Importing Goods Airport Customs Problems

[m1rossi]

Not sure if i am posting in the correct section here so please accept my apologies and correct me if i am posting in the wrong section. I am a keen cyclist and for over 1 year now have had various cycling parts, clothing and energy supplements sent by various companies with no problems which i order online as they are not available in Thailand. The items would arrive at my door via various delivery companies and sometimes i would have to pay customs and excise tax. This time i have 2 various orders one by DHL and the other being UPS which are being held at customs and will not be released i was told i could collect the shipment with UPS by myself so i went to the customs in Bangkok and the UPS office and paid a tax invoice of 350 baht which i then thought i would receive my shipment. Then 2 guys who i reckon were a couple of crooks told me i would need to pay 18,000 baht to receive my parcel and the value of the parcel is only 11,000 baht so i refused. So i still do not have my UPS shipment and i am still waiting for DHL to contact me and inform me of what is happening. Has anybody else had the same or similar experience?

[stevxpl]

Contact UPS via email and phone and register a complaint stating what has happened. I would also go as far as contacting them in your home country and doing the same.

 

You are dealing with a major international courier who on more than one level don't want to be dealing or be seen dealing in corrupt practices and will work with you to sort it all out legally. There may actually be an import tax that is grater than the value of the item that you have been trying to import which in that case they will tell you so formally.

 

To avoid high import taxes I recommend you look into the Harmonised Tariff (HS) Code system and then Thai Customs to work out what the best HS Code is to use when importing goods. Find the right HS Code that matches the description of goods and you can usually import things at between 0 and 10% import tax, plus 7% VAT.

[m1rossi]

Contact UPS via email and phone and register a complaint stating what has happened. I would also go as far as contacting them in your home country and doing the same.

 

You are dealing with a major international courier who on more than one level don't want to be dealing or be seen dealing in corrupt practices and will work with you to sort it all out legally. There may actually be an import tax that is grater than the value of the item that you have been trying to import which in that case they will tell you so formally.

 

To avoid high import taxes I recommend you look into the Harmonised Tariff (HS) Code system and then Thai Customs to work out what the best HS Code is to use when importing goods. Find the right HS Code that matches the description of goods and you can usually import things at between 0 and 10% import tax, plus 7% VAT.

Thanks for your reply mate thats what usually happens is i pay 10% import tax and 7% VAT the company i have ordered from are contacting UPS as UPS are now saying i have received the package which i have not. I smell a scam i thinks!

[kansuwan]

Similar experiences by me and another expat.  

I shipped a containerful  of household stuff  when settling here, all clearly labelled 'used' 'personel affects' etc  and thus, technically duty/import tax free.  Come the day, I went to customs with my Thai shipping agent and a Thai pal.  Step 1 - signing papers - was straightforward, but then a request for THB 18k to facilitate clearance.  We were told I was lucky that the consignment had cleared customs so quickly, normally it would take much longer deda deda.  I paid up (18k was the settled fee - the original request was for way north of 20k). 

Pal had similar treatment and was asked if he really wanted the delay that would be incurred if  each and every box he'd consigned had to be inspected to confirm they contained what the manifest stated.   He too paid up. 

Thai pal reckoned that the shipping agents in both cases were members of the same voluntary benevolent contribution scheme as the  customs official.  After the event, a very senior Thai police officer (family friend) told me that Thai Customs were notoriously corrupt.

 

I can't offer any quick fix except perhaps that you might contact UPS HQ and ask it to intervene.  But chances of a result in your favour close to nil. 

Otherwise, next time round get the consigner to undervalue your stuff so that it falls beneath current thresholds and take a serious-looking Thai pal to help you negotiate. 

Brief summary of current (?) allowances here:

http://www.customs.go.th/wps/wcm/connect/custen/travellers/allowance+and+relief/allowancerelief

[stevxpl]

Thanks for your reply mate thats what usually happens is i pay 10% import tax and 7% VAT the company i have ordered from are contacting UPS as UPS are now saying i have received the package which i have not. I smell a scam i thinks!

 

Well if you signed anything then your screwed but that wouldn't prevent me from opening a case with them as when/if you signed the document then the person who took the signature will also be down in their system. You may not get your goods this time but if it happens again and the next person also makes a formal complaint then the UPS employee will be targeted out.

 

The Courier companies have a lot to lose on these matters and they do investigate, although I have not been stuck as you have I have had problems in the past but once I got past the bottom level of the help line and moved up to manager level I started to get better results. It may pay off to visit the UPS head office in Bangkok, if you can be bothered, and start asking for a manager, which you will get given you will be speaking a non-Thai language.

[Para]

I know its slightly OT but I used to order a specific brand of clothes from America that wee not available in the UK. Most times they woudl simply leave the package but a couple of times I got caught for a shed load of TAX.

 

As already said contact the courier and confirm