Import Problem with Mumbai Customs . PLEASE HELP

S

strategy

Skilled
i imported a used headphone costing $450, its being held at customs in mumbai , <the tracking page> , as it reads there , the reason for retention said to be : Retention reason : Awaiting proof of purchase/value from addressee , yeah the guy there did not provide any proof of purchase or declare any value.

Now , i called the mumbai EMS centre and they gave me the number for customs, when i called i was told :
1. Imports above rs. 2000, not allowed. Rs. 5000 fine
2. custom duty 41.5%
3. Some other charges that se told me , 1%+1.5%.

Seriously what is this , 5000 fine and 41% fee!!! , it come out to be around 15K !!
Moreover they said they dont have an email address ill have to write an application and send it by Snail mail, then they will release the item .

so what should i do , should i go with what they are saying or is there another way ?
 
I am in similar situation.Purchased a tablet that is stuck in mumbai customs. No response from customs. sent original payment details through snail mail and still waiting for a reply/release of EMS package.

Highly appreciate any pointers/ tips to have the pkg released with less hassle as I am out of state.
 
The best way is to go there meet the Asstt. Commissioner of Customs and plead ignorance and also tell that you are a student and have no money to pay such huge amount and blah blah. Request the AC to to re-evaluate the duty after providing a invoice of say 100$.
This is why ShopandShip or ICCworld is preferable. If you provide papers they will clear for you.
 
tech.addict said:
The best way is to go there meet the Asstt. Commissioner of Customs and plead ignorance and also tell that you are a student and have no money to pay such huge amount and blah blah. Request the AC to to re-evaluate the duty after providing a invoice of say 100$.
This is why ShopandShip or ICCworld is preferable. If you provide papers they will clear for you.
Click to expand...

Although SNS does clear packages when proof of purchase is available, the duty is still not known until the product reaches the customs. You did check that one thread where someone bought a 10$ watch from ebay.com and got it through SNS and customs in India assesses the value of the watch at 11500 :O
 
But atleast they will produce the documents submitted by you to customs. This is helpful if you're not from Mumbai/Delhi. The case you referred is either a mistake by SnS or Customs . Now a days SnS ask for your consent regarding the duty charged before they clear the item and pay the duty. If you can provide correct documents they will try to get it cleared with right duty. But duty is not in their hand. It solely depends upon Customs people. Another problem is since ebay is a auction site, Customs do not consider ebay invoice as true value of the item. In that case you know what to do :) .

---------- Post added at 10:41 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:37 PM ----------
strategy said:
i imported a used headphone costing $450, its being held at customs in mumbai , <the tracking page> , as it reads there , the reason for retention said to be : Retention reason : Awaiting proof of purchase/value from addressee , yeah the guy there did not provide any proof of purchase or declare any value.

Now , i called the mumbai EMS centre and they gave me the number for customs, when i called i was told :
1. Imports above rs. 2000, not allowed. Rs. 5000 fine
2. custom duty 41.5%
3. Some other charges that se told me , 1%+1.5%.

Seriously what is this , 5000 fine and 41% fee!!! , it come out to be around 15K !!
Moreover they said they dont have an email address ill have to write an application and send it by Snail mail, then they will release the item .

so what should i do , should i go with what they are saying or is there another way ?
Click to expand...

Since there is no invoice with the item you're in luck!! You can "create" an invoice with value of 35$ (which will be below 2000 Rs.) and forward that to Customs through Speedpost or even courier.

---------- Post added at 10:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:41 PM ----------

This page has fax no. email id of Customs Postal appraising dept located at Mumbai Foreign post office :
Mumbai Customs

---------- Post added at 10:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:45 PM ----------

Foreign Post Office Mumbai: Customer Care
 
One interesting point in the above website

a) Goods which are meant for personal use are classified under CTH 98.04 and released on payment of duty as applicable.
Click to expand...

Now the Customs Tariff Heading 98.04 attracts a basic Duty of 35% and CVD of 4%, effective rate 41.5% :O
So one thing everyone has to note is that, never use EMS / Normal Post for high value shipments. And it doesn't mention anything about the Rs 5000 fine, and the above clearly states the item will be cleared subject to just the duty which comes to 41.5%.
 
For the same reason did not bother to get some stuff I wanted from the US. But I think the rule is archaic.
@varkey you back online? Tried calling you so many times, got fed up! But now back in Mumbai!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
tech.addict said:
But atleast they will produce the documents submitted by you to customs. This is helpful if you're not from Mumbai/Delhi. The case you referred is either a mistake by SnS or Customs . Now a days SnS ask for your consent regarding the duty charged before they clear the item and pay the duty. If you can provide correct documents they will try to get it cleared with right duty. But duty is not in their hand. It solely depends upon Customs people. Another problem is since ebay is a auction site, Customs do not consider ebay invoice as true value of the item. In that case you know what to do :) .

---------- Post added at 10:41 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:37 PM ----------



Since there is no invoice with the item you're in luck!! You can "create" an invoice with value of 35$ (which will be below 2000 Rs.) and forward that to Customs through Speedpost or even courier.

---------- Post added at 10:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:41 PM ----------

This page has fax no. email id of Customs Postal appraising dept located at Mumbai Foreign post office :
Mumbai Customs

---------- Post added at 10:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:45 PM ----------

Foreign Post Office Mumbai: Customer Care
Click to expand...


thanks for all your replies.

the thing is when i talked on phone i told them the value to be $200, , so can i change the value to say 50 or 100 , wont they remember me ( she asked my name and where i am from ) and fine me extra for forging false documents.
I am ready to pay , 2-3000 as customs even 5K., but 12-14 is just absurd, buying it new in india will cost that much ( and i get warranty )
thanks for the help ill be sure to avoid EMS from now on .
 
If you don't want to pay that much, sad to say but the only way out is for you to catch hold of an agent and bribe the folks over at the custom's office.
 
strategy said:
thanks for all your replies.

the thing is when i talked on phone i told them the value to be $200, , so can i change the value to say 50 or 100 , wont they remember me ( she asked my name and where i am from ) and fine me extra for forging false documents.
I am ready to pay , 2-3000 as customs even 5K., but 12-14 is just absurd, buying it new in india will cost that much ( and i get warranty )
thanks for the help ill be sure to avoid EMS from now on .
Click to expand...

Most probably she wouldn't remember. But yes there is a risk in case she does. In this case as suggested #Pat it will be best to contact an agent and get it cleared.
 
strategy said:
i am in chhattisgarh and the office in mambai, iwould have gone if it was closeby
Click to expand...

Good to know you too frm C.G :D,

few months back i also faced same situation, ordered Astro wireless headphones, paid something around 290$+$100 (Fedex shippping), but when the courier guy reached my home i got fainted seeing 12k as customs, i just said wrong address :p, charged back my card and got my money back.

Sad.. the company went to loss, but dont have left with any else solution. Earlier also i had ordered many cellphones and laptops, but never paid custom anything more than 1000 rupees. Dont know what had happened to Indian customs since few months. Anyway you try to ignore item and try to Chargeback your card.
 
^ How can you expect the duty to be less than 1000 Rs for whatever you buy? Each item has a different duty rate! For a $400 headphone the duty would have been around 6.5k (You could have asked Fedex why it came to 12k), but in no way less than 1000 Rs. I guess the issue is with you for ordering items from abroad without taking the duty into account.
 
^ Dont know how it happened, but earlier i got Xperia X10, HTC Desire and even iphone 3gs years ago and paid duty just under 1000 rupees, recently got a sunglass costing 145$ and it turned out to be duty free :O.

I am really amazed by the way customs in India are working..
 
Being.smart said:
^ Dont know how it happened, but earlier i got Xperia X10, HTC Desire and even iphone 3gs years ago and paid duty just under 1000 rupees, recently got a sunglass costing 145$ and it turned out to be duty free :O.

I am really amazed by the way customs in India are working..
Click to expand...

That is exactly my point. The duty rate depends on the type of item. The rate for mobile phones is just 2.03% compared 28% for headphones! So obviously the duty for mobile phones will be well under Rs 1000.
 
You can refer to the chart below (courtesy ShopNShip)

anAxH.png
 
^ thx alot for uploading :X:X, will surely check customs now before importing anything

only mobile seems to be cheap to import, rest carries heavy duties :(
 
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