Importing From Indonesia

Stuttgart

Evening ladies and gents,

I have a quick query for you all. I am a young man looking to take my first step onto the import/export ladder and am looking for some advice from those more experienced than myself. I have sourced a large sculpture-type product in Indonesia that I am keen to import to Ireland. I am looking to arrange a shipment of two samples which will come in a crate that will be about 10 foot by 12 foot and weigh no more than 1.5 tonnes total. Roughly how much it is likely to cost me to ship it to Cork/Dublin and will I have to pay import tax on that sort of product. It should be known that I am not VAT registered. Are there any other less obvious issues that I should watch out for?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Stuttgart

RATM

Absolutely no ideas how you would go about this but hopefully someone in the know will be along soon.
I was once going to import top crafted mahogany furniture from Bali once, they've some beautiful stuff at rock bottom prices and their labour that goes into them is very skilled.

However I would be dubious of importing just two wooden statues, having a single product in that market could be folly.

Coriolanus

I was looking into something similar, albeit less bulky and from China not Indonesia.
I settled on just DHL in the end, since they'll do from the door of the factory/producer to your door, handle all the import crap and just give you a single invoice.
Much less hassle, and they're reputable.

cojomo2

Nevore wrote: »

I was looking into something similar, albeit less bulky and from China not Indonesia.
I settled on just DHL in the end, since they'll do from the door of the factory/producer to your door, handle all the import crap and just give you a single invoice.
Much less hassle, and they're reputable.

I'm guessing that was by air? If so, for what the OP wants ti import, the cost would be through the roof, only viable option would be by sea.

OP , I regularly ship stuff from the far east to Dublin by sea, takes about 5 weeks, and is usually charged by cubic metre, however, there may be a surcharge in your case because of the weight.

Usually, if I ship aboyt 3 cbm, from there to here the shipping charge will be about 450 odd euro. Then, when it arrives here, you have to pay another 150-200 for landing charges, warehouse fees etc.

Then you will have to pay VAT @21% of the cost of the goods, and customs duty(whatever the applicable reate is.

You will then need to pay to get delivery from the warehouse to yourself.

edit: also, if you are shipping these in a wooden crate, you will have to pay to get them fumigated. Cost of this isnt that much though, maybe 50 euro or so.

Coriolanus

cojomo2 wrote: »

I'm guessing that was by air? If so, for what the OP wants ti import, the cost would be through the roof, only viable option would be by sea.

OP , I regularly ship stuff from the far east to Dublin by sea, takes about 5 weeks, and is usually charged by cubic metre, however, there may be a surcharge in your case because of the weight.

Usually, if I ship aboyt 3 cbm, from there to here the shipping charge will be about 450 odd euro. Then, when it arrives here, you have to pay another 150-200 for landing charges, warehouse fees etc.

Then you will have to pay VAT @21% of the cost of the goods, and customs duty(whatever the applicable reate is.

You will then need to pay to get delivery from the warehouse to yourself.

edit: also, if you are shipping these in a wooden crate, you will have to pay to get them fumigated. Cost of this isnt that much though, maybe 50 euro or so.

Yeah, it was air. I was under the impression that they could arrange a slower and cheaper sea shipping, though I didn't really get it into it with their agent, since I needed my stuff in a hurry.

Edit: Checked their site, they definitely do sea shipping so they might still be an option if the OP doesn't want to have to get into it with customs, and leasing space in a warehouse etc.

Stuttgart

Thanks for the advice, guys. I'm making good headway with the project and have looked at several options.

I have another related query. I have agreed a price with my supplier that I am happy with, but the problem is, my supplier is just a standalone artist rather than a company as such. I tend to be over-cautious when it comes to dealing with new people in business for the first time and considering this guy is on the other side of the planet, I am especially wary. I am wondering what payment method I can use to protect myself on the off-chance that this guy is a dodge? The way it will work is that I pay a 30% downpayment and the balance on the day the products are shipped. Is there any system in place whereby I could, lets say, send the full amount to a bank in Indonesia, so the supplier can verify that the money is there, then call the bank to release the funds when the shipment is made? Or is there a much more straightforward means of doing this that I am not aware of?

Thanks for the help.

Coriolanus

Yeah, its called escrow. Basically you "pay" a third party, usually a bank. They hold the money and confirm receipt of it to the producer. Producer ships, you inspect the goods and if happy notify the bank to release the funds.

Now escrow has its problems. Obviously the third party needs to be reputable. Some that should be, aren't. I've heard bad things about bank of China for example, releasing escrow funds on production of a shipping receipt from a scam producer etc.

It's still far and away the safest method though, for both parties, fairly.

Only thing is It might not be worthwhile given you're paying for a,small shipment. There's bank and legal fees involved usually. Still something to look into for the future.

Stuttgart

Thanks, Nevore. That sounds like just the ticket. I will look into the cost of it as, while my shipment is small in quantity terms, the unit price is high enough for me to need protection.

Coriolanus

Stuttgart wrote: »

Thanks, Nevore. That sounds like just the ticket. I will look into the cost of it as, while my shipment is small in quantity terms, the unit price is high enough for me to need protection.

Read the small print of your shipping insurance in particular in that case.

People get used to just signing stuff in Ireland cause it's generally so safe, phone line contracts etc etc. Same doesn't apply internationally so use a fine tooth comb on that stuff.

Stuttgart

Thanks, Nevore. Anything in particular I should look out for?

Coriolanus

Make sure the insurance you're buying covers the actual worth of the items. Silly I know but check the decimal points!
Make sure damages are covered and not just losses are covered. Tbh it's much more likely that the items will get banged about and broken than they will actually get lost completely. Though if the deleivery is time sensitive might want to look into getting covered for delayed delivery. Stuff can go missing in the stacks etc.

The first few times you do this kind of thing, it really is worth while to pay the premium to use very reputable international firms. DHL, Aviva, Bank Suisse/Barclays etc.

Stuttgart

Thanks for the advice, Nevore. Much appreciated.