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Hi guys.
I am importing my router from China, Now the factory asked me if we can do customs ourself for sea.
I am not entirely sure what they mean however is there any stipulations omporting via sea rather than air that i must be aware of?
THanks
Craig
With air...it comes to your door....you pretty much know what the price is from the outsetQuote:
Originally Posted by craigrobbo
With sea, you're faced with going to retrieve it from the sea port it arrives at....also there may be some local handling charges that you might not know about at the outset (also sea is a bit riskier...eg Somalian pirates....probably a greater risk of damage, therefore insurance likely needed etc)
I have a 200kg shipment arriving from Japan in 10 days time....I'm faced with driving down to Southampton to collect - not ideal, but 200kg by air is crazy expensive.
Thanks for that.Quote:
Originally Posted by HankMcSpank
I live in manchester, can my shipment come via manchester ship cannal, i'm unsure if there is a shipment sea port here?
I don't know but I seriously doubt it .....the main point about sea shipment is it comes on a huge ship (this is the ship that is carrying my latest shipment .....http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/shi...mmsi=352822000 - that won't fit up a canal! BTW, sea shipment is pretty slick...I can see where the ship is at any given time en-route .... http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/def...date=lastknown!Quote:
Originally Posted by craigrobbo
So the cargo has to be unloaded when it arries in port ...once it's unloaded, then it would be expensive to put it on a narrowboat!. So you're faced with travelling to the port where it arrives at (probably Southamptom or Felixestowe etc...you might be able to have it sea shipped to Liverpool?) or having a courier deliver it to your door from the UK sea port ...but if it's heavy then that's gonna cost.
Thanks for that, makes a little more sence now.Quote:
Originally Posted by HankMcSpank
I will ask if it can come to the liverpool port, i belive that comes direct from Sea
No don't do that, as soon as it gets unloaded in Liverpool the Scousers will either nick it of have the wheels off it.
HAHA!Quote:
Originally Posted by John S
But in all seriousness ithink its proberbly the best bet.
?
Do i have to deal anything with customs or fee's or anything like that, ie how do i prove the item is mine when i pick it up etc
[QUOTE=HankMcSpank;31264]
So the cargo has to be unloaded when it arries in port ...once it's unloaded, then it would be expensive to put it on a narrowboat!.
I dont think they allow narrow boats on the shipping canal....its for ships????
The shipping agent should have your contact details & when the ship arrives they'll be in touch. Additionally, you'll likely have the' bill of lading' from the sender in email. You don't just turn up & say...."Mate, if there's a CNC machine on that boat it's probably mine ...gizzit".Quote:
Originally Posted by craigrobbo
You'll have VAT *and* import duty (about 10%) to pay when it arrives (it's unavoidable...but you might want to get creative with the guy sending to see what fiction he can dream up for the accompanying docs!)
Indeed, now that I've looked at it...it is (I'm a bloke that brings in a bit of stuff from abroad, that doesn't make me a 'shipping lanes of the UK' expert!) , still it appears to cater for small ships...not trans-ocean liners!Quote:
Originally Posted by motoxy
But if your buying on a budget then it can cope with sampans and junks:friendly_wink:
Have it come to Goole which his the most inland sea port. I have a warehouse there so I'll pop down to docks and pick it up but you'll never see it again. .:mask:
Not just small ships, in the 80's for some celebration they had a US nuclear sub sail up it right to Manchester.Quote:
Originally Posted by HankMcSpank
IIRC the average depth is 90 foot.
Quote:
Originally Posted by motoxy
huh?..........
Importing via sea can be a whole different ballgame to air.
What your probably looking for is Less than Container Load, LCL, your in a shared container so there is unloading and clearance charges this end, UK, in addition to VAT, duty and the actual shipping charge.
Have a google and a read of some of the business forums and talk to a couple of UK shipping/logistics agents, cost varies wildy, couple of calls is always worthwhile.
Cheers
Adam
Thanks for the info.
One other thing, the company emailed this morning asking if my country requires me to be a business to import by sea.
Is this true or false, in the UK do i have to be a registered business to have things imported by sea or can i be just anyone?
Thanks
Craig
You dont need to be a registered business ,freight forwarders and HMRC are happy to take anyones money, but do talk to some freight forwarding/ logistics outfits, there is a lot of shipping coming in from the Far East and it is possible to get costs down a lot.
You don`t want to be in this position:
http://www.ukbusinessforums.co.uk/fo...d.php?t=155805
Cheers
Adam
Thanks for that,Quote:
Originally Posted by motoxy
I'll give the seaport a call in the morning, its looking like maybe getting it shipped by air maybe a cheaper option?
They want around £250 for air shipping + vat
No contest compared to the sea option.Quote:
Originally Posted by craigrobbo
MSC is quoted as having a depth of 8.78 = 28.8feet, of course the average may be more ;-)Quote:
Originally Posted by John S
Using a UK shipping agent is the easy answer, they are employed by you and report to you and can tack on delivery options as required within the UK. Easy.
I've only imported complete container loads but you might want to look at someone like this for smaller volumes.
Russell.
Here are the charges I've just beemn stiffed with....
ADVANCEMENT FEE Z 15.00
CUSTOMS PRESENTATION 20.00
IMPORT CUSTOMS CLEARANCE 45.00
PORT SECURITY FEE 3.00
TERMINAL HANDLING 53.00
DELIVERY 60.00
DOCUMENTATION 30.00
(total of £226)...then there VAT & Import duty... of about £1100
from memory, I also paid £200 to the sender for fees their end about 2 months ago.
This was for 7 boxes totalling about 200kg....basically, try bringing anything into the country that can't be hidden up your dung funnel & you're gonna get stiffed.
I'm gonna change tack & start bringing in diamonds :smile:
There's usually a minimum charge for all those services. You've probably been hit by that. Can't avoid VAT you will (should) pay it wherever you buy from.
We used to bring in complete 40 ft container loads from the Far East about ten years ago and it cost about £2000 all in (plus VAT which we got back as we were registered) so there is a definite advantage if you can fill at least a 20 ft container or share it with others.
Russell.