Custom Advice

If you are sending a package internationally for the first time, you may have lots of questions about customs.

Nearly all country’s customs rules differ in some way or another, so it is vital you check up on what the guidelines are for the country you’re sending to, before you send anything.

Here are a few frequently asked questions about customs and what to expect:

It normally takes a matter of minutes or hours for a package to clear customs, but it can take days or even weeks if there is a problem. Generally, customs will contact the recipient directly with any issues, which is why it is so important to give accurate and up to date contact details for the receiver during the booking process.

Typical issues which can affect how long an item takes to clear customs, include:

● Missing or incorrect paperwork

● Wrongly declared goods

● Prohibited items

● Customs fees outstanding

● Problems contacting the recipient

● Your shipment has exceeded the value allowed

Parcel tracking provides visibility of where your package is in the delivery process, this includes notifications on customs clearance. You may get a notification such as ‘Customs Clearance’ or ‘Held by Customs.’ If the package is held in customs, customs will contact the recipient to resolve the issue or collect any fees due.

If you’re the sender and you see your package is being held in customs, you could contact the recipient just to ensure that customs have been in touch. If they have not, please contact our support team via our live chat and we will contact the carrier on your behal.

There may be restrictions on certain types of goods which are imported or exported outside the country.

These constraints are fixed by the local legislation and regulations. And, it is the customs authority obligation to implement these rules stringently.

Also, all local customs authority holds the power to set its own charges for imports and exports depending on the nature of the shipment it administers.

While different destinations, calls for different policies for importing and exporting to and from the country, we recommend that you to seek guidance with relevant customs in the destination that you are looking courier to send.

While goods cross over political borders, taxes and duties are imposed on them (however, there are some free business zones exists around the globe). Taxes are normally connected with protectionism, the economic policy of limiting business in between countries.

By and large taxes are imposed on the imported goods, however, sometimes may also be imposed on goods exported out of the country.

The payments of all destination duties and taxes are commonly the responsibility of the recipient, though Air Skyway does propose the channel for our clients to pay for them at the origin.

In such case, Pebblefly invoices its customers for the liable duties and taxes and make arrangements to be paid on their behalf at destination with additional administration fee. However, this process might cause delays of the deliveries.

Be it a gift or commercial shipment, it has to go by an import procedure as per the guidelines laid out by custom’s regulation in the destination country. On the grounds of origin country, the consignment is cleared through customs: the cost and quantity, but not its end objective. Shipments carrying dutiable goods are likely subject to customs duty; an excise or tax enforced on goods when moved across international boundaries.

Duties calculation relies on the assessable price of a dutiable parcel. To make the calculation easy, dutiable goods are allocated a categorization code generally identified as the Harmonized System code (HS) code.

The World Customs Organization has assigned this system which continues to advance.