Returning citizens what can we bring ?

There should be guidelines on the official govt or EDB website. Do not believe what you hear from others. The guidelines also change at times.

Do you really need to bring  multiple TVs to Mauritius?

Best wishes.

You are allowed to bring back 2 flat screen TV new or used. And washing machine, fridge freezer etc. However any construction materials ie to build a house will attract full custom and excise duty. I'm speaking from personal experience. Had the temerity of bringing some plastic conduit re electrical wiring and was charged several thousand rupees.

Suggest use bland description of items to avoid pitfalls, ie floor covering instead of carpets etc.

@Tookays

Hi, thank you for reply.

We will try to get in touch with MRU to see if we can some guidelines from them.

A reliable source told us we can only bring one tv  and one bike which we thought it’s odd.

We should be able to  bring almost everything🙂

No not really necessary 3 TV’s in Mauritius but we have them already!

Cheers Marco

@gsamsoon

Hi, thank you for sharing your experience.

Okay also construction material will be 100% charged.

We want to build our own house and we were thinking to take a new kitchen in the container.

Also other stuff like kitchen appliances, bathroom stuff ,  floor and wall paint can go in the container.

We need the information from MRU .

Cheers Marco

I suggest you use a door to door mover. They will know all the rules & regulations & be able to guide you. They can arrange your insurance & customs for you. They can even do your packing & unpacking & therefore your inventory. My movers used general descriptions & put everything down as 'used' - so I had no extra to pay. The concern with bringing multiples of things in or lots of new things is that you are going to sell it or use for business purposes. So, my movers put everything down as 'household' & 'personal' items with a brief description.   

Electronics like A/C or ceiling fans (non-movable ones) need to pay tax, it doesn't matter if it is brand new or used. Actually, it all depends on your customs broker how he declares the items and how close between the broker and the customs officer. Used TV, value depreciated. Let's say your TVs now worth USD190 (all 3 sets), if the customs officer said no, you need to pay tax, then you pay like USD28.50 My suggestion is check with different forwarders and their customs broker. A good broker can help you to save a lot.

@Pandora At Dodoland

You do not need to pay tax on anything if you get a door to door mover whether they are new or used - provided you are not doing something shonky. You only pay tax if they think you are trying to get something in the country tax free & then sell it to make money. If you get a door to door mover they look after customs & you do not need a customs broker as they will do customs stuff for you. I did not pay tax on anything I brought here from Australia & it was a whole 4 bedroom house of stuff for home & business. I did not have to pay anyone bribe money or anything extra. Trying to do things on the cheap initially will cost you a lot more money in the long run. If you are going to do something do it right & honestly the first time - or pay the price. 

@AussieInMauritius

MRA deducted tax from my account a year ago for the AC and some other things. Customs officier said to my face what they were charging me tax for. That's fact!

@Pandora At Dodoland

You got ripped off then. There is no tax on household effects for domestic use. It must have been the way you declared & described your things - that is why you need a professional to do the paperwork.

This is site that states no tax on personal effects

https://www.mra.mu/index.php/customs1/t … al-effects

Customs officier said to my face what they were charging me tax for.
    -@Pandora At Dodoland

I had a friend who was a customs officer... Are you sure of the "tax" you were being charged?  It is very important to know the rules.

@Pablo888

Yes, the 2 A/C I brought in (all declared as personal effects) were taxed. He asked if I had ceiling fan, I said no, only floor ones. He said if it is fixed on the wall/ceiling, it will be considered as construction materials, not personal effects. And all the tax were deducted directly from my MCB account. I didn't even need to sign any authorization document to the MRA (not the forwarder took the tax money)

It was July 2022 when my things arrived. If customs changed anything afterwards, I am not sure. But I am telling you what I had paid.

@Pandora At Dodoland, thank you for sharing your experience.  I don't doubt that this really happened to you.

I know that this still happens in Mauritius (and in most countries in various shapes or forms). People still make those payments because the requests come from people in position of authority and navigating the process is complex.  There are typically no invoices and receipts.

I occasionally get hit with those when I visit the island.  And yes, I respond just like you did because I probably did not follow one of the many rules.

However, as @Aussie mentioned, personal effects are not taxed (from the mra link)  if you are moving back.  Someone who really knows how to go through the system should not have to pay.

May be this thread should be geared towards identifying what forms to fill or process to follow prior to shipping and / or what type of shipping service works best.

This would be of tremendous help to everyone to know that....

Re personal effects

Brought 2 20 ft container last year. My observations match those of Pandora at dodo land. The rules are arcane and subject to the whims of the custom officer of the day literally. Re ceiling fan and desk fan, you won't find these details on the mra website. I was asked several times whether  I was bringing any marbre ie ceramic tiles etc...

The other thing I would like to point out, there is certainly a delit de facies ie if your ethnic face don't fit. I will leave to your guess the custom officers ethnicity and if yours is different and therefore presumably loaded, you are more likely to get the full whack