designer 0 Posted June 10, 2010 Hi all. Just joined this forum, because I have spent the last 3 hours 'googling' and still cant find the answer to my question. This site was the last 'google' i did, hence me joining. I'm from the UK and its completely illegal to sell REPLICA/FAKE watches over here. I'm married to a filipina, and we go back home about 3 times a year and bring back about 2/5 watches to 'sell' on back home. been doing this now for about 2 years. people tell us what they want and we get them. I've got a close friend in Thailand who wants me to buy watches from him whereby he will send them over with other items such as shoes/trainers/handbags and he can put on the customs note 'GIFTS' The vat/duty I dont mind paying My question is this. Why cant he put on the docket for the customs in the UK....NOVELTY ITEMS This way he can send over about 20 watches per parcel, via DHL or some other courier do you think that the customs will open the parcel and I will forfeit my goods?...expensive then for me I've seen many web sites with a disclaimer saying that these replica watches are for NOVELTY PURPOSE ONLY OR the other thing open to me is going to Thailand/Philippines and bringing them back myself, but then again IF i get stopped at NOTHING TO DECLARE desk with 20 watches in my case...I'm F*%*ED and the air fare dont warrant the profit on the watches Note:- Why cant we have a BALIK BAYAN box system here in the UK We send 3/4 boxes back to phils every 3 months and we can put ANYTHING we like in these boxes, they dont EVER get checked....lol Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Member X 91 Posted June 10, 2010 Sadly we are a paranoid country (probably with good reason ) so everything gets checked! I would tell him to send 2 or 3 watches per packet, at around a packet every 10 days, titled "broken watches for spares" or Novelty watches, as suggested, and a nominal value of around £20. Bit more in postage but will reduce the risk of seizure or looking blatant, and not lose you loads if you lose a parcel as can very occasionally happen.. All IMO, of course... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dingle 57 Posted June 10, 2010 Sadly we are a paranoid country (probably with good reason ) so everything gets checked! I would tell him to send 2 or 3 watches per packet, at around a packet every 10 days, titled "broken watches for spares" or Novelty watches, as suggested, and a nominal value of around £20. Bit more in postage but will reduce the risk of seizure or looking blatant, and not lose you loads if you lose a parcel as can very occasionally happen.. All IMO, of course... :o +1 ....and maybe ship to several different addresses as well welcome to the nuthouse BTW Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brightlight 0 Posted June 10, 2010 Be warned this is probably not a good time to bring in watches. See below. I know it is football shirts they are looking for but .......... Fake football shirts seized at Coventry postal hub Page last updated at 00:03 GMT, Wednesday, 9 June 2010 01:03 UK Thousands of fake football shirts have been seized at one of the UK's largest mail sorting centres just days before the World Cup starts. Representatives from Adidas, Nike, Puma and Umbro and counterfeiting experts are checking parcels at the international postal hub in Coventry. They are targeting fake England and Premier League football shirts. Immigration minister Damian Green said smugglers undercut honest businesses by an estimated £11bn a year. Fake shirts can cost from £9 to £30 via mail order whereas genuine ones cost between £35 and £48. 'Bring before courts' The officials are targeting items from China, Thailand and Malaysia where the black market fuels organised crime and is linked to child labour and workhouses. Mr Green added: "People often don't realise that the profits made by these smugglers are ploughed straight back into other criminal activities such as drug smuggling and human trafficking. "UK Border Agency officers will continue to crack down on this illegal trade by seizing fake shirts and helping legitimate manufacturers bring those criminals responsible before the courts." Syd Rasheed, of the Premier League's anti-counterfeiting programme, said the smugglers targeted unsuspecting fans. "Many football fans buy what they believe to be genuine replica shirts but end up with poor quality rip-offs with the money used to pay for them often funding other types of criminal activity. "We advise all football fans to purchase replica shirts from official club stores or websites or properly licensed retailers." Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Member X 91 Posted June 10, 2010 Bugger, that could be annoying if anything gets picked up... EU buying might be the answer at the moment... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 81 Posted June 11, 2010 UK customs aren't particularly interested in rep watches brought in for personal use. As the quantities get higher, though, so do the risks. The safest shipping from Thailand is likely to be airmail - your goods are more likely to be searched if brought in via DHL or Fedex. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
designer 0 Posted June 11, 2010 Just wanna say a big thank you, Your answers have helped me a lot Thanks Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gran 198 Posted June 11, 2010 Problem with discussing customs issues openly on the forums is that we dont want the officials to find out excatly how it is done...Lucky me my cusin Andrew in Farawayplace City love to send me presents so no customs issues for me Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KBH 7 Posted June 11, 2010 So, basically, you want to become a dealer in contraband watches in UK. And I copy from your post: "I'm from the UK and its completely illegal to sell REPLICA/FAKE watches over here." Best of luck and when you end up in the slammer, say hi to Bubba for me. Not a good idea. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sammysmiths 41 Posted June 11, 2010 Be warned this is probably not a good time to bring in watches. See below. I know it is football shirts they are looking for but .......... Fake football shirts seized at Coventry postal hub Page last updated at 00:03 GMT, Wednesday, 9 June 2010 01:03 UK Thousands of fake football shirts have been seized at one of the UK's largest mail sorting centres just days before the World Cup starts. Representatives from Adidas, Nike, Puma and Umbro and counterfeiting experts are checking parcels at the international postal hub in Coventry. They are targeting fake England and Premier League football shirts. Immigration minister Damian Green said smugglers undercut honest businesses by an estimated £11bn a year. Fake shirts can cost from £9 to £30 via mail order whereas genuine ones cost between £35 and £48. 'Bring before courts' The officials are targeting items from China, Thailand and Malaysia where the black market fuels organised crime and is linked to child labour and workhouses. Mr Green added: "People often don't realise that the profits made by these smugglers are ploughed straight back into other criminal activities such as drug smuggling and human trafficking. "UK Border Agency officers will continue to crack down on this illegal trade by seizing fake shirts and helping legitimate manufacturers bring those criminals responsible before the courts." Syd Rasheed, of the Premier League's anti-counterfeiting programme, said the smugglers targeted unsuspecting fans. "Many football fans buy what they believe to be genuine replica shirts but end up with poor quality rip-offs with the money used to pay for them often funding other types of criminal activity. "We advise all football fans to purchase replica shirts from official club stores or websites or properly licensed retailers." Shit! I guess thats why my England shirt hasnt arrived in time for kick off tommorrow. Unless it arrives in the morning post. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
barkingtoad 2 Posted June 11, 2010 Be warned this is probably not a good time to bring in watches. See below. I know it is football shirts they are looking for but .......... Fake football shirts seized at Coventry postal hub Page last updated at 00:03 GMT, Wednesday, 9 June 2010 01:03 UK Thousands of fake football shirts have been seized at one of the UK's largest mail sorting centres just days before the World Cup starts. Representatives from Adidas, Nike, Puma and Umbro and counterfeiting experts are checking parcels at the international postal hub in Coventry. They are targeting fake England and Premier League football shirts. Immigration minister Damian Green said smugglers undercut honest businesses by an estimated £11bn a year. Fake shirts can cost from £9 to £30 via mail order whereas genuine ones cost between £35 and £48. 'Bring before courts' The officials are targeting items from China, Thailand and Malaysia where the black market fuels organised crime and is linked to child labour and workhouses. Mr Green added: "People often don't realise that the profits made by these smugglers are ploughed straight back into other criminal activities such as drug smuggling and human trafficking. "UK Border Agency officers will continue to crack down on this illegal trade by seizing fake shirts and helping legitimate manufacturers bring those criminals responsible before the courts." Syd Rasheed, of the Premier League's anti-counterfeiting programme, said the smugglers targeted unsuspecting fans. "Many football fans buy what they believe to be genuine replica shirts but end up with poor quality rip-offs with the money used to pay for them often funding other types of criminal activity. "We advise all football fans to purchase replica shirts from official club stores or websites or properly licensed retailers." Shit! I guess thats why my England shirt hasnt arrived in time for kick off tommorrow. Unless it arrives in the morning post. :( Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dickbrowne 0 Posted June 12, 2010 But there is a difference between a couple of watches and a couple of thousand shirts I have watches shipped reasonably frequently, without problem so far, but you do run the risk of prosecution if you're found selling them on, especially in any great number. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
