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CUSTOMS GUIDE - SINGAPORE
Excess Baggage Company has compiled this information sheet to help you to understand what happens when you ship your personal effects to Singapore, and to inform you of procedures once your shipment has arrived. The sheet contains important advice which will help with the smooth shipment and clearance of your goods through Customs. Please try and take time to read it, and if you need further advice or information, please do call us or our agent in Singapore. We are all available to help you.
This information is provided without obligation and at the individual's risk. We accept no responsibility for any inaccuracy of whatever nature.
Loading, Transit & Documentation
Other Charges
Freight & Destination Charges
On Arrival
Customs Clearance
Dutiable, Restricted & Prohibited Goods
Delivery
Loading, Transit & Documentation
Unless you have a household removal which is large enough to fill a whole container, your shipment will be shipped by what is known as a 'groupage' service. This 'groupage' service is a shipping container that is loaded with other personal effects shipments such as your own. When there are sufficient goods to fill the container, it is then booked on a vessel. This consolidation of shipments normally takes between one and four weeks depending on how much cargo is already available, and it may vary during busy or quiet periods.
The vessel sailing time to Singapore is between three and four weeks. Taking the consolidation period and sailing time together, your goods will usually arrive at Singapore some time between five and eight weeks after we receive them. You must then allow about ten to fourteen days for unloading, Customs clearance and for our agent to make delivery arrangements with you. This average transit time is subject to sailing dates which may sometimes be changed by the shipping lines without prior notification, so please take this into account if you require your goods in Singapore by a particular date.
All shipments to Singapore must be accompanied by a packing list or inventory. If your shipment is to be owner-packed, we will give you a packing list to complete which you must return to us. For shipments which are to be professionally packed, our packers will complete an inventory of all goods at the time of removal. We then send your packing list or inventory by courier to our agent, along with the container manifest and Bill of Lading. This procedure allows smooth port clearance of containers at Singapore.
Other Charges
It is always the case with personal effects shipments to any country, and this applies no matter which company you ship through, that Customs duties and taxes are not included in any shipping charges. This is also true of Singapore, where Goods and Services Tax (GST) is charged at a rate of 3% on all declared goods unless the consignee is eligible for GST relief. Those who are eligible for relief include returning Singapore citizens, permanent residents who have been away for more than six months, and also immigrants in possession of (or who have applied for) an Employment Pass. Relief on GST is not granted for alcohol, tobacco products or motor vehicles. Duty will be charged on alcohol, the rate varying from about S$9.50 per litre on still wines to S$30.00 per litre on spirits such as whisky and brandy. See below for more information on declaring these items.
If you are shipping video tapes or laser discs, they will be subject to censorship before being allowed into the country. A viewing fee of around S$3.00 per half hour will be charged. Singapore has many high-rise residences, and if delivery has to be made to a residence above the second floor where lift-service is not available, an extra charge may be made. An additional charge will also apply if, due to the location of the delivery point, a hoist is required for particularly heavy or bulky items.
With your arrival notification, you will also be sent a form on which you can give information about the access to your residence, and any special requirements can be dealt with prior to delivery being made.
(Note: Rates of duty can change at any time without notice. Please contact Singapore Customs if you require further up to the minute information on rates of duty.)
Freight & Destination Charges
DOOR TO DOOR:
We offer a door to door service to Singapore, and recommend that you consider taking this option. This will mean you do not have to worry about paying the various destination charges when your goods arrive. On our door to door service, the shipping charges to arrival at Singapore are included, as well as all the following destination service costs - port clearance, shipping line charges, THC (terminal handling charge), haulage to Customs bond store, unloading, notification, supply and presentation of Customs documents, Customs examination and clearance, delivery to residence, and for household removal shipments (but not baggage shipments) unpacking and removal of packaging debris. There are some charges not included in a door to door service that may apply in certain cases, and these are described in the above section titled 'Other charges.'
DOOR TO PORT:
If you have shipped to 'arrival port' only, you must pay some of the above- mentioned charges before you can collect your goods. Note that the term 'arrival port' is a shipping term that refers to the point to which freight charges have been prepaid. It does not mean you can collect your goods directly at the port to do your own Customs clearance.
The whole container is consigned to our Singapore agent, who applies for a 'port clearance' to collect it from the wharf. The container is then hauled to their depot and unloaded into their own Customs bonded store. Destination charges on 'arrival port' shipments are billed in Singapore Dollars in the form of a flat-rate sum based on the size of the shipment in cubic feet (Cuft) as follows:- for shipments of up to 14 Cuft - S$100, 15 to 25 Cuft - S$120, 26 to 35 Cuft - S$140, 36 to 100 Cuft - S$170, shipments of over 100 Cuft are charged at S$1.70 per Cuft.
Charges on 'arrival port' shipments apply no matter which UK company you ship with, and include all normal destination services up to handout of your goods at our agent's warehouse. They do not include delivery to residence or unpacking. If you have shipped to 'arrival port' and then decide that you do wish our agent to deliver your shipment, they will quote you for this. As with door to door shipments, see below for details of other charges which may apply.
On Arrival
As soon as we load a container for Singapore, we send a 'pre-alert' advice to our agent. When you call the agent, they can then tell you on which vessel your shipment is, and when it is due to arrive. Shortly before the vessel arrives at Singapore, you will be contacted by our agent, initially by telephone or fax, or by an arrival notification sent by mail. Customs documents will accompany this notification, either by fax or by mail. You must therefore ensure that you have given us your full destination address, your home telephone number, and if possible, a day-time or business telephone and fax number. If you are a migrant, please give us the name, address, telephone and fax numbers of the company or organisation with which you will be working.
When the vessel arrives at Singapore, our agent will pay the requisite port and shipping line charges which must be met to allow the container to be uplifted from the wharf. They will arrange for it to be hauled to their Customs bonded warehouse for unloading. Customs clearance will take place there, and once your shipment has been cleared, it can be collected, or if you have paid for a door to door service, delivery can then be arranged. If you are shipping a sole-use full container load (FCL) household removal, the container will be taken to your residence under bond, and Customs inspection and clearance will take place as the container is unpacked.
Customs Clearance
When you are notified of the forthcoming arrival of your shipment at Singapore, our agent will fax or mail to you some documents which you need to complete for your goods to clear Customs. These first of these documents is the form titled 'Declaration of Dutiable, Restricted and Prohibited Imports.' On this form, you will be required to declare the value of your shipment for Customs purposes; whether you have any restricted or prohibited goods in your shipment, and if you have any dutiable goods such as alcohol or tobacco. Also on this form, you will be asked if you intend to claim relief of GST. If you are eligible for relief of GST, you will then have to complete the second of the forms which will be sent to you, the 'Declaration of Facts.' On this form, you give brief details about yourself and your shipment. To substantiate these details, you will be asked to supply a copy of the pages of your passport which show your personal details, photo, passport number and relevant immigration stamps. If you are not a Singapore citizen, you will also have to send in a copy of your Employment Pass (work permit). If you have not yet received this, you should send in a copy of the 'Acknowledgement of Receipt' which the Immigration Department will give you to show that they have received your application for the Pass, and a letter of sponsorship from your company or organisation.
The Declaration of Facts form has an attachment sheet, on which you must list any alcohol or tobacco in your shipment. If you do intend to ship either of these products, please give us a call first and we will send you a copy of the form and its attachment sheet. Since a detailed valued breakdown of these products is required, it will be very helpful to you if you prepare your own record in the required format before you complete the form in Singapore. A fine can be levied if Customs discover non-declared alcohol in your shipment.
The third form which will be sent to you is a Delivery Instruction form. This is not required for Customs clearance, but if you have paid for a door to door service, you complete the form to advise our agent of your preferred delivery date, the accessibility to your residence for delivery vehicles, and any other special requirements.
Dutiable, Prohibited & Restricted Goods
Used personal and household effects may be imported free of duty on the following conditions; they have been owned and used for at least three months; they are being imported within six months of the importer's arrival in Singapore; they will not be disposed of in the first three months after import; and the importer intends to remain in the country for twelve months.
As previously mentioned, alcohol and tobacco products are dutiable goods, and duty and tax will be charged at the prevailing rates. Although motor cars are also rated as dutiable (and the duty and registration fees come to over 20% of the value), you must bear in mind that it is very difficult to import a motor car to Singapore unless you have diplomatic status, and even in this case we would require confirmation from our agent that all was in order before we could ship the car. Motorcycles are dutiable (currently at 12% duty plus 3% tax) but the procedure for getting import clearance for motorcycles is both complicated and very expensive. Contact us first if you intend to ship a motorcycle.
Articles which can be described as 'Restricted or Prohibited' include politically sensitive publications, pornography, narcotics, weapons, counterfeit currencies, endangered species of wildlife or their by-products, corrosive or explosive substances etc. This list is not exhaustive, and if you require further advice about the import of any particular item, we will be happy to make enquiries for you.
Delivery
Shipments in a groupage container normally clear Customs between about ten and fourteen days after the vessel arrives. If your shipment terms are 'to arrival port' you will then be able to collect your shipment from our agent's warehouse. At this point you pay any outstanding destination charges. If your shipment is on our door to door service, our agent will call you to discuss your delivery requirements, and a suitable date for delivery will be set.
We hope that you have found the information on this sheet useful. Please do not hesitate to call us if you require further information or advice on any aspect of your shipment, or if you would like full details of our Singapore agent.
All information on this sheet is given for guidance only, and although we believe it to be correct at the time of writing, we do not accept any liability for errors, omissions, inaccuracies or misinterpretation. All charges, regulations and procedures are liable to change without notice.
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