Importing and distributing into Thailand

[Plainsdrifter]

Just a thought.

 

From just walking around BKK for the last dozen times I have been here, could not help noticing that a lot of the goods offered for sale in BKK was made in China.

How easy is it to set up shop to distribute goods here. I know there are hurdles to jump regarding setting up a business etc. But bottom line how easy is to to actually import goods into the Kingdom. Do they make life hell for the importer? High duty rates etc? or is everything taken care of if you know the right person.

Before Chrismas last year I saw across the street from our apartment house in Pattanakarn several 40' containers being unloaded that contained Christmas decorations. Obviously someone is working at being an importer here, so has anyone tried it? Any thoughts from anyone?

Like I said just a thought I had.

[StoneSoup]

I import all products distributed by the division of my company outlined at www.thaisupercool.com. I bring several items in from China. It is a fairly straightforward process. You do need to hire a Thai receiving agent (to fill out copious amounts of forms in Thai), and if you bring in more than a couple of commercial shipments per year, you do need an import license, which is a small credit-card-like authorization with your photo embedded into it - issued from the customs office near the Klongtoey port (I think the fee was about 1,200 baht).

 

You do pay import duties that typically run from 5-30%. Imports of most items from other ASEAN Countriues (to which China does NOT belong) carry a 5% duty.

 

In addition to import duty, you end up getting billed for about five or six other fees - including local delivery fee, customs processing fee, several taxes, and - typically - a bribe amount. I find that for items coming in from China at, say US $25 FOB Shanghai, my effective received cost here is closer to US $37. The larger your order, the smaller the relative impact of shipping and receiving costs.

 

To clear customs, you need copy of Bill of Lading, packing list, and pro-forma invoice for all items.

 

I hope that helps. Good luck!

 

The Fighting Fish

 

 

[buffalo_bill]

Stone Soup,

 

a perfect summary in brief. May I add that your "typical bribe " is of course the tool to bring the import duties down from the level you mentioned here, it would so to say not have to be added on top.

If I would have free choice for a career in the kingdom, I would vote for customs general at the airport. Maybe that is why the Ferrari service is so close to Don Muang.

 

Bbill

[Plainsdrifter]

StoneFish

 

Thank you for your help, very encouraging.You are right it is a very straight forward process that you describe. Can you give me an idea as to what customs duties run on goods from China? From your reply it looks like a 50% cost-add-on to the FOB Shanghai cost. Does that include ocean freight or do you receive by air. Or do I understand that to your $25 cost you add on $12 in ocean freight, duties plus the assorted billable items you describe (which includes a bribe item to bring the duty down)?

Also do various classes of items range up or down duty wise?

What I mean by that is do footwear carry a higher duty than garments or much lower rates than say costume jewelry? Is there any rhyme or reason in the duty rate or are all duty rates from China so high that you need the application of the bribe item to bring it down to a more managable and predictable rate?

Finally, if an item is bought through Hongkong is it then ASEAN or is Hongkong not part of ASEAN?

 

[StoneSoup]

For list of ASEAN Countries, see http://www.aseansec.org/74.htm

 

My experience has been that importing garments into Thailand from outside ASEAN involves relatively high tarriffs here.

 

There are a lot of games that get played. You want a good Thai receiving agent- meaning they have good ties to customs officials. You tell your guy the real details, he confers with his customs buddies, negotiates a "finding" with them - and he then tells you how to describe the goods - and computers can suddenly become "electrical assemblies, nesoi". You then tell your supplier how to describe goods.

 

If you trust your supplier and prepay them, they may very well send you a pro-forma invoice that substantially under-states the price of goods. Depending on what the goods are, Thai customs may or may not take exception.

 

There are lots of other twists. You mainly need to get an import agent that you can work well with.

 

Most of my small items, and samples, come in by air. Most of my bulk goods come in by ocean freight. Sea freight reaches Bangkok from Shanghai area within 7-8 days - to my surprise. You pay customs duty based on declared CIF value here at Bangkok.

 

The cost adder I cited to you was for ocean freight of small electrical appliances, which came in at a declared price that was lower than actual price.

 

There is no good way to predict what your total importing costs will be, for a specific product - until you line up a receiving agent. Mine even tells me which shipper my supplier should use at supplier's originating port.

 

Cheers!

Stone Soup