Relocating to India

[SatMumbai]

Hi.. This is my first post here, so please go easy

I have been living in Germany for the past 6 years and now i am relocating to India.

I have a decent Home AV + HiFi set up. I have been upgrading over years and now finally have the dream set up (All bought / upgraded in recent 6 months).

However, I am planning to relocate to Mumbai in next few months. I can try to sell all the gear here or bring them with me.

I am not sure whether it is worth the effort?

On positive side - I will have the set up that I like and no further research / buying needs to be done

Where as on the negative side -
1. I am not aware of the customs duty (I am relocating with my Wife and we will be living in India for 3-4 years - if this information helps)
2. Shipping related damages etc

Does any one have a similar experience / knowledge in this area? What would be your suggestion for me?/

Thanks in anticipation.

Cheers!

 

[Nikhil]

If you are getting your relocation paid for the company you are working for I would suggest getting your gear over. You will have to deal with customs but since you are moving house you could get away with something but you still would have to pay customs duty.

The logic is that you could have a lot more difficulty getting a similar system here in India. Why bother to go through the process all over again at higher prices etc? Besides how much would you get for your gear "as is" in Germany?

Good luck with the move!

 

[just4kix]

Under transfer of residence scheme you will be allowed most personal effects nearly duty free. Visit the Indian Customs website for information, rules, and regulation plus exact duty rates.

Sent from my GT-I9100G using Tapatalk 2

 

[SatMumbai]

If you are getting your relocation paid for the company you are working for I would suggest getting your gear over. You will have to deal with customs but since you are moving house you could get away with something but you still would have to pay customs duty.

The logic is that you could have a lot more difficulty getting a similar system here in India. Why bother to go through the process all over again at higher prices etc? Besides how much would you get for your gear "as is" in Germany?

Good luck with the move!

It is a personal move and so I am wondering.

If I sell them 'As Is' then I might not loose much (at best 10% of the value could be the potential loss)
I am concerned about the customs duty majorly but if it is not much then I can bring all my gear.
Thank You!

 

[SatMumbai]

Under transfer of residence scheme you will be allowed most personal effects nearly duty free. Visit the Indian Customs website for information, rules, and regulation plus exact duty rates.

Sent from my GT-I9100G using Tapatalk 2

Thank you. I have seen it but not really sure what are the limits or if there are exceptions.

I am looking to hear for some experiences here so I know what to expect (if there are any surprises)

We have
1. 2 Televisions which we are planning to bring
2. HT system (Processor + Power Amp + 5 speakers + Subwoofer)
3. HiFi system (DAC + Power Amp + Stereo Speakers)
4. Bed Room (One Box System)

Does any one think that it is too much or all could be exempted from customs duty.

 

[2chFreak]

Thank you. I have seen it but not really sure what are the limits or if there are exceptions.

I am looking to hear for some experiences here so I know what to expect (if there are any surprises)

We have
1. 2 Televisions which we are planning to bring
2. HT system (Processor + Power Amp + 5 speakers + Subwoofer)
3. HiFi system (DAC + Power Amp + Stereo Speakers)
4. Bed Room (One Box System)

Does any one think that it is too much or all could be exempted from customs duty.

If the mood of the accessing Customs Officer is good or if he's had a wholesome breakfast / lunch, you MAY get away. Or else, expect to pay some 5-10% of the accessed value (after tons of haggling ..) and a whole day wasted at the port ..

Tip : Pack in a crate of some good German beer. You part that off and everything comes in Free ... :lol: :clapping:

 

[SatMumbai]

If the mood of the accessing Customs Officer is good or if he's had a wholesome breakfast / lunch, you MAY get away. Or else, expect to pay some 5-10% of the accessed value (after tons of haggling ..) and a whole day wasted at the port ..

Tip : Pack in a crate of some good German beer. You part that off and everything comes in Free ... :lol: :clapping:

This is exactly the kind of the information I am looking for. Thanks alot! Let us see what could I do about the beer crate

 

[manoj.p]

Take as much you can, because if you have to buy it in India, it will be more cost + even may not be available. I have seen people taking even furniture to India, because the cost after duty is still less compared if you have to buy in India.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Slightly off-topic, but I strongly recommend getting one shipping company to handle everything from the packing in Germany to the unpacking in India. Part of this service will be dealing with the port and customs stuff.

In approximate terms, you can think of transfer of residence allowance as giving you one each of almost everything. It must be used personal property: it would not be good for a container-full of patently new, unopened hifi kit

I think my 2006 customs bill, for a houseful of furniture, including computer, hifi, kitchen stuff and all, was about Rs4,000. I had been prepared for worse...

 

[SatMumbai]

Slightly off-topic, but I strongly recommend getting one shipping company to handle everything from the packing in Germany to the unpacking in India. Part of this service will be dealing with the port and customs stuff.

In approximate terms, you can think of transfer of residence allowance as giving you one each of almost everything. It must be used personal property: it would not be good for a container-full of patently new, unopened hifi kit

I think my 2006 customs bill, for a houseful of furniture, including computer, hifi, kitchen stuff and all, was about Rs4,000. I had been prepared for worse...

This is a pretty good advice. Most of my gear is used and none are really brand new (at least few months old)

We considered container but it looks quite expensive (Almost at 5000 Euros and customs handling actuals). Also the containers are usaully quoting a 8 week period for delivery. When we pack our bad & mattress here, it looks like we need to wait for 2 months for the container to come and in the meanwhile we might not be able to buy good bed & mattress (as an example).

So currently we are selling most of our stuff especially furniture barring electronics and essentials. There is an agency which is offering us 200 Kgs for 700 Euros which we might bump to 300 Kgs max.

 

[2chFreak]

Talk to DB Schenker.

My family used them to move from India to Paris and so on ..

they are good and efficient

 

[srinisundar]

This is a pretty good advice. Most of my gear is used and none are really brand new (at least few months old)

We considered container but it looks quite expensive (Almost at 5000 Euros and customs handling actuals). Also the containers are usaully quoting a 8 week period for delivery. When we pack our bad & mattress here, it looks like we need to wait for 2 months for the container to come and in the meanwhile we might not be able to buy good bed & mattress (as an example).

So currently we are selling most of our stuff especially furniture barring electronics and essentials. There is an agency which is offering us 200 Kgs for 700 Euros which we might bump to 300 Kgs max.

As I told Ebay.de is an heaven to buy audiophile goods.. I don't think so customs will be charged for relocation(only underground money will be only unofficially charged for speedy process). If you have high end gear bring it over here.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

it looks like we need to wait for 2 months for the container to come and in the meanwhile we might not be able to buy good bed & mattress (as an example).

Yes, it takes quite a while as it will come by sea. It is only feasible and desirable if you have stuff that you really want to keep and would not be able to do otherwise. My bill for the move, back then, was over GBP2,000, plus storage, as I was not actually ready to receive it this end when it arrived.

 

[SatMumbai]

Yes, it takes quite a while as it will come by sea. It is only feasible and desirable if you have stuff that you really want to keep and would not be able to do otherwise. My bill for the move, back then, was over GBP2,000, plus storage, as I was not actually ready to receive it this end when it arrived.

2000 GBP sounds more on the reasonable side. We are ready up to 2500 Euros but 4 to 5K euros is a bit unreasonable, I guess

 

[SatMumbai]

If you have high end gear bring it over here.

I am running another thread under pre-owned equipment where I have listed the items that I have.
They are reasonably high end but not ultimate, I guess.

 

[SatMumbai]

Talk to DB Schenker.

My family used them to move from India to Paris and so on ..

they are good and efficient

Checked with them already and it was through a friend who shifted stuff from Delhi to Germany. However they are asking between 4K to 5K for a container

 

[SatMumbai]

I think my 2006 customs bill, for a houseful of furniture, including computer, hifi, kitchen stuff and all, was about Rs4,000. I had been prepared for worse...

Might sound silly.. How do I prove that I am relocating? Also, is there a limit on how long I should have owned the equipment so that the custom's are a bit easy going?

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Might sound silly.. How do I prove that I am relocating?

A container full of household goods?

Really not sure on the legal ins and outs of this now, as it is a few years since I did it. I seem to remember that being resident, in the immigration sense, helped. ie... I'm British, was then holding an 'X' visa on account of being married to an Indian, and I registered with FRRO.

Are you an Indian citizen? If not, are you of Indian origin? If not Indian passport holder, OCI? PIO? X visa?

Please see the Indian customs site for a few more details.

My suspicion is that my "container full of household goods" is more than a joke. There's a difference between that and a crate full of expensive electronics. I feel that, if you try that one one, they will sting you for the full rate of duty.

On a subsequent occasion when I brought a few boxes of stuff back here, we went and did the clearance/collection from the airport ourselves. It wasn't fun, it was long-winded and tedious, but it wasn't expensive, *but* the big question from customs was, "Any electronics?" There wasn't, and they accepted that the stuff was of no value except sentimental to me.

If you are going to do a crate-full of electronics, I think you need every receipt and bit of paper you have, especially to prove that the stuff is not brand new. They may still insist on applying their values, but they should at least depreciate them for the age of the stuff.

Others here must have more experience...

 

[manoj.p]

If you don't have that much stuff, then also look at Part container shipping. Its called LCL and you are using part of a container for your shipping. Comes out cheaper.

If you let the shipping co handle the logistics, then they can get appropriate docs from you that will prove your TR (transfer of residence) to India. If you go to R2IClubForums you will get more accurate info about all the things involved.

 

[SatMumbai]

If you don't have that much stuff, then also look at Part container shipping. Its called LCL and you are using part of a container for your shipping. Comes out cheaper.

If you let the shipping co handle the logistics, then they can get appropriate docs from you that will prove your TR (transfer of residence) to India. If you go to R2IClubForums you will get more accurate info about all the things involved.

Thank You! BTW, Your signature line is very nice!