Import duty on buying products on ebay sent from the US

[karl2007]

Hello,

A few weeks ago I bought a notebook bag from the US. The bag cost me 2000 Baht and posting and packaging cost me another 2000 baht.

However, when I had it deliviered the couier told me I had to pay another 800 Baht for import and tax duty. I thought this was a lot of money and in hindsight I don't think I would have bothered.

Now I want to buy at Nexus 5 from ebay, and they cost up to 15000 baht. I am wondering the import and tax duty could be a lot of money and will make the cost of the phone very expensive.

I went to the customs and import website for Thailand and couldn't see any information there about how much I would have to pay.

1) Does anyone know how much I would have to pay for import and tax duty?

2) There are some nexus 5 you can buy from Hong Kong, would this make it cheaper in terms of import and tax duty?

Many thanks for any suggestions,

K

[wimpy]

I have purchased both the N4 and N5 from the US. No duty or tax paid on either. I used airmail rather than a courier though.

Edited November 29, 2013 by wimpy

[giddyup]

If you use FedEx you are almost guaranteed to have to pay duty. I'm not sure about the other courier companies but I try to use only normal Express airmail for all my Ebay purchases and never had to pay duty on any of those, only FedEx.

[Langsuan Man]

I got my Nexus 4 via Shipito and since I can choose the method of shipment I used USPS Priority and even though I declared the value correctly ($350) I was not charged any Customs duties.

Others have reported consistently here at TV that using FedEX, DHL, or UPS you are almost guaranteed to pay duty and VAT, not only on the value of the goods but on the shipping charges as well

[lomatopo]

There have been hundreds of posts on this topic here. I'd review those to get a feel for which shippers are best. Some people get stuff delivered with no add'l charges, others get VAT, Duty, Excise, etc. My vaguest recollection is that FedEx is the worst.

FYI, you can buy a real, localized Nexus 5 here for 16,900 - LG is the warranty agent.

Or buy from the Play Store in the U.S. - the U.S. variant will work fine here - for $349 + $13.99 S & H + sales tax (if any) and re-ship it via shipito. People seem to be landing them here for ~ $430 all in.

[DonaldBattles]

FedEx is sure a big rip off. YOu pay an average of 20% import tax and 7% VAT plus tax on the shipping cost. Basically using the FedEx method your cost are double what you paid for the product in the USA. A $300 Weber grill cost me a total fo $600 for FedEx and tax. Many places in the USA will not ship by postal service.

[Finlaco]

The two main courier companies will automatically charge the duties and one assumes forward then to the right authorities.

It's always best to chose a seller who will utilise the normal postal service and then ur only taxed if ur caught.

The courier company is more concerned with its relationship with the local customs than with assisting u in minimising the amount of duties to be paid.

[rotary]

If the goods coming from the USA use USPS only. All the couriers will make sure you pay tax and their service charge in some cases. I do not buy if it does not come USPS.

[giddyup]

What is really pissing me off with US Ebay sales is the US sellers who choose to use the Global Shipping option, which seems to be at least 90% of them. This automatically calculates the shipping costs plus import duties, but there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to it. Sometimes the shipping costs are twice as much for the same item from different sellers and the import duty (which I never paid on a watch before) can be calculated at $50 when the bids start at 99c. I used to buy quite a few watches from the US but it now adds up to a $100 (or more) to the price of a watch, so I only buy from Asian, European or UK sellers now.

[technologybytes]

When duty is charged it always includes shipping costs and there is a minimum charge which makes cheaper items appear overcharged.

Like others have said, use regular post and not a courier and the chances are that you will not pay any charges at all.

[Xonax]

The general import duty rates in Thailand is between 0 and 40%. In addition you will have to pay 7% VAT of both the import price (paid price + freight) and import duty.

For smartphones the general import duty rate is 40%, but seems to be exempted by preference, if origin is from WTO or ASEAN countries. The 7% import VAT will still have to be paid. Please check by yourself at http://igtf.customs.go.th/igtf/en/main_frame.jsp

Only parcels sent by post and valued below THB 1000 will be delivered without any need for customs clearance.

Edited November 29, 2013 by Xonax

[sante]

Since I've been in Thailand almost all my ebay purchases are from Hong Kong or mainland China because, as giddyup mentioned, the Global Shipping charges are very high. So far, I've never had to pay any import duties but all my items have been under $100.

.

I use Shipitto for U.S. purchases, have them send USPS Priority and also have never been charged additional fees, even for packages with declared values over $100.

[thailandbeachisland]

Incredible that people still don't know why courier companies as Fedex are allowed to ship parcels faster !

The only reason is that they apply tax AUTOMATICALLY ON BEHALF of customs.

So of course if you use any courier company you pay.

[wimpy]

When I shipped my Nexus 5 here, I used Priority Airmail. Stated the true value on the customs form. According to the tracking, it went through Thai Customs (they had it a couple days). No duty or VAT was charged.

[kuteguy]

I live/lived in many countries around the world. One thing is guaranteed - if you buy things anywhere in the world and use a courier (DHL, UPS, FedEx, etc) you WILL definitely have to pay import duty and taxes. Everytime I have used the sending country's normal postal system, I have not paid any import duty ...

[DGIE]

I got my Nexus 4 via Shipito and since I can choose the method of shipment I used USPS Priority and even though I declared the value correctly ($350) I was not charged any Customs duties.

Others have reported consistently here at TV that using FedEX, DHL, or UPS you are almost guaranteed to pay duty and VAT, not only on the value of the goods but on the shipping charges as well

How safe are these shippers in shipping things like these?

[DGIE]

kuteguy said:

Posted Today, 19:08

I live/lived in many countries around the world. One thing is guaranteed - if you buy things anywhere in the world and use a courier (DHL, UPS, FedEx, etc) you WILL definitely have to pay import duty and taxes. Everytime I have used the sending country's normal postal system, I have not paid any import duty ...

But in sending, don't use the ocean freight or surface service by post. My parcels to Peru which are 4 cartons are exactly 3 months today, November 29 and the consignee has not receive any. I mailed them August 29.

I emailed the main post office and a month is already gone but until now they have no information as to supply me where the parcels are now.

[kuteguy]

But in sending, don't use the ocean freight or surface service by post. My parcels to Peru which are 4 cartons are exactly 3 months today, November 29 and the consignee has not receive any. I mailed them August 29.

I emailed the main post office and a month is already gone but until now they have no information as to supply me where the parcels are now.

Peru is one of the worst countries for postage. I remember living there and wanting to send a letter to India and they wanted sooo much money that I said I will wait till I go to the US to send. So add two really bad service oriented together (Peru and Thailand) .... and you have a mess. Sending my stuff by sea from UK to Australia took almost 3 months ... so there is still hope for your shipment

[Langsuan Man]

I got my Nexus 4 via Shipito and since I can choose the method of shipment I used USPS Priority and even though I declared the value correctly ($350) I was not charged any Customs duties.

Others have reported consistently here at TV that using FedEX, DHL, or UPS you are almost guaranteed to pay duty and VAT, not only on the value of the goods but on the shipping charges as well

How safe are these shippers in shipping things like these?

Since we are not allowed to highlight or in anyway change a quote I am going to assume that your last sentence was the question you are asking !

What do you mean by "these shippers" ? If you are referring to FEDEX, DHL, UPS, etc. then they are "safe" but expensive once you factor in Customs Duties and VAT.

If you are referring to government postal services ( Royal Mail, USPS, Thai post) they appear to be pretty "safe" but then again I have never had a package lost in the mail

[garyk]

I agree, I have stopped using Fed-ex and the others. Strictly parcel post for me. Oddly enough the only post that got lost is one I sent to Thailand from the U.S. The U.S. post office sent it to Brazil???? I finally got it in Thailand two months later. Thailand has never lost a post. Very good postal service IMO.

Edited December 1, 2013 by garyk

[mok199]

i just paid 107 us import fee on a 156 us stroller,plus 100 shipping....the shipping i can swallow,the import is another squeeeeeeeeeeeze.ffrom our freinds in the land of smiles

[NeverSure]

I recently bought a Google Nexus 5 for US$249 direct from Google and it is worldwide unlocked. Some of the prices I'm reading seem high to me.

Be aware that the Nexus 5 doesn't have a replaceable sim card, and the case must be partially disassembled to remove the battery.

As for ebay, paypal, my credit cards, bank accounts, IRS, etc. etc. my physical address is a mobile home park in Rapid City South Dakota which also does mail forwarding. That costs me about $200 per year and when I move about, the only place I need to change my address is with them. I have homes in Oregon and Texas and I travel a lot so this works best for me.

Mind you my address is not a mail box, it is that mobile home park in Rapid City. It is an actual physical address. My address looks something like this:

xxxx Mobile Home Park #65 (me)

Rapid City, etc.

I have all of my bank accounts, credit cards etc. converted to paperless so I get no mail from them. They email me my bills and I pay them online, and of course I can pay anyone from my Chase bank account in S. Dakota. Paypal and ebay were already paperless.

I believe that S. Dakota is the only state that encourages travelers, snowbirds, expats etc. to establish residency there. They have no requirement of minimum number of days per year in state as many do, and they are one of 7 states with no income tax.

If I buy something on ebay, it goes to S. Dakota, and the mail forwarder re-packages it in a priority mail box and forwards it priority mail. The seller, ebay and paypal all believe I live in S. Dakota, and legally that is my address.

[lomatopo]

I recently bought a Google Nexus 5 for US$249 direct from Google and it is worldwide unlocked. Some of the prices I'm reading seem high to me.

Pretty sure the N5/16 GB remains $349, maybe your price was a typo, on the Play Store in the U.S. Plus $13.99 S & H, plus any applicable state sales tax, plus any re-shipping fees.

FWIW, DTAC are selling the D821 variant, arguably better for use here than the U.S. D820 variant (which is better if you live in the U.S.), for 12,900 THB all in, if you subscribe to a discounted plan (3 GB/250 min/499 baht), plus they throw in a 3,000 mAh external battery pack, and an 18 month local LG warranty.

.http://store.dtac.co.th/en/handset/nexus-5-16gb-black

Edited May 21, 2014 by lomatopo

[Sandman77]

Only on eBay us added atomaticly added tax

Maybe someone pay double would eBay refund money?

Amazon process about this when

Something goes wrong waiting time 2 month

[Langsuan Man]

Only on eBay us added atomaticly added tax

Maybe someone pay double would eBay refund money?

Amazon process about this when

Something goes wrong waiting time 2 month

No, only eBay sellers that have a state sales tax will levy that sales tax and then only to buyers located in that state

The other three lines I will not even attempt to translate

[Sandman77]

This is another thing you talking about

It add the import tax of country you ordered from outside us

When seller sale worldwide