Singapore Expats

Moving to Singapore in a few months from the UK, and I'm not sure what to ship. The company is paying for it, so don't worry about the 'It will cost less to buy here than to ship from the uk" scenario.

I don't plan to ship furniture, so I'm thinking about whether I should send:

1. electronics (no, I won't buy a plasma tv; and yes, I'll get shipping insurance),

2. kitchen appliances,

3. baby/toddler toys,

4. coffee/cereal

5. persian rug

6. something else?

Not sure if it is kosher to send a few bottles of wine or not.

Any advice to help us avoid the "Oh, I wish we'd bought that in the uk now that we see how much it costs here!" feeling?

dpot wrote:5. persian rug

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Talking of Persian rugs, I purchased this rug from Kazakstan 4 years ago, click on image and look closely and you will see what resembles the Union Jack in every square. its from 1890 ....

With regards to UK electronics are probably cheaper because of the £, you can also get the VAT back on new stuff, if taking out of the Country, only 7% to pay in Singapore. So it really is worth shopping around in UK before packing the goods, though check warranty is international for new stuff.

Thanks KSL, beautiful rug, by the way...quite a find.

Alot of shippers dont do food stuff. We did send out boxes of champagne (cost a fortune here) bought lots of tinned stuff which went to waste by the time you get your act together most of the stuff has reached the sell by date. Some electronic items are cheaper in the UK, I suppose there is more competition forcing the price down, if you get the VAT back even better but its a bit of a hassle, as the shippers have to process the VAT paper work. Ideally get all the items from one place. Best bet is get second hand high end electrical stuff in the UK like Quads etc, and you can sell it for a profit at a later date here.

Rugs might become moldy in the tropical humidity if you're not careful. You also don't need them to keep your feet warm, like in Europe's winters, as here you'd want all the cold feelings you can get. Leave the rug at home if you value it!
All alcohol shipped will incur import duty, which is very high. You can carry one bottle of wine per person with you when you arrive, but don't ship any!
Everything else on your list is available here as easily and at similar cost to Europe, so it's your choice.
Shipping insurance a waste or money, in my own personal opinion (I had very bad experience with it).

I'd definitely ship electronics from UK, we recently were looking for a good Dyson vaccuum cleaner and here in Singapore it costs DOUBLE than what it costs at Dixon in England. True story.

There is quite a useful thread somewhere else in the forum on what to ship from the US - worth a read.
Regarding the wine - you're allowed to bring up to 6/12 bottles and you ARE charged import duty - but it is nowhere near as much as you'd pay in the shops so it is worth it. Not so sure about food - there are plenty of shops here
Also - the rules relating to bringing in alcohol have changed and you're no longer limited to 1 bottle of wine. From memory it is 1l (most bottles are 750ml) wine, 1l spirits and 1l beer, but you are allowed to "exchange" and bring 2l of wine and no spirits for example. Before the rule changed I used to bring 2 bottles of wine (because they were 750ml each) and go to customs and declare 1.5l - they'd wave me through with no worries.

I shipped loads of food but make sure that its not opened but new and sealed.
Everything is imported here so you might not be able to find what you need right away.
And if you have kids they like "their own" things so bring what will make feel at home.

good luck.

Zeenit wrote:I shipped loads of food but make sure that its not opened but new and sealed.
Everything is imported here so you might not be able to find what you need right away.
And if you have kids they like "their own" things so bring what will make feel at home.

good luck.

That is actually a very great advice - making sure everything is properly sealed and new and not opened. Happened to me once that I received some stuff that was already opened. Of course I threw it away because it could have been opened for many reasons - never risk anything.

I can remember that I shipped a lot of stuff myself - some furniture that I never wanted to miss including my beloved chaise, I had a lot of food that I always liked shipped, I was send a bottle of wine (or maybe even more if I have to be honest ), a lot of clothes that i just couldn't take with me by plane because of the amount of money it would have cost the company, some kitchen appliances and a lot of coffee for I wasn't sure if I would find mine here (but I found it anyways).

The shipping insurance is also a great idea because I did that for my chaise and the other furniture and the clothes. Wouldn't be wise to ship without proper insurance.