MOVING TO CEBU FROM THE US

Great question... I have been trying to find out the same info for a year... From Canada to Cebu or Negros.  I have written for quotes but no one ever responds.  Please share if you find any info.

Do you qualify to avoid geting debited custom fees and VAT?  (If I remember correct the max free amount is 7000 USD worth anywway and Phils custom have often a tendency to count NEW price at old things too.)
(Before Duterte fired the earlier highest boss for thwe custom,  I don't know if same still.) Even if free,cutom fee and VAT you risk to get very hgh storage fees caused by the CUSTOM have been slow ...
(As seen in an other topic a transport from UK got such big problem, but then the custom had reason by the shipping agent had screwed up by puting chainsaw in the shipment and chainsaws aren't allowed in Phils without special permit.)

And an Indian guy lost all his memory stuff by the custom got very expensive at NOT valuable things.

Are you sure you want to ship a container anyway?    

(Myself I'm selling almost everything, just plan to bring a few boxes.)

Yes, my wife is exempt from Customs Taxes.
Actually the one item we really would like to bring is our oak bedroom set and a medium size 3 draw wood chest.  Other items would be some children's toys and dishes.

We just may decide to leave balance of other items behind.

Thanks for the reply...

Rick

MovinToCebu wrote:

Yes, my wife is exempt from Customs Taxes.
Actually the one item we really would like to bring is our oak bedroom set and a medium size 3 draw wood chest.

If it isn't of sentimental reason you plan to bring them,  there are a lot of businesses in Phils making even custom made furniture of hardwood.  I haven't checked quality but many of they look good.   
E g an American bought at one at Leyte with rather wide range of models, and I know of some smaller producers at Palawan..

MovinToCebu wrote:

I'm currently are living in Connecticut and will be moving to San Fernando, Cebu some time this year.

I've been looking for a reasonable International Shipping Company to deliver a 20ft shipping container to my home for me to pack with some furniture and personal items I want to take to Cebu and then pickup the container and deliver it to the Port of Departure (NY or NJ) to be loaded on board the ship.

I'm really not looking for a moving company to come wrap and box everything.  Just supply the Container, give us ample time to load it and transport it to the dock to ship.

I know the shipping Port to Port costs about $1600. - $1800.00.

Has anyone been though this and do you have any recommendations?

Thanks...

Rick

I own two containers and i ship them yearly usually around december.  (Thats usually when i am in the USA)  I ship from chicago and usually take 45-60 days to arrive in cdo.   Total coat per container to ship is roughly 3500 usd.  With shipping fee, brokers fees, customs tax, and port fees.  The shipping is pretty cheap.  Its the port fees that cost the most.  I have family that owns a brokerage firm so i get treated farely.  I usually rent out space if i dont fill the container.   I have had people ship everything from a car to a whole house full of stuff.

Thanks for the info.... much appreciated.

I will be moving from Calgary Canada, to Cebu island.  Do you suggest I should buy a container or is it better to rent?  I am thinking one 20 foot would be good.  Is there a weight limit?

And finally I have not had a response from companies that I have enquired to, any suggestions?

Thanks.

AlbertaDonuts wrote:

Thanks for the info.... much appreciated.

I will be moving from Calgary Canada, to Cebu island.  Do you suggest I should buy a container or is it better to rent?  I am thinking one 20 foot would be good.  Is there a weight limit?

And finally I have not had a response from companies that I have enquired to, any suggestions?

Thanks.

If you rent a container you will spend about the same amount as buying your own.  My opinion is to buy the container, but you have to make sure it passes all the requirements for the shipping company. If you buy from a reputable company they will have all the necessary paperwork already complete.  Once the container arrives here.  You can either sell it for a small profit.  Or you can find an exporter to rent your container.  Also get a 20 foot container, the cost to ship a 20 is alot cheaper, and it is not because it is small its because that is the standard size container.  Also make sure you itemize everything in your container. And i mean everything.  And label everything as private not for resale.  Per example "private household couch".  If something is brand new remove the tags and boxes and repack it.  Place everything small in balikbayam boxes.  And label the boxes.  Big items make sure they are on pallets with labels on itemizing and marking them not for resale.  And on you main shipping label. If they find that you have multiple items that are the same they will say that you are going to resell and they will label the whole container as for resale.  Then you will have a problem.  Make sure you note moving to philippines with household of furnishings.  If you have a car or truck that you are shipping make sure you follow those guidlines ( pay the taxes on it before arrival) and attach to the windows of the vehicle.  It sounds difficult, but the key is to make sure you dont look like your hiding anyrhing.  Also a toy gun will get your container in limbo for long time.  Philippines doesnt not allow anything that can harm a filipino, or something that looks like it would harm.  Nerf guns are on that list as well.  I know its wierd, but its forbidden. Hapag loyd is a greay cargo shipping company.  Maersk is good as well but they have alot of hidden fees.

Hi Rick (MovingToCebu), a late welcome to the forum from me, enjoy and I hope you find some answers. This will be long winded but you might pick up on a few points from our experiences as well as others input, Bukidnonkane is a great example.

Firstly If I could ask, how/why is your wife exempt from duties and taxes? Diplomat?
My better half lived and worked in Australia (permanent resident) for over 5 years and was only allowed PHP 250K of exemptions,,,,,  returning Filipino and not an OFW. That didn't matter in the end for us but I was waiting for the bill that never came when our container arrived here with the original seal. (the new government?)

We too looked at buying an in service certified container to pack, ship and unload onto our property, about another AU 2K when you take hire fees into account so we could firstly have time to unload at our leisure and a storage container afterwards, firstly we are absolute beachfront/salt air, high end expat houses that could turn their noses up at the prospect of looking at a shipping container but the clincher was the crane costs to unload an 8 or 9 ton loaded container given our location was a 3 lift move with the crane and they wanted PHP 75 to 80K. We put that one to bed.

We searched and got costs from many companies, most would not entertain the idea of delivering a container to our home on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, giving us 2 or 3 weeks to cram it full, pick it up, ship and deliver to our door 7/8 hours north of Manila in a short semi, give us 2 weeks to unpack then pick up the empty container. The worst part with most of these "shoddy shippers" was the fact that they wanted us to find our own forwarder in Manila, search we did but most never responded and those that did were not helpful to our needs.

We finally found a company in Oz that we had confidence in, dealt with them over a 12 month period with organising and costings, dealing with their forwarders in Manila and honestly professional and more than helpful, not often found here in PH. their Australian partners (our shippers) were the same. A good partnership.

Cut to the chase. AU $7,940.00: a brand new 20 ft container delivered, 3 weeks for us to load and manifest (some 10/11 typed pages giving full details but no values), then picked up with a side lifter, driver put the customs seal on the container as well as our padlocks,  Brisbane port, shipped, delivered Manila, customs, BIR, delivered on a short Semi to our door, a mini van accompanied our load with 5 workers to unload into our house and studio under our direction as we ticked off the manifest, hard workers that were very accomodating, we supplied them lunch and gave them pesos for dinner on their return to Manila.
Those guys arrived here at 7 am after a long drive, worked all day, left here around 5 PM for another 7 hour return journey, labour is certainly cheaper here than Oz.

Prior to the container arrival in Manila Ben, the better half was back in PH. while I was working in OZ., he was cleaning up the mess left by our previous tenant, had to go back to Manila to our forwarders, give the keys for the padlocks on the container, sign documents, passport verification, Australian permanent resident doc's, declarations etc.
All in all the biggest hurdle was organising the fanfare from Australia, the PH. side was easy and professional.

Do it again? Yep as we probably shipped AU 50 to 60K in furniture, tools, artworks, computers, kitchen things I knew we couldn't buy here or were ridiculously expensive.
I also packed thing that I thought we needed, doh. Sold stuff that we should have kept.... Doh. Now we are shipping things from Oz/other countries in Balakbayan boxes or internet purchases. We sent a brand new rotary clothes line from Oz in our container and simply called it a clothes line in the manifest because in my 9 years traveling about in PH.  Never saw one, we are the envy of the western toffs living around us that hang sheets on bits of string between trees because their pull out aluminium lines are too small, you get the picture, think long and hard about your move.
Going back we can't change what we did/shipped but a 65 inch curved screen on the second hand market in Oz is worth 2 bob and a bottle of beer, in PH.? Try and buy one, some decent brand PHP 100K. the 2 55 inch tv's the same, high end audiophile the same, quality furniture ditto.

As for your oak furniture, most western timbers unless it's cedar or cypress, a few others the termites will have a field day depending on your locale of course, another story if you are interested.

I can put you in touch with the forwarders we used in Manila and a quick search shows they have an office in Cebu, the guy I mostly dealt with was Irish/english from memory but his leading hand, Filipino had a great grasp of english and was more than helpful.
Send me a pvt msg if you want their details as the are forwarders dealing with around a hundred countries and I'm sure the can steer you in the right direction in the States.

Told you would be long winded. Good luck.

Cheers, Steve.

Dear sir with the container from chicago  i have been looking for a way to legally get a 600 cc motor cycle to cebu  or cdo .. i have a home in di polog city..  i cant find anyone who knows  how to do this the Chicago Philippines embassy  is closed to walk in traffic and does not answer my messages??    hopefully you can help ?   my name is  Paul  .  the bike is a 1997 yamaha  that is completely restored  and rebuilt to new... it is also in my wifes  name she is a Philippines citizen. living with me in chicago  . i new  to put it her name just for the tax.. thats where  i hit a dead end..

Thank you for this great information Steve.  I am considering the same thing from Canada to Cebu.  I am hoping if I send you a private message you can send me details of the company you used in Manila that has an office in Cebu.

Much appreciated,

Don

Right on the furniture, you can get it custom built, we have a company in Davao city that build custom furniture and supply lumber, they build some of the nicest custom table tops I have seen, they also sell exotic wood, last time I was there the had a log 5 ft DIA 20 ft long that had been cut into 8 inch slabs than put back together banded and shipped to Davao from Africa, the company is ANG PANIDY

Thank you for the information. Yes I am planning on coming to Davao where I have a lady friend and to see if it works out between the two of us.
I do not like the very hot weather so this is going to be an issue with me and I am looking at other areas up in Luzon for cooler temps. Any suggestion from you will be appreciated.

Top 10 Coldest Places in Philippines.

https://www.beholdphilippines.com/colde … is-summer/