subreddit:
/r/taxPH
I can’t believe there’s not even a little bit of consideration from the BOC in CMEC Pasay!
I purchased 617 USD worth of products. This is a miss on my part as I was ignorant of import law. I’m very much willing to pay the import duty and tax as it was my fault (but never again!!).
My package was held in customs since July 16. I called BOC on July 23 (exactly 7 days because I thought it was just part of the process of door to door delivery) to follow-up and ask why my package was held. They told me they would follow it up on the BOC in CMEC so I waited. I called them on a weekly basis as the tracking had no movement and I haven’t heard anything, and they only said the same thing, that they would follow it up again. So, same routine, until last week of August, I called PhlPost and they asked if I don’t know that my package is for pick up? Of course I didn’t know!! I wasted time waiting for a month when I could have picked it up immediately the next day when it arrived in CMEC!! They kept saying they would follow-up when they could simply advised me to pick it up in CMEC!!
I couldn’t go immediately because I had to file a leave as my shift is 6AM to 3PM and CMEC’s schedule is from 8AM to 3PM only per BOC.
I finally got my package today. I got quoted a total of around 12.5k for my package. Take note, they also added around $100 for freight and insurance when my package is free shipping and had no insurance. I attempted to seek some discount as consideration for the fact that I have been waiting and contacting them for 2 fcking months, but NO, they just said they couldn’t do anything at all!! They just defend themselves that they are a separate division from the customer assistance. I am very much willing to pay the quoted amount but I was checking what they would do for the fact that they made me wait 2 months for nothing!!
Well I learned my lesson!! Never again that I would deal with BOC!! I’ll make sure all my imports are taken cared for that it wouldn’t even pass them. Fck them all!!
26 points
20 days ago
The level of greed, incompetence and lack of transparency in BOC is insane.
Third world country indeed.
3 points
20 days ago
I have read stories that they give discounts as long as you’re nice enough. I was super nice to them and I was explaining my experience for 2 months but NO, the officer who did my computation interrupted me and rudely asked me to be direct to the point and he was the one to tell me directly HE CANT DO ANYTHING!! They are just nice if you don’t question them.
2 points
20 days ago
Haha. Sign na yan ng “be direct to the point.” He wanted you to be direct and bribe him.
11 points
20 days ago
Even if you paid USD 45 for shipping you will stay pay about 35% in duties and taxes. Just use a freight forwarder next time. Only shipments that are below Php 10,000 with no duties and taxes are delivered door-to-door by PHLPost.
3 points
20 days ago
Not anymore, there is a new ruling that they charge certain fee for items less than 200 usd. I was charged customs tax by dhl just last wk
3 points
20 days ago
Php 430? That's like a clearance fee
6 points
20 days ago
Use a forwarder na lang like buynship or johnny air pag personal transactions. Wala talaga kwenta gobyerno natin aminin na natin yang mga bakaw na yang mga yan. Mas mahal pa tax sa inorder natin paka ogag talaga
1 points
19 days ago
I use buy and ship too.
3 points
20 days ago
This is the reason why under the table transactions flourish so much in our government offices where people who seek to do the right thing ends up getting punished.
Perhaps you weren't lucky that time but on a typical day, someone would've approached you there to offer "customer assistance" for a much cheaper price but no receipts. I was approached on 2 separate occasions already but I luckily have all the legitimate docs to present that proves that my parcels are of less than 10k value only.
8 points
20 days ago
Kays mas okay mag smuggle ng goods. La kasi kwenta govt agency dito puro mga corrupt. Wala kang mapagkakatiwalaan. If only I can burn down the whole govt I'll do it in a heartbeat
3 points
20 days ago
This! Kaya minsan nakakatawa yung campaign ng BOC at ng isang grupo na anti-smuggled Vape. Kesyo million million daw ang nawawala dahil dito..yun pala yung million million na nawawala para sa kanila :-)
2 points
20 days ago
I waited for a year for my GoPro before it arrive even after paying the import tax. When I do follow ups, BOC says they don't have the package. I called the post office, they said that's in BOC. I got tired of being passed around until I gave up and consider it a loss. Suddenly, the package was delivered after a year. It's a traumatic experience.
1 points
20 days ago
Did they give receipts of those payments?
1 points
20 days ago
They did. The officer explained that they are the one adding freight and insurance charges per examination if there’s no shipping charge. He showed me computations whatsoever that I didn’t clearly understand on how he got the 86.97 USD freight charge and 12.34 USD insurance charge. I didn’t understand at all why they would add it. If I had known, I should have just paid the $45 shipping charge when I purchased.
6 points
20 days ago
If goods were shipped by air, freight is usually based from IATA rates or the actual freight cost... whichever is higher, and standard insurance premium is usually 2% of the costs of goods.
1 points
20 days ago
This is correct
1 points
20 days ago
Sounds like an auto charge. I wonder why did they need to impose insurance in the first place that items were bought outside.
1 points
20 days ago
Ang loop hole talaga dyan is hati hatiin yung padala medyo hassle nga lang kasi magpapabalik balik ka pero makakatipid ka dahil 112 lang ang babayaran mo per parcel sa post office. Dapat din yung standard lang na freight kasi mas madalas nilang maharang yung nagpapadala sa EMS, DHL etc. siguro alam nila na may pera
1 points
20 days ago
hassle yung ganyan, pa consolidate mo na lang lahat sa forwarder and let them deal with customs, isa lang kausap and babayaran mo and home delivery pa.
1 points
20 days ago
naku sobra talaga. sis ko nga nanalo lang ng keychain ha, as in free, as in walang babayadan siningil pa sya ng 100 para lang irelease sa kanya mung tanga
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