Thai Customs Issue

[Jeffrey346]

I had a package shipped from America via DHL. The package contained 1 bottle of vitamins, 12 bars of soap and antiperspirant [4].

It seems that Thai Customs considers these items Drugs and won't clear my package. They said I need to contact Thai FDA and get an import license in order for them to clear my package.

Does anyone have suggestion/way to get my package cleared?

[harrry]

As they said go to the FDA and apply for an import licence for them. Have the full details and I thin about 50 baht for the licence. They will either give it or not.

[johnbarpic]

download the ingredients sheet from the web for your vitamins the visit the FDA to try to get them released tablet shape always arouses suspicion even going through the airports good luck

[Jeffrey346]

Thanks for the reply guys. I live in Khon Kaen and going to the FDA is not a option for me as the total value is only B2500.

My wife is on the phone with the FDA now. Hopefully they will give us an option to get the package released.

[Jeffrey346]

The FDA was not much help at all. After countless calls to Thai Customs, we convinced them to release my package. BUT, I will have to pay B1200 duty and tax.

Lesson learned.. do not ship retail items to Thailand.

[LuckyLew]

A large part of the issue was the package was shipped via DHL courrier

Anytime you receive a package using a courier you increase the chances of paying import duties

Send it regular post with tracking ID

[Jeffrey346]

 

A large part of the issue was the package was shipped via DHL courrier

Anytime you receive a package using a courier you increase the chances of paying import duties

Send it regular post with tracking ID

 

I used a freight forwarder who discounts the DHL rate up to 80%. Their DHL rate was half the post office rate.

[Pib]

Don't use DHL, FedEx, or UPS unless there is no other choice; use USPS. DHL/FedEx/UPS can make their claim to fame of expediting items through customs because DHL/FedEx/UPS does a great job of basically screening packages for items countries have customs duties on....it's almost like flagging the item to customs. Use the U.S. Postal System (USPS) which flows it to the Thai Postal System where it much less likely to get flagged for customs, especially if the package content value is 1,000 baht or less (approx. $31). I can understanding ordering the vitamins as I do the same from the U.S., but why order soap and antiperspirant with the hundreds of different soaps/antiperspirants (foreign brands also) in Thai stores like Lotus, Big C, etc.?

[Suradit69]

The FDA was not much help at all. After countless calls to Thai Customs, we convinced them to release my package. BUT, I will have to pay B1200 duty and tax.

Lesson learned.. do not ship retail items to Thailand.

Retail items are not necessarily a problem, but any form of medicine/tablets/capsules etc is going to raise a red flag. And, as others have said, if you use one of the courier services they seem determined to get duty charged for anything and everything.

I used a freight forwarder who discounts the DHL rate up to 80%. Their DHL rate was half the post office rate.

And cost you Baht 1200 in duty and 5 times the hassle.

[Ticketmaster]

For the small amount of stuff you imported, it doesn't seem worth the trouble -- especially after they assess the duty on the vitamins.

I would abandon it and consider it a lesson learned: NEVER, NEVER, NEVER use DHL. UPS or FedEx. ALWAYS use the originating countries Post Office, which connects with Thai Post. DHL, UPS and FedEx use privately contracted customs agents and are nothing but problems.

I use the Post Office (dozens and dozens of times from the US) and have never had a problem.

Actually, instead of abandoning, I think DHL has free return of unclaimed packages (as does FedEx). DEMAND that they immediately return it to sender by DHL return.

I once had a friend ship 12 big boxes of used winter clothing by FedEx to distribute to northwestern hill tribes. The private customs agents demanded a big import duty. I basically told them to go <deleted> themselves, it was charity and there was no duty. They said I had a choice of paying the duty or forfeiting the goods to them. I told them to immediately return to sender or I would sue them and take the whole affair to the newspapers. They returned the goods and my friend gave them to a US homeless shelter. That was it for my humanitarian efforts in a country that is its own worst enemy.

[isawasnake]

Everything is a shakedown here. It is not about the proper forms, only about the shakedown.

[bangon04]

Everything is a shakedown here. It is not about the proper forms, only about the shakedown.

I always get stung for Customs duty - my parcels are only leaflets, and the parcel is plastered with "No Commercial Value" in big letters. Nothing but paper. Doesn't matter - they still demand "duty"

Now it is cheaper to print locally from the artwork. As long as the quality is not too important if most of them are thrown away anyway...

[cusanus]

Here's some experience worth noting, having had about ten boxes shipped from the US to Thailand, some FedEx, some ordinary postal, some DHL. Half or less of the time you will get dinged by customs whether it is sent by any means or from personal vs corporate. If you send personal items there may be questions on the value; hence I paid 1,000 baht for a pocket knife worth about 700 baht sent by my ex wife. If there's an invoice with the package that helps. I ordered about $500 of vitamins several years ago and paid a few thousand baht. I ordered $100 in vitamins via DHL this January and no customs duty was applied. I then ordered another $300 in vitamins a month ago via DHL and had to pay about 1,800 baht to customs after it sat there for a week. The vitamins I order are generally from Puritan's Pride. By the way, for 1,000 mg caps of saw palmetto oil, 600 caps, I paid about $35; whereas in Thailand I paid $20 for 30 150 mg tabs of essentially worthless saw palmetto pulp. In other words I paid roughly 100 times here what I paid for in the states by weight, but since the pulp is probably about 10% active ingredient, I paid well over 1,000 times the price. In general, supplements and vitamins in Thailand are not affordable or effective, but basic vitamins and silymarin are available and worth it if you need them in a hurry, silymarin/ALA/vit C especially if you get hit with food poisoning. I doubt you will ever have trouble with DHL any more than any other, and be glad that half (or more) of the time you don't have to pay customs, but sometimes you do. Also, NEVER order ephedrine type supplements and only order from major suppliers like Puritan's. I hope this helps you all. Thailand is especially proud of its spirulina, but it's not really cheap.

[negreanu]

Time and time again this comes up.

If you are going to import something be sure to check the legal requirements for import to he country.

I have no sympathy for those that try import ridiculous items that need to be controlled by the government then plead fowl play by customs.

Never had an issue with thai customs, FedEx, Dhl and I import probably more than the majority to Thailand. Why? Because I research it before I click order on the internet. Easy.