Bangkok Beware!!
 

Hi All,
Just spent the best part of 2 weeks trying to get our 2 bikes out of Bangkok Customs. Failed to heed warnings on the Hubb about the problems in Bangkok Port. Had shipped the bikes from the Uk to Bangkok with no carnet as a carnet is not needed for Thailand. Told that we can just fill in a form that says we will export the bikes from Thailand and all will be well. However, told by Thai customs that we had to pay import duty and this would be reimbursed when we leave, 200,000Bht. As we plan to leave overland into Laos i felt that this might be money we would not see again. Beddhist gave us a copy of his temporary import form which we proceeded to send to Bangkok. Told that we had shipped the bikes in one name and one person could only temp. import 1 bike. Had to pay money to get the waybill changed. Eventually told we could temp import the bikes but we would have to give friendly customs man some tea money, 10,000bht. Sitting here waiting for the bikes to arrive while I type this report. All up, it has cost me nearly $800 to get 2 bikes into Thailand(not including 2 weeks hotel fees whilst being told tomorrow a few times). Dont know if I have sucker printed on my head or they do this to everyone. Bangkok Beware!

Andrew

Hi Andrew

Sorry to hear of your problems in BKK; having just returned from 6 months in Thailand the one thing I have learnt is the whole country runs on bribes, sounds like this being the case here. I hired a bike so have no experience of temporary importing one into the country.
Have a look at : Motorcycle Touring : Thailand : Laos : Golden Triangle the site is run by a guy who lives in Chiang Mai and has a wealth of knowledge on biking, he's a map maker by proffession and has charted maps on Northern Thailand and Laos and will be a good source of information for you when you get on the road. He's very knowledgeable on the importing process and should be able to give you some good advice.

good luck

Kev

Strange, though, that at the same city´s Suvarnabhumi Airport they seemed to know the process exactly. Took about 1 hour at the customs there. I would think that its supposed to be the same at the port (but its not, as is proven once again).

Maybe someone at the port customs should call someone at airport customs to get an explanation, how it should work... but how do you get them to do that is another thing! And if its just ´tea money´ that theyre after, then their seaport will continue to be a problem.

My advice to all, is always ship into Singapore. Cheap, hassle free and fast. Bangkok is only a couple of days away by road via Malaysia ( I did it in 22 hours once), and the ride up through Malaysia gives you a chance to get used to the Asian way etc..... Even though I have a Thai registered bike, I will probably only import via Singapore as I hate dealing with the thieving Thai bastards at either the airport or seaport as I have done in the past...... Export though I have not tried though yet, so cannot comment.

I'd like to add my own experience here to help steer future travelers:

Customs clearance in BKK airport was simple and inexpensive. It took 2 hours of paper work and 100Baht (about $3). You can do everything yourself, so avoid any of the agents roaming around the customs buildings.

Jeez, I bet llanelli just loves the fact that you've posted that. It'd make him feel all warm and fuzzy.

what was the cost of freight then ?
 

TREKKING BEE - hi, good to hear that getting bike to BKK is not as fearsome as I was thinking.

But, I am in need of slightly more advice;

I need to fly bike from USA (probably LAX) to BKK, what cost did you incur in shipping ?

can anyone advice on a goo shipping agent this end ?

thanks
Phil.

I shipped the bike from Nepal to BKK. For LA to SEA, try contacting Robert who authored the thread below. I think they shipped into Singapore.

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...il-phnom-32664

Fly your Bike
 

I will only fly my bike from now on. With all the extra costs at the docks and using agents etc I think it would have cost me less to fly the bike into Bkk without all th extra hassle. In 2004 we flew bikes into Singapore airport and we were out in about 1 1/2 hrs, that included unpackaging the bikes and dealing with customs. You might save money at the home end but it will cost you at the destination. Cost us 250 pounds / bike to get them through customs at Southampton docks in 2005 when returning to UK.
Lesson Learned!!!!!