Customs department ripping me off?

[Kellymander]

Hi guys;  sorry if this has appeared in another forum post; having a bit of difficulty navigating, even logging in.  I ordered an android TV box from china for a staggering 65$, then DHL calls me and says the customs charged them 1800 baht, or 85% of the price.  When I asked for an itemized receipt it reads:

Customs Duty  280

VAT  220 (no VAT on the VAT, am I lucky?)

Import Penalty: 1000 Baht (plus 70 Baht VAT on that!)

Bonded Storage  100 plus VAT

Disbursement  200 plus VAT

 

Now if this was a bag of crack or live, wriggling eels, instead of a mostly obsolescent piece of technology I could begin to understand some of these ludicrous charges.  I've told them to send it back but haven't heard from DHL yet.  Did I get a corrupt customs officer or is this 'normal' here?  (I live most of the time in Korea, where things over 175$ are usually pegged at under 20% tax)

 

EDITED by KhunBENQ

I deleted the pdf attachment with your full name and address.

Not advisable on public forums.

 

Moved to General forum where most of the DHL duty rants are.

And there are many.

 

 

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by KhunBENQ
deleted PDF with full name and address

[KhunBENQ]

Bumping.

[worgeordie]

Never ,Ever get anything sent by courier,DHL,UPS,FEDEX, etc, they will rip you off,

there are always charges to pay when you use them, always request EMS, China Post

or if not expensive item just ordinary mail, I regularly get parcels sent from China,HK,

UK and always get them sent buy mail,they all arrive no problem,and with no charges,

and never even seem to be opened by customs. so next time you will know.

regards worgeordie

[chickenslegs]

3 hours ago, Kellymander said:

Did I get a corrupt customs officer or is this 'normal' here?

Both.

[Rc2702]

Did you ask why the penalty was added? 

 

As above tho dhl/ups are not to be used here.

[Kellymander]

Yes, I've asked for an Explanation of "penalty", and told them to return to sender. ( when pressed I'll say that its not addressed to THIS sucker) I've even asked for the customs officers name, though I doubt they'll take the bluff.I forgot that holidays like this are classic times in Asia for corruption, as officials usually try to collect more for their holiday obligations. Today will tell, as they made a second delivery attempt.

[jacko45k]

On 27/01/2017 at 10:45 PM, worgeordie said:

Never ,Ever get anything sent by courier,DHL,UPS,FEDEX, etc, they will rip you off,

there are always charges to pay when you use them, always request EMS, China Post

or if not expensive item just ordinary mail, I regularly get parcels sent from China,HK,

UK and always get them sent buy mail,they all arrive no problem,and with no charges,

and never even seem to be opened by customs. so next time you will know.

regards worgeordie

On good  days, I have had a few get to Bangkok and no further!

I have had a good positive run lately though.

[Jimbo53]

I was ripped off by DHL doing the customs calculations to suit themselves..17K baht for an Apple TV box valued at £50...ended up paying 4200bht after throwing a load of F&@ks into them,although I should have only been charged around 1600 Bht.

 

check this out,and you will see what you should be paying.

 

http://internet1.customs.go.th/wps/wcm/connect/custen/traders+and+business/customs+tariff/hs+system/hssystem

[Kerryd]

It's not a "corrupt" Customs Official.

 

DHL and some others use a 3rd party "Customs Broker" to process the paperwork needed to clear shipments through Customs. That 3rd party broker often charges a considerable fee for their service.

 

As I noted (at length) on a similar thread, I had a problem with a shipment of personal clothing and effects back in Dec 2014. The broker DHL used wanted 22,000 baht to process my shipment of used clothing, boots, books, etc that I had valued at $1,000 for shipping purposes, and would deliver it to me in a week.

When I balked at the price they suggested I use a "private" broker who could get my shipment released that day, for only 17,000 baht. 

In the end, the Customs duties, fees, taxes, etc appeared to be under 2,000 baht total. The other 15,000 went into the agent's pocket (minus a referral fee to the DHL broker I imagine).

 

In a different case, I had a shipment from Amazon held at the Customs Office in Laem Chabang. Drove up there, opened the box for the agent to inspect, signed a piece of paper and paid a 330 baht fee and that was it. No broker and no ridiculous fees.

Stuff shipped by EMS or USPS seems to get through no problem. For EMS shipments if there is a fee to be paid I either pay the delivery guy or go to the local Post Office and pay there. For USPS shipments I pay the delivery driver on the spot. No broker and no ridiculous fees.

 

Unfortunately there's not many options. Some sellers ship by a certain method and won't do it any other way. You have no clue what you are going to be stiffed for until the package gets into the country. I'd had stuff arrive that ended up costing me twice the price of the item for the shipping/import fees.

Where possible I try to order locally (i.e. use Lazada) but sometimes that's not an option. Other times you may be able to have someone hand carry something for you in their luggage (or ship the item to them and have them send it by registered mail. Or bite the bullet and know that you're going to pay a premium to get the item. (Living in paradise does have some downsides to it !)

[twizzian]

 

Lazada etc would have been a better choice they have many Kodi boxes on there.

[FunkyDunky58]

When I came to Thailand I was given the table of customs duties, so discarded any thoughts of bringing any electrical goods, my mountain bikes, guitars, etc. Got rid of everything apart from two packing cases of personal items none of which was less than 3 years old, and 100% of which, according to the tables, would be free of any duties. Shipped by DHL (once bitten forever shy). On arrival I was told that my duties were THB98,000. I wrote a strongly worded letter telling them they should keep the shit. They thanked me for the 'new information' and advised the revised duty to be THB28,000. If I wanted to negotiate this amount (yes, they did use that word) I should travel from Phuket to Bangkok to do this in person. I capitulated and paid the 28,000. When the DHL guy arrived he wanted another 4000 in storage fees before he would release the goods. Draw your own conclusions.

[HooHaa]

You are being ripped off by the agents of the courier. As said never use fedex or dhl. This is common knowledge, and a new thread of this sort a very regular occurence. Refuse it and order from a seller that ships by ems post.

[Caspersfriend]

Yes, the major couriers [Fedex, DHL et al] do have an agreement with Thai Customs to pay duty on everything they bring into LOS.

 

I was caught for duty on a Minix streaming box, and that came in from HK by EMS. Problem was the person who packed it put it in a Fedex, therefore it was channeled through the major courier channel.

 

To make the OP feel even worse [sorry] I delved through the relevant Thai import duty listings and TV boxes are NOT liable for any duty -- 0% rated! I was notified by the local post office that duty had to be paid of 2000Baht before the box could be collected. Upon showing them that it should be zero rated they agreed. However, they could only return it to Customs for re-assessment, which [based on previous history] could take up to TWO MONTHS to be processed and might still come back requiring the duty to be paid. Reluctantly I gave in. As mentioned above, better to buy via Lazada as all duties are included in the initial price paid; they didn't have what I wanted at the time. I guess Lazada's range of goods available will get even better now they are part of Ailibaba.

[Suradit69]

On 1/27/2017 at 10:45 PM, worgeordie said:

Never ,Ever get anything sent by courier,DHL,UPS,FEDEX, etc, they will rip you off,

 

Amen. And never order anything on eBay that uses Global Express (or whatever it's called) or from any place that uses some sort of program that wants you to prepay customs duty. It's not Thai Customs who are ripping you off, it's the courier service or global shipping services.

[aar78]

I bought a $289 phone from China.  Sent by Kerry.  Was never charged any taxes.  Also other stuff that i usually buy never get taxed or penalties.   OP was indeed ripped off big time.

[Ulic]

DHL is ripping you off. As noted above never use a courier company.

You will fly under the radar with customs, and avoid courier rip-offs.

[LivinLOS]

This is news ?? Customs constantly and continually try it on.. 

 

I am always importing fairly high dollar items which are simply not on the Thai market.. I no longer play it straight and just under decalre everything with shipito because they dont play straight. 

 

One time they were ransoming my stuff back with a made up amount, I was adamant the legal invoice was included and value declaration attached, they said there wasnt any.. After paying item finally delivered and there on the box was the unopened customs declaration they had stated in writing multiple times was not there. 

 

They lie.. They cheat.. Only way to play is do the same back. 

[Irishrogue]

You only have to look at EBAY to see how couriers charge for any shipment into Thailand. Often the item cost is exceeded by postage cost, sometimes not an issue but the Import Duty they leverage is far in excess of what would normally be charged by local Customs office. It is obviously making someone a lot richer. 

[Exnavy]

Have purchased a TV box from China on two separate occasions, each time through Gearbest who use Kerry. Both boxes bottom end prices and no customs charges each time.

[elgordo38]

3 hours ago, FunkyDunky58 said:

When I came to Thailand I was given the table of customs duties, so discarded any thoughts of bringing any electrical goods, my mountain bikes, guitars, etc. Got rid of everything apart from two packing cases of personal items none of which was less than 3 years old, and 100% of which, according to the tables, would be free of any duties. Shipped by DHL (once bitten forever shy). On arrival I was told that my duties were THB98,000. I wrote a strongly worded letter telling them they should keep the shit. They thanked me for the 'new information' and advised the revised duty to be THB28,000. If I wanted to negotiate this amount (yes, they did use that word) I should travel from Phuket to Bangkok to do this in person. I capitulated and paid the 28,000. When the DHL guy arrived he wanted another 4000 in storage fees before he would release the goods. Draw your own conclusions.

Sounds similar to negotiating a traffic ticket. Yeah travel from Phuket to Bangkok they had all the bases covered. Professional setup. 

[mfd101]

I am a big and constant buyer of books and I would be interested in advice on print books from Amazon US. Since we arrived in Surin from Oz 14 months ago I've been buying only digital books (ebooks) from Amazon since our staying at the family farm was only temporary. We are now, at last, preparing to move into our new house at the end of Feb, so I will soon start ordering print books again from Amazon in the US.

 

Any difficulties with couriers or postage or Thai Customs for such items? Costs?

[Lannig]

Won't elaborate on the DHL/UPS vs. regular mail issue, several people have brought correct information here.

OTOH you might well get in trouble with the online merchant you've bought from. Returning an item due to refusing to pay the customs fees and VAT normally is NOT considered a valid reason. Someone has to pay the shipment back to China too. Be prepared not to be refunded easily if at all.

Edited January 30, 2017 by Lannig
Missing 1 word

[Global Guy]

Refuse the package. Yes, you ran into yet another corrupt system in Thailand.

Edited January 30, 2017 by Global Guy

[Tchooptip]

On 27/01/2017 at 10:45 PM, worgeordie said:

Never ,Ever get anything sent by courier,DHL,UPS,FEDEX, etc, they will rip you off,

there are always charges to pay when you use them, always request EMS, China Post

or if not expensive item just ordinary mail, I regularly get parcels sent from China,HK,

UK and always get them sent buy mail,they all arrive no problem,and with no charges,

and never even seem to be opened by customs. so next time you will know.

regards worgeordie

clicking the like button was not enough

 For what hat you say is true 99,9999999999% of the time 

[AlQaholic]

On 1/27/2017 at 10:45 PM, worgeordie said:

Never ,Ever get anything sent by courier,DHL,UPS,FEDEX, etc, they will rip you off,

there are always charges to pay when you use them, always request EMS, China Post

or if not expensive item just ordinary mail, I regularly get parcels sent from China,HK,

UK and always get them sent buy mail,they all arrive no problem,and with no charges,

and never even seem to be opened by customs. so next time you will know.

regards worgeordie

What worgeordie said, I also never use courier service, always the absolutely cheapest shipping, and I get items every month and not once have I been slapped with any fines or duties. Only once was a package opened by customs, and that was a little wifi dongle for my Samsung TV, no charges...

[StevieAus]

1 hour ago, mfd101 said:

I am a big and constant buyer of books and I would be interested in advice on print books from Amazon US. Since we arrived in Surin from Oz 14 months ago I've been buying only digital books (ebooks) from Amazon since our staying at the family farm was only temporary. We are now, at last, preparing to move into our new house at the end of Feb, so I will soon start ordering print books again from Amazon in the US.

 

Any difficulties with couriers or postage or Thai Customs for such items? Costs?

 

I like the others have been bitten by the courier companies and will not use them

I regularly buy books dvds etc from Amazon and they are sent by mail and attract no duty.

Have found many US companies on Amazon will not send to Aus Thailand and sometimes the UK

Maybe to hard

 

 

 

[tancred]

It is normal to have a corrupt Custom official.

[amjamj]

 

it seems that you have problems to login on the whole internet if you still don't know that nobody with a brain will use courier companies anywhere in the world...

 

 

[mfd101]

23 minutes ago, StevieAus said:

 

I like the others have been bitten by the courier companies and will not use them

I regularly buy books dvds etc from Amazon and they are sent by mail and attract no duty.

Have found many US companies on Amazon will not send to Aus Thailand and sometimes the UK

Maybe to hard

 

 

 

Thanks for that. I also experienced in Oz the fact that many US bookshops can't cope with sending parcels outside of Usofa. But, if all the comments above re using the mails not couriers are correct, then amazon by mail shouldn't be a problem for me.

[performance]

Yes unfortunately all couriers in Thailand are criminals. It was already paid to be shipped. But this country follows no protocols. There just freelance criminals. Prayut and his ask go for foreign investors haha what a laugh. Hey you old failure. I ship DHL in Phillipines free and USA AUSTRALIA. You just another no  reforming old prankster crook. Yes never ship via any international courier in this place. Customs please there idiots. Destroying a countries business reputation.