Shipping Notes
From Openmoko
(Obsolete since the new http://www.openmoko.com/ shop?)
We are currently able to ship direct to the countries listed below. Please help us make this a smoother process by letting us know any special procedures we should be aware of.
When shipping, please e-mail the tracking number to the recipient. People may have to adapt their schedule to be there to receive a shipment, and if there are problems, it may be necessary for the recipient to establish contact with the shipping company, so we really need to know what is on the way, and how it is progressing.
Countries
Following countries list is where Openmoko Neo P0 + P1 had been shipped and delivered. Some receivers had had customs clearance issues back then, but eventually went through.
For the countries that are not on the list below, we would still take the orders and give them a try. Unless the same customs issues happen repeatedly.
Please keep this list alphabetically sorted
Argentina
Went through better via EMS carrier -Liane
Customs procedures in Argentina can be extremely bureaucratic and not all customs officials are trying to be helpful. If a shipment gets stopped at customs and requires direct intervention of the recipient, costs skyrocket, and sorting the mess out can easily take 2-3 days. It is therefore important to avoid items or declarations that can cause problems.
Custom procedures differ slightly by type of carrier, and among carriers. E.g., regular mail or EMS are taxed a flat 50% of the combined value of goods and shipping, but customs officials there tend to be friendly and don't try to rise issues that complicate clearance. Furthermore, in case of problems, it should be possible to return the shipment to the sender at no or only small additional cost.
Taxes on shipments with FedEx, UPS, or DHL are determined by a more complex set of rules, and the total fees usually end up between 30% (if there are no problems at all) and 60% (if intervention is needed, but there are no further problems) of the combined value of goods and shipping. Empirical data suggests that shipments with DHL get stopped considerably more often than with other couriers. If bringing a shipment through customs appears too onerous, it cannot be returned to the sender if it was brought by any of these carriers. Instead, it has to be abandoned, which may cause additional paperwork and fees of up to approximately USD 100.
- Do not send power supplies
Any item that needs more than 50V to operate requires an Argentine certificate to be brought into the country. This requirement seems to get particularly strictly enforced by shipments with DHL. In general, EMS or FedEx get more reasonable handling. In order to avoid complications:
- Do not ship power supplies if that can be avoided. All sorts of inexpensive small stabilized power supplies are available locally.
- If a special connector is needed on the low-voltage side to connect an otherwise normal power source, please include the connector.
- If the power supply is absolutely required, please consider sending it in a separate shipment, so that, if there are problems, it won't taint the other shipment.
- Use, in this order of preference, EMS, FedEx, or UPS instead of DHL.
- Product samples can only be imported by registered importers
Basically, any "industrial" goods require substantial bureaucracy and the help of a customs broker. This then translates either to the customs broker trying to bring about a more cooperative mood in the officials involved, or a painful, slow, and expensive importation procedure. In any case, costs will increase be several hundred USD. Therefore, do not, under no circumstance, declare any shipment as a "sample" or equivalent.
- Import of used goods is heavily restricted
For some mysterious reasons, used items can only be brought into the country if they are personal effects accompanying a traveler or immigrant (accompanied or unaccompanied luggage). Anything else that is used may actually get confiscated. Thus avoid giving the idea that any part of the shipment may be anything but new. In particular, package items neatly and do not declare them as "used".
- Avoid ambiguous declarations
For example, polychlorinated biphenyls, abbreviated as "PCB", are prohibited in most places, including Argentina. So when shipping a printed circuit board, please don't write "PCB" anywhere in the paperwork. In general, it is a good idea to briefly consider what a person, who suspects you to try to sneak something prohibited past, may make of the declaration and accompanying paperwork.
- Declare a plausible value
Also customs officials know Google, so don't try to declare a value that is way below the market value. If the item could be confused with something significantly more expensive, or the declaration may suggest so, please try to write the declaration such that it is clearer. However, when doing this, avoid being overly verbose, since you may hit by accident some keyword they don't like.
- Mobile phones
Mobile phones probably need their certification, too, but I have no empirical data to tell how customs will react to this. So we may just have to take our chances. If a device containing telephone functionality can be credibly declared as something else, that may help to avoid drawing unwanted attention, but bear in mind that customs officials are likely to google for any items that seem suspicious. If declaring a phone, do not specify the frequency. Argentina uses the 1900 MHz GSM band, and there have been conflicts with cordless phones operating in the same frequency range. Therefore, a special law has been passed to prohibit importation of these devices, mentioning explicitly the frequencies. Thus, customs officials may get confused if they see such a frequency in the declaration, even if the device is actually not meant to be affected by that law.
- Watch the value
Customs regulations allow for a simplified procedure, in which the courier service takes care of customs clearance, and charges the recipient for fees and taxes upon delivery. This is, of course, the by far most preferable process. (All the complications mentioned above are exceptions that make this simplified procedure no longer applicable.) There are limits for the maximum value a shipment may have in order to be processed under the simplified procedure. As a general rule of thumb, the combined value of goods plus shipping should stay below USD 1000. Depending on the shipping method uses, the limit can be considerably higher, please check http://200.1.116.73/english/postalSystem.asp for details.
All this may sound paranoid, and it probably is to some extent. However, it seems that customs controls have gotten fairly picky recently, and if a shipment has any issues, resolving them is very time-consuming and expensive, so it is much preferable to err on the side of extreme caution. In general, please try to use courier services in this order of preference: EMS (best), FedEx, UPS, DHL (worst).
Australia
Okay so far -Liane
Canada
Not yet shipped there -Liane
- Choice of Shipping Companies
While just about all carriers deliver to Canada, including regular postal mail, the carrier of choice is Federal Express. One reason for this is that Federal Express has streamlined their customs procedures and has dedicated agents who shepherd the packages through the import process quickly. Note though, that FedEx Air (desirable) is different from FedEx Ground (undesirable), which should be avoided if there is a choice between types.
Using alternate carriers like DHL, for example, will often result in additional brokerage fee charges which arrive by separate invoice. DHL tends to designate a brokerage firm on your behalf, and their fees are usually high. Brokers designed by DHL will quickly send all unpaid invoices to collection agents, so ignoring one of these brokerage fee bills is at your peril.
If sending by regular postal mail, if there are any duties, taxes or other fees due, the package is often delivered C.O.D. (Cash On Delivery/Demand), requiring whomever is accepting the package to pay an unknown amount upon delivery or the package will be returned to sender. If nobody is there to accept the parcel and pay the fees, the parcel is sent to the closest Post Office, and a note is left in the mailbox. Usually, custom charges are cheap ($8.00)and you pay applicable sales taxes on value declared. If the amounts are negligible, however, Canada Post has been known to waive the amounts, or send non-C.O.D. follow-up invoices.
UPS is an acceptable choice if you are having products delivered to an MBE / UPS Store, which are relatively common in Canada. As UPS has bought out the MBE franchise, most/all MBE/UPS Stores are UPS franchises. This means that rival carriers, however, may sometimes be less inclined to be circumspect about their deliveries there. (See warning below).
- A warning about receiving parcels at mailbox services
There is an unofficial feud between Canada Post and Mailboxes Etc. (MBE) / UPS Store (and other mailbox service stores), where parcels slated for delivery to MBE/UPS Store will not be delivered, only a notification that delivery has failed and that the parcel must be picked up at a nearby Canada Post office (with a few days delay before it gets there). Canada Post never actually attempts delivery. In some circumstances, the parcel will just be returned to sender without explanation. Attempts to trace the problem back to the source usually results in an even more unofficial blacklist against the person who inquires / makes a fuss, which causes regular non-parcel mail delivery problems for some time afterward. Note: In the interest of fairness, this is all alleged and opinion, and is not presented as fact.
- Mailbox services should be listed by suite
People receiving delivery of parcels at mailbox services (e.g. MBE/UPS Store) should have their box number listed as a suite (e.g. Suite 320 rather than Box 320), or the carrier will usually refuse delivery (typically after it clears customs) and the parcel will be returned to sender. The notable exception to using a suite number is if the mailbox in question is a traditional old-style Canada Post Postal Box.
- Declare a plausible value and easy keyword
While in theory parcels can be declared as NCV (No Commercial Value) or Gifts, they take a dim view if they think you are trying to cheat the system, particularly on commercial purchases of items like phones or other electronics. If using a carrier other than Federal Express, your parcel may be subject to more scrutiny at customs. Parcels have duties, taxes and fees, or are exempt, based on keywords. For small ticket items, declaring the entire package as a cell phone will put it in that category. In theory it is possible to ascribe a value for the cell phone, the software and the manual/documentation which add up to the total declared amount; Some items may be exempt. In reality, it is usually easier and better to just declare a single keyword category.
- Provide your contact information
Provide the shipper and recipient phone number in addition to the full recipient's address (including mandatory Postal Code). If there is no recipient phone number, situations that crop up in customs or in delivery failures (or rerouting) may cause your parcel to be returned to sender if they cannot contact you. The shipper phone number is needed as a backup contact for delivery information, as well as a customs contact if there are any questions about country of manufacturer, category of parcel, etcetera.
Czech Republic
Okay so far -Liane
Denmark
Okay so far -Liane
- Choice of shipping company
The Danish public postal system has excellent parcel tracking and pickup points at every town and usually delivers a better service than UPS/FedEx - especially if you are not home to get the parcel.
- Duty
Shipping from inside EU will result in no duty.
If sent from Taipei the duty will be 25%. UPS will also require a fee for paying the duty (USD 20).
Finland
Okay so far -Liane
Finnish customs likes to block packages with a 0$ value, even when labeled as gift or engineering sample The best thing is to ship it with a low declared value like between 20 to 45 euros. Also they will need the birth day or henkilötunnus (social security number) for the recipient.
- Got "
A HOLD HAS BEEN REQUESTED. PAYMENT MUST BE MADE PRIOR TO RELEASE" in the tracker (package sent to company address). Was given+358 96 132 824"UPS Finland Brokerage", then passed through three people; gave a number and got a call back from a fourth with an email address with amount. This amount appears to be ~22% (VAT?) of the original total when converted from USD to EUR. Emailed credit card details to address given. Card didn't get accepted (?); bank transfer for the same amount sent to account number/reference given. Amount: €187 for three Neos. -sladen
France
Okay so far -Liane
Germany
Okay so far -Liane
Just make sure two copies of a commercial or pro-forma invoice are included. Those should be attached to the outside of the box in a clearview envelope. So they can be identified as Pro-forma invoices. Otherwise customs will stop and contact the reciever in order to open the box with permissions( or not ) . Declaring the type as non-working / engineering computer sample should be needed. Also the market value should be declared to 0 as it this hardware will not be resold nor used as spare parts. This term easily applies to all Phase 0 units.
Customs fee 76,35e - Juhapekka Piiroinen
I ordered the development kit. It said that the value was 450 us dollars in the top of the packet. So they made the calculations based on that. Phase 1
GTA01v4 ordered in November 2007: $50 shipping cost + 50€ Customs fee for standard kit
I selected EXPRESS PLUS for shipping (was one a few $ more expensive than STANDARD, the cheapest), Shipping was very fast, the whole order took only few days (less than a week) from order to arrival. Duties are converted to a pay-on-receival fee ("Nachnahme" in German) which the UPS couriers just ask for you when handing over the package.
Hungary
Okay so far -Liane
Indonesia
Haven't try yet
Better using DHL/UPS
India
Okay so far to residential address -Liane
If the phone order is for your personal purpose, please don't give your company's address as ship-to address. If the receiver's address indicates a corporate name, the customs officier will request a corporate broker to do the customs clearance, and it might cause you some problems that you need to explain to your company. -Liane
Ireland
John Tobin : No Problems - Sent by UPS, was not charged any vat or import duty
Italy
Okay so far -Liane
Direct shipping through the postal service, from a country outside the European Union borders is a bureaucratic mess, because the receiving end has to suffer the burden of dealing with customs officials. On the other hand, if the package is sent through an authorized carrier, like UPS or DHL, they will do all the proper paperwork on your behalf.
demaledetti - For a UPS Worldwide Express delivery I got called immediately after shipping by UPS Italy asking me to fax them a statement mentioning that the device is CE compliant, I did it and there was no delay because of this as far as I can tell. At delivery time I had to pay €60.61 for customs tax.
New Zealand
Okay so far -Liane
Norway
Items with a value over $35 USD and Under $175 USD will be declared by a fee paid on the postal service. Value over $175 USD will be stopped for declaring by Customs. Clearly mark as a Cellular phone and Value of the phone without post costs.
Poland
Okay so far -Liane
Please declare package content as cellular phone. European Union citizens can import such electronics from Taiwan duty free. Customer will have to pay 22% VAT tax of declared package value.
Tomek Z.: with my phase 0 Neo I had to convince Customs that Neo1973 is a phone - showing SIM card slot is enough. Marcin's package passed border without inspection, matter of luck.
Marcin 'Hrw' Juszkiewicz: Phase1 phone was sent via UPS and hit customs. I paid 22% VAT of value from invoice and 15 PLN for handling it to UPS courier.
Krzysztof Kajkowski: Shipping costs from Taiwan are very high - $96 (as for 09-07-2007).
PiotrDuda: Details about phase 1 shipping costs.
Russian Federation
Not yet shipped there -Liane
It was told that Customs never passed electronic devices (like Nokia N770) that arent certified by Rostest. So it seems we're unable to get openmokos directly here.
Slovenia
Peter Kraker: Phone (GTA01BV4) was delivered from US via UPS service in approximately one week. You'll have to fill in an import declaration for the package. There was 67€ tax and 6€ bank guarantee added to phone cost (300$) and delivery (97$).
Sweden
Okay so far -Liane
I ordered a Neo advanced for 450 USD. The shipping (UPS WORLDWIDE_EXPRESS) was 127 USD for a total of USD 577. There was a 'Posthanteringsavgift' (roughly: postal handling fee) of 43 SEK (~4 EUR), a 25% VAT of 935 SEK (~90 SEUR), and a 'Expeditionsavgift' (roughly: administrative fee) of 138 SEK (~14 EUR). Thus, the total was 450 USD plus 127 USD plus 1116 SEK (~160 USD). -Jas
Switzerland
Shipping successful and quick - 2 days -tornado
Shipping to Switzerland has been really easy and quick. Simply ask United Parcel Service for a CN 23 formular (usually with UPS logo on it) and mention, you want to ship to Switzerland.
Just make sure two copies of a commercial or pro-forma invoice are included and also a CN 23 formular. Those should be attached to the outside of the box in a clearview envelope. So they can be identified as Pro-forma invoices. Please ask UPS for a CN 23 formular to fill out and cross the checkbox "sample" and write in the nearby field "Explication" "nonfunctional Sample".
The true value of the phone kit as a whole should be factured = the same value a Swiss customer has paid before, for example 350 USD (not zero value), and declare the device as a prototype and sample. The Swiss receiver will have to pay a VAT of 7,6%. If the declaration is somewhat not sufficient, there will be an examination value between 6-10 CHF (1 USD = 1,25 CHF), but do not worry you will get the delivery.
You can facture zero value only, if the customer didn't paid anything to you and you send the prototype as a gift or as a delivery with the declaration, that FIC is still the owner.
You can also check here what you need to do as a private or company customer or phone to the Swiss Federal Customs Administration (Switzerland borders to France, Italy and Germany, so you can expect to communicate perfectly in English, German, French and Italian) http://www.ezv.admin.ch/zollinfo_privat/zu_beachten/00351/index.html?lang=en
The Netherlands
Okay so far -Liane
Import duty and taxes come to 87.90 euro for the advanced kit. (ouch!)
United Kingdom
Okay so far -Liane
Import duty & VAT of £41.79 charged by UPS for the Developer Preview Neo1973. May be more for the advanced version as it is based on the value of the device.
If goods are marked as no commercial value or as gift then import duty may be avoided.
--Phaid
United States of America
Okay so far -Liane
I have been told a lot of contradictory information but here is the distilled version that seemed consistent.
If it has all the relevant markings the device can just be imported without issue. Duty may be assessed.
If the device does not have the needed markings its import is duty free but DHL (for example) charges a handling fee of 0.2% or $25, whichever is the greater.
They also claim that we may need to file an FDA 2877 form for the "Declaration of Electronic products subject to Radiation Control Standards". I'm personally don't think this would apply since we're using a common GSM module.
It is my understanding that even if the form does need to be filed the device is an exempt item under part A6 if it is marked "FOR TEST / EVALUATION ONLY" and ownership is not passed on to anyone after the initial import.
UPDATE neo1973 made it straight through customs with no duty, delay or costs.
UPS Worldship Express Saver Costs to Various Places
Freight to be updated due to ship-from location changed from Taiwan to China -
- A.) based on Neo1973 Standard Phone Box Dimension: 16 x 16 x 10 cm | Total Weight: 0.6 kg
- B.) based on Hacker's Lunch Box Dimension: 28 x 16 x 24.5 cm | Total Weight: 1.8 kg
Countries where Openmoko plans to serve
Where Openmoko has been shipped to and delivered
- Argentina
- Australia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Hungary
- India
- Italy
- New Zealand
- Poland
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- The Netherlands
- United Kingdom
- United States
Where Openmoko tentatively plan to sell to
- Worldwide
