How to Avoid Customs Delays

Customs, as a few might have noticed, can be a bit of a hassle when those eyes fall upon you, your luggage or your packages in transit.

So how can you avoid those three days, five or even fifteen days extra transit tine when it comes to your latest online order from China? Or that hour or two or three waiting for them to finish processing your luggage or the accompanying paperwork?

There are some tricks you can try… wink wink.

Customs officers are trained to spot those who try to sneak past them. The not-so-discreet “pretend nothing’s amiss” method of walking quickly past them whilst looking at everything but the officers isn’t going to increase your chances. And those flip-flops you thought would be so comfortable on the flight, along with the unwashed cut-off-at-the-knees jeans aren’t complimenting your appearance any either.
Putting up a good appearance can help in many situations, but when it comes to customs, it can mean the difference between breezing through and getting stuck for hours.

Now, just to be clear about one thing here before someone starts to wag fingers; we’re assuming that you’re actually not a smuggler here, just Joe Blow returning from vacation with nothing more dangerous than your dirty underwear in the suitcase, ’cause you’re too cheap to pay for laundry service at the hotel. Or, you’re Joe Schmoe just wanting to send your old auntie in the Spanish retirement home some nice new sandals or something. There. Onwards!

So what should you do? You’re dragging your “Heavy”-tagged luggage through the baggage claim, headed for the little green sign saying Nothing to Declare, sweating a little and looking like someone who just fell out of the sky. In a way, that’s what you did, but never mind that. Here’s a checklist of do’s and don’t’s when going through customs. We’ll talk about your parcels afterwards.

• Take the time to freshen up a bit in the airplane toilet. Splash some water in your face, make sure your hair is presentable, at least, and put on a little (just a little) deodorant. You’ll both feel and look better and more composed.
• Wear a nice shirt and clean pants – if you’re a guy. Doesn’t matter if it’s jeans or chinos or whatever, just make sure you look sane and clean in them.
• If you’re really not packing anything you shouldn’t, then they have no reason to pull you aside. Convince yourself of this fact – it’ll send signals.
• Feel free to make eye contact with the customs officers. Remember, it’s both normal and expected that you will meet people’s eyes in passing. Smile if you want to, but don’t fake it.
• When you get off the plane, don’t rush down to baggage claim and get into a tantrum when your bags aren’t first on the belt. That kind of behavior will get you noticed, and believe me, there’s bound to customs people watching you, and the others, from the moment you step off the aircraft.
• Be calm, be confident, be friendly but determined.

Last but not least – don’t smuggle shit if you can’t take the heat. You’ll get caught eventually.

Follow this link to our page in how to make sure your international shipment arrives on time.

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