A Rusian Nanonoter needs help with customs.

Dmitry Samoyloff dmitry at obscurehalt.org
Fri Apr 1 04:37:39 EDT 2011


> dmitry at obscurehalt.org wrote:
>> I'm on the list now. I don't know how much this topic is appropriate to
>> this
>> list, so please pardon me in advance.
>
> Everybody loves customs horror stories, particularly when they
> happen to others :-)
>
>> It is also possible to use a help of some broker company to let it
>> deal with FSB.
>
> I don't know about Russia, but in Argentina, when they suggest to
> involve a broker, that usually means that they expect a bribe.
>
> The role of the broker is to interact with customs on your behalf,
> for which he can perfectly legally charge, and to hand some of
> that money to the customs official, who already knows the broker,
> and thus doesn't have to worry about you being some policeman.

Well, they didn't suggested me involving the broker but I understand what
you are talking about :-)

> Since several Bens have made it to Russia without such problems,
> this either means that this was a random incident, that UPS have
> particularly nasty customs, or that customs recently have become
> increasingly vigilant.

That would be good to hear from those people. BTW you're not the first
telling me that UPS may be a source of problems at customs.

> One possibility would be to just try to send it again, preferably
> by some other means, e.g., FedEx, EMS, or regular registered mail.
>
> In Argentina, couriers like FedEx, UPS, DHL, etc., are treated
> differently from EMS or regular mail, both in terms of customs
> fees and in terms of pickiness. EMS and regular mail are what
> common people use for non-commercial imports, so you get higher
> taxes but they're more lenient when it comes to obscure
> regulations.
>
> In Argentina, with couriers, you're treated like a business, the
> taxes are a bit lower, but customs are more pedantic.
>
>> But I doubt this is reliable because it is a
>> customer who'll need to prove it each time at customs.)
>
> The Russians on the #qi-hardware IRC channel didn't consider it
> likely that travelers would be asked to provide such documentation
> when they cross the border. Customs officials checking travelers
> are probably a lot more interested in expensive electronics,
> drugs, and other valuables.

It's one more reason to visit Spain one day :-)

> Parcels are a different story. There, customs have all the time in
> the world to look for problems.
>
> Just my 2 centavos.
>
> - Werner

Thank you very much!

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