post office charges for online orders

[diesel]

i've ordered dvds from online international sources like amazon and cdwow.  the post office used to charge me P30 (parcel fee ba tawag dun?).  until recently they were trying to charge me 10% of the estimated value of the merchandise + delivery.

my order was US$63 (P3,500) and the post office was charging me at least P1,200 (33%) parcel fee + P30 pa.  now if my math is correct, i should pay for P380 only.

does anybody know here the standard charges and computation?  di ko alam kung kinukuwartahan lang ako ng post office.  i tried checking the website of bureau of customs but i didn't find anything.  wala din silang contact number so that i can check if tama yung patakaran dun.

help!



mods, if there's an existing thread paki-merge na lang.

[oggsmoggs]

where do you live diesel? and when did they start asking for that accursed parcel fee?

[diesel]

san juan.  i've done it before, with the same lady on that desk.  she used to charge me P30 lang.  ang excuse nya this time, wala daw yung magko-compute kaya siya na lang. so dahil nga nagmamadali ako, sabi ko ok lang.  she told me na 10% daw of the estimated cost of the package (P3,500) including delivery charge.  ang tagal nya mag-compute for the 10% until she came up with a figure na P1,200 daw.  gusto ko nga sabihin, ano ka hilo?  1,200 does not make 10% of P3,500. nakiusap na lang ako na i'd give her P400 na lang. pumayag naman.  wala lang daw OR.

[T-850]

she cant even do basic math!   stupid little bit :-Xc!!

anyway sa makati naman mga 1K for a single dvd.

yung other areas naman paki post sa thread na to how much charge sa inyo.. thanks!  

[alvin]

san juan.  i've done it before, with the same lady on that desk.  she used to charge me P30 lang.  ang excuse nya this time, wala daw yung magko-compute kaya siya na lang. so dahil nga nagmamadali ako, sabi ko ok lang.  she told me na 10% daw of the estimated cost of the package (P3,500) including delivery charge.  ang tagal nya mag-compute for the 10% until she came up with a figure na P1,200 daw.  gusto ko nga sabihin, ano ka hilo?  1,200 does not make 10% of P3,500. nakiusap na lang ako na i'd give her P400 na lang. pumayag naman.  wala lang daw OR.

diesel,

i don't think that is the correct fee that should be collected from you. the fact that the lady agreed for P400 without a receipt means namemera lang sya. Wag mo patulan, takutin mo na isusumbong mo sya sa post master dyan o kaya ipa-Imbestigador mo.

[diesel]

obvious naman kase when she was computing, kung anu-anong number pinagsususulat nya.  eh you can do that computation in your head naman di ba?  then she came with a stoooopid answer.  nakakatawa nga.

pero syempre di ko pinahalata kase baka mas tumaas pa singil nya sa akin. baka harangin yung mga future orders ko.

anyway, would anybody know kung ano ang tamang computation?  may sinasabi silang charge na 10% of packages with more than US$50 in declared value.

[galahad]

sa makati ganun din... sobra laki ng charges...  
putek.. sana kung sa gov't. projects din napupunta...

[T-850]

ok so (correct me if im wrong):

Makati PO - roughly 1K

QC PO - 20-30php basta di lumalampas ng $50 yung value.

Antilplo = 20-30php

ano pa po?   lets do a guide of PO prices in this thread para at least we know how much different post offices charge and how un-uniform they are with their policies!  

[patupup]

QC PO - 20-30php basta di lumalampas ng $50 yung value.

sir, question lang.

Where is the QC PO located? thanks!

[T-850]

sir, question lang.

Where is the QC PO located? thanks!

sir pat,

sa may NIA yun.. sa loob from EDSA, you turn to NIA

you can also go through AGHAM then turn to NIA, i think its the road before BIR mas madali yun.  

[Philander]

ok so (correct me if im wrong):

QC PO - 20-30php basta di lumalampas ng $50 yung value.

Pang DVD lang po ba ito? Pano kung mabigat na for example 10lbs?

[T-850]

Pang DVD lang po ba ito? Pano kung mabigat na for example 10lbs?

so far pang dvd lang, from what i've been reading in other threads, i have no idea regarding other things that weigh a lot and is below $50.

the problem with the PO is that they dont follow the standard rules, alam ko pati dvd they have to weigh it, its apart of their computation for custom fees, etc but they do not follow this, for some reason.  

[galahad]

sa makati, they just opened the package, got the invoice and then compute on the taxes based on the total amount. wla pa dyan yung mga custom taxes.  

[T-850]

re-post from Sauron Cookie.

Re: Computations for Charges:

Actually, there are laws and mandates that clearly specify the taxation of parcels from abroad.

The standard rule is  a basic 10% of the declared value, multiplied by the current exchange rate.    The amount will then be added to the fee of about P100 (books and CDs), P200 (personal items like cosmetics), P300 (DVDs) , P500 jewelry and valuables) for every US$10 above a US$40 declared value.  The classification of each item is dependent on the customs official/s' assessment.  Commerical rates are even higher than personal parcel rates.

For example, if you ordered books worth US$50, the applicable customs duties would be Php370.  This comes from US$5 (10% of $50) x 54 (current rate)= Php270 + P100($10 above $40).

The problem really lies on the customs officials' assessment.  Even if it's just a VHS tape, they will make it appear that it is something very valuable in order to be able to charge you a higher fee.  Even if you order just 2 DVDs, they can make it appear that it is for commercial purposes and so charge more.  Each post office has a monthly quota for taxes.  The officials get a large percentage of whatever they are able to collect.  Then of course, if the recipient is too shocked and is unable to pay the supposed duties, they will readily offer the poor recipient a "settlement".  The officials will suddenly whip out a calculator and tell the recipient that they can make "certain concessions" and voila, some magical amount lower than the supposed duties will appear on the calculator screen!  In some post offices, the customs officials can be directly "garapal"; they will tell the recipient offhand that they want say P500 and they will release your parcel no questions asked.

Some post offices are closely monitored by the media and therefore have no choice but to do things properly.  In the Ortigas Center post office, the business district already generates more than enough taxes so that they generally don't coax money out of poor recipients.

Sigh, in short, your taxes and duties really depend on whether you are in luck today or not.

[diesel]

so saan ngayon papasok yung P30 na standard charge?

[T-850]

so saan ngayon papasok yung P30 na standard charge?

its standard storage fee, i think this should always be included.  

[diesel]

okay so if my order is below US$50, i only pay for the P30 storage fee?

[T-850]

okay so if my order is below US$50, i only pay for the P30 storage fee?

that's my understanding from the people i read who posted their experiences with QCPO.. if you're going to have it delivered to a QC addy, please let me know of your shipping experience with QCPO. im planning also to buy online..  

[toyfanatic]

i've ordered dvds from online international sources like amazon and cdwow.  the post office used to charge me P30 (parcel fee ba tawag dun?).  until recently they were trying to charge me 10% of the estimated value of the merchandise + delivery.

my order was US$63 (P3,500) and the post office was charging me at least P1,200 (33%) parcel fee + P30 pa.  now if my math is correct, i should pay for P380 only.

does anybody know here the standard charges and computation?  di ko alam kung kinukuwartahan lang ako ng post office.  i tried checking the website of bureau of customs but i didn't find anything.  wala din silang contact number so that i can check if tama yung patakaran dun.

help!



mods, if there's an existing thread paki-merge na lang.

sir, as far as i know if your order exceeds $50 thats the time Post office will charge you.  Although im not sure of the rates

[toyfanatic]

okay so if my order is below US$50, i only pay for the P30 storage fee?

correct! better order one at a time  

[diesel]

i agree. this is the best alternative.  mas makakmura ka pala if you have it shipped separately.

[T-850]

so you're going to do it then, bro diesel?

taga san pala kyo?  

[groucho]

she used to charge me P30 lang.  ang excuse nya this time, wala daw yung magko-compute kaya siya na lang. so dahil nga nagmamadali ako, sabi ko ok lang.  she told me na 10% daw of the estimated cost of the package (P3,500) including delivery charge.  ang tagal nya mag-compute for the 10% until she came up with a figure na P1,200 daw.  gusto ko nga sabihin, ano ka hilo?  1,200 does not make 10% of P3,500. nakiusap na lang ako na i'd give her P400 na lang. pumayag naman.  wala lang daw OR.

Kunin mo ang pangalan.  I-report mo sa dyaryo.  O sa Imbestigador.  O kay Tulfo.  Makulong sana siya.

[baby]

I orderded dvd's from amazon about $93++ they charged me about 1,600++

[diesel]

so you're going to do it then, bro diesel?

taga san pala kyo?  

san juan.  i'm going to have another shipping next week.

[krets pulpol]

hmmm... i've tried to ship cds, dvds, model kits, books, model kit accessories here in makati.
the bad thing is, makati post office has customs examiners and appraisers, some post offices don't.
i've been charged thousands and thousands for my contrabands hehe sometimes, i'll tell the merchants to declare the goods at lower prices just to get away with taxes.

i spoke with that b*tchy customs examiner and told me what's taxable or not. if i can remember it correctly, below are rates (costs)

for books - should not exceed $40

for cds - should not $20

for dvds - not taxable if 1 dvd, two or more taxable na!

but the bad news is, most merchants declare the actual amount i.e amazon, cdwow etc. so you can't get away with it, they can see the reciepts also

once they know that your goods exceed the limit, they can see it by the way through a green sticker with all the declared items and value

here are the itemized charges

import duty - depends on their computation
+
bir taxes - vat - their computation again
               - specific/excise tax - their computation again
+ proceeds-auction sale = 250 (fixed)

+ miscellanious = 250 (fixed)

plus 30 pesos stocking fee, before 20 lang

you'll notice 500 pesos is fixed, succeeding depends on the value of goods (tax rates vary on toys, books cds etc.) they have a book!

to get away with it, you can either bribe them hehe or ship it where post offices don't have examiners  

by the way, costs are computed with shipping charges so most of the time, it will exceed their limit esp. airmails

[diesel]

can u demonstrate a sample computation?

[krets pulpol]

here's a sample

1. import duty - 193

2. bir taxes - 15

   2.1 vat - 456
   2.2 specific/excise tax -

3. proceeds auction sale - 250

4. penalties/surcharge -

5. miscellaneous - 250

total cost = 1164 plus 30 for stocking fee

value of merchandise - 70 usd (incl. shipping

70 x 55 = 3850 pesos
                  193 (imp. duty 5/10 of 3850)
                  515 (i still don't know where she got this)
                4558 total x .10 = 456 VAT

a paid a thousand plus to get my package, you'll notice the 500 fixed charges, 250 is miscellaneous (goes to their pockets  )

very lucrative business  

[galahad]

no wonder saw a guy there wearing thick yellow chains on his neck and fingers.  

[krets pulpol]

hahahaha   but i think he's ok, very lenient! never been charged when he's on duty.

by the way, are you talking about the makati p.o.?

beware of the old fat lady  ! she's the evil one!!  

the only times i got away were she wasn't around!