I recently saw a post through Rick’s tours that sounded really helpful but I am not sure if I can still do it. The suggestion was to send personal items home once you had used them to lighten your load while traveling.
Things like hiking boots you no longer needed, golf clubs etc.
Does this still make financial sense given tariffs and the elimination of Deminimis exemption? Has anyone tried this recently? Was it successful?
Have not done it, but from what I've read, the paperwork for shipping stuff to the US has gotten much more rigorous and demanding details.
If you are shipping stuff back to the US that you brought from the US, no tariff/duty applies, but you need to dot all the 't''s and cross all the 'i's to make sure the paperwork is spotlessly perfect for the shipment.
Unless you are a pro golfer, I cannot imagine bringing golf clubs to Europe
Thank you for your reply! This is unfortunate for us because it was such a wonderful tip. To have the ability to bring something along you would have used and then ship it home before the trip was over to make additional room in luggage would have been wonderful!
We shipped a bunch of cool weather gear back home last summer after our northern Europe stops were completed. Best 50 euros we ever spent. Used DHL in central Berlin, who took care of all the paperwork.
Note tariffs don't apply to such shipments, any more than they do to one's carry-on and checked luggage. I'm assuming we're not talking about stuff purchased in Europe, which is another matter.
Last summer we were, admittedly, under the former administration. Things certainly have changed majorly, even if the statutes are the same.
I ship a box home from Italy on most of my trips. I do this at the last hotel; they pack up my things in a box and I always bring scissors and tape. Then the hotel contacts DHL and they come pick up the carton. I last did this this past September, from Siclly, with no problem; I will probably do its again this month (in Puglia now. The total worth of the box is always well under 100 euro. I don't anticipate any issues but who knows these days.....
I shipped a TdF umbrella home from France last year, it was a hassle (especially finding a box for it?), but it worked and got to my house in a few weeks. Agreed that there are a lot of t's to cross and i's to dot with any international shipping.
If they are your things, there are no tariffs, unless you are "importing" them to do the "business"es, just like normal......
If I had golf clubs or something large like that, I would also take into consideration your "person" transport fees as well, as maneuvering your suitcase AND a golf bag wouldn't be doable on public transit buses and the like, you would need to invest in at least a taxi (and really I would be a tad overwhelmed even getting it all on long distance trains, might opt for flying) for most places.
Odd because I never had to fill out any forms. The hotels can usually dig dig up a carton.
