 1, 2013 If your wife is ready to go, pack up and get out of here. No reason trying to swim upstream and deal with these corrupt jack holes when your health is at risk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rimkok Posted March 1, 2013 Share Posted March 1, 2013 Google "Graviola" also known as "Soursop". Very interesting reading and apparently easy to grow yourself in Thailand. They say it is 10,000 times stronger at killing cancer than cemo. The drug companies have known about this for years but there is no money to be made from it as you can't patent a plant. They are trying to synthetically produce it and of course it is not in their interest for you to know about this plant. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dante99 Posted March 1, 2013 Share Posted March 1, 2013 Apparently The local US embassy will arrange delivery of drugs from the USA for collection by US citizens. Not any use to the OP, but may well help out others in a similar situation. Is that the US Consul in Chiang Mai? Who does one talk to there to arrange the service? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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