# Sending Items to Mexico



## ABCinATL

Hello, I am wanting to send two shipments to myself.

Question 1. Clothing from USA. I think I have narrowed my shipping methods to two options, and would like your input on which you think would be best.

Option A: use Shipito.com - have the online retailer send it to shipito and they send it to me. No monthly fees, no signup, can just do the one package and be done. THE BIG QUESTION is how much am I going to have to pay to receive the package? I see conflicting info online about importing clothes. I am trying to find out the place where they are made (lets pray it is not China). With this option it is fast and easy but there is a big unknown when it comes to the taxes/duties.

OPTION B: set up an account at Back Porch in Laredo. They send it to Monterrey and then on to me here in DF. Their price includes the taxes/duty. Con is that it is an upfront cost of 6 month box rental 72usd and longer to setup bc I have to send an original document signed to get it setup. I really need the clothes pretty soon.

Question 2. I want to order some leather boots from the UK. Site has free shipping worldwide which is great but how do I know how much tax/duty they will impose on me?

Thanks in advance for your words of wisdom!

abc


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## RVGRINGO

This is a constant problem. Shipping such things into Mexico will be very, very expensive; probably too expensive to make it worthwhile. If you are buying clothing in the USA, odds are that it is made in China. Try going to a clothing store and looking at the labels. I did that once and the only thing they had from the USA was diapers!
Frankly, I wouldn't do it. As for the boots; Mexico makes a lot of shoes and boots.
So, if you can't bring your things in with you, I would think twice about the cost of shipping plus duties.


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## dpebbles

We live in an area with a lot of expats due to the manufacturing plants near us...this is something we talk about a lot. I have been told there's no good way to get clothing shipped here...it's too expensive and it's not reliable. My husband is 6'4" and wears a size12 1/2 shoe...it's almost impossible to find clothing or shoes for him here. We beg other expats to bring us things from the states or only shop when we get our trips back to the states. In fact, on our last trip "home" we took all our suitcases empty and shopped while we were there and brought our suitcases back full.


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## RVGRINGO

Please don't forget the other option in Mexico: There are still tailors and seamstresses, who can make you exactly what you want. That option has been gone so long in the USA, that we forget it ever existed.
The same is true for footwear. Leon, and the surrounding area, would be worth a trip. If your size isn't found, simply order what you want from a shop, or ask for a shoemaker, if you are hard to fit or need something really unique.
We regularly get questions about 'where to buy certain styles or types of furniture'. The answer is to have it made to your specifications or from photos or a catalogue. It can usually be delivered in a few weeks. Is your couch worn? Have it reupholstered locally; same for your car seats. etc.


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## Mexicodrifter

I don't ship thing into Mexico. I have found it to be really bad. I have lost to many things int he mail, etc. I find friends who are coming down by car to bring me things, tires for my motorcycle to shoes and parts.
I get my clothes made for me at 6´5 and 230lbs, I am hard to fit. Shoes are 13´s. But every year I get a t least one trip to the states and I fill my need for shoes then. I will not pay $1000 pesos for tennis shoes.
Ij just bought a suit on sale for $700 pesos that was a 46 long. A steal. Sometimes I jsut get lucky.


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## froggie

*shipito to send items*

if you are going to use shipito, i would check into their company and policies a bit more. i had nothing but problems when i tried to use them and would never recommend them to anyone.


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## conorkilleen

ABCinATL said:


> Hello, I am wanting to send two shipments to myself.
> 
> Question 1. Clothing from USA. I think I have narrowed my shipping methods to two options, and would like your input on which you think would be best.
> 
> Option A: use Shipito.com - have the online retailer send it to shipito and they send it to me. No monthly fees, no signup, can just do the one package and be done. THE BIG QUESTION is how much am I going to have to pay to receive the package? I see conflicting info online about importing clothes. I am trying to find out the place where they are made (lets pray it is not China). With this option it is fast and easy but there is a big unknown when it comes to the taxes/duties.
> 
> OPTION B: set up an account at Back Porch in Laredo. They send it to Monterrey and then on to me here in DF. Their price includes the taxes/duty. Con is that it is an upfront cost of 6 month box rental 72usd and longer to setup bc I have to send an original document signed to get it setup. I really need the clothes pretty soon.
> 
> Question 2. I want to order some leather boots from the UK. Site has free shipping worldwide which is great but how do I know how much tax/duty they will impose on me?
> 
> Thanks in advance for your words of wisdom!
> 
> abc


I would go into specifics here of my experience but here is the just of it.

My wife is pregnant with our 3rd daughter. We had 3 duffle bags of baby shoes, jumpers, socks, bibs, ect from the prevois 2 girls in our house in NC that we wanted to send to Mexico to use for our new baby due in December. We tried to send them packed in boxes from NC to MTY. Customs stopped them and would only let a small belt, a pair of socks, and 6 baby bibs through. They said the rest would be "lost" because it was "commerial" items and were new. I can confirm that every single piece of clothing in those boxes were used and had spit up on it at some point in time.

Anyway, I didnt like that response so I sent the boxes back to my house, flew home, and brought them back with me in the plane packed in a large suitcase....no problems in customs. I actually brought a Project 1978 Puch Magnum moped with me in pieces in my luggage over the course of a few months back and forth. (Johnny Cash style- one piece at a time)

I heard about the Back Porch service being awesome but I decided not to go that route. I found that it was cheaper to fly home and bring the clothes and other items on the plane for no fee for the bags or customs.

In a nutshell, customs thought that I was going to sell the clothes in Mexico so they would not let them through (allot of them were made in taiwan and China). I spent 2 weeks fighting with customs, giving them copies of plane tickets, baggage claims, my Visa card, passport, rental contract, even my wifes ultra sound results to prove that the clothes were personal items and for my baby....

I think they just wanted the baby clothes for thier kids. Don't ship anything through customs you are not willing to lose.


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## jasavak

We use a service from local Mexicans in our area . They probably have them in Atlanta too . They use large trucks and make the trip to GTO every week . Once they arrive in GTO , they use a low cost freight service to send the packages to their final destinations . The cost is about 1/3 the cost of UPS .


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## yossarianb52

jasavak said:


> We use a service from local Mexicans in our area . They probably have them in Atlanta too . They use large trucks and make the trip to GTO every week . Once they arrive in GTO , they use a low cost freight service to send the packages to their final destinations . The cost is about 1/3 the cost of UPS .


Jasavak, I'm looking for a good service just like this here in DF. anyway you could share their info with me?


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## arturo_b

ABCinATL said:


> Hello, I am wanting to send two shipments to myself.
> OPTION B: set up an account at Back Porch in Laredo. They send it to Monterrey and then on to me here in DF. Their price includes the taxes/duty. Con is that it is an upfront cost of 6 month box rental 72usd and longer to setup bc I have to send an original document signed to get it setup. I really need the clothes pretty soon.


Those of us who live in northern Baja California all maintain a mailing address in San Diego if we can because that simplifies many things. 

The Bush Family Wehrmacht decided that mail boxes are a terrorist threat. To get one in the US you now have to present utility bills and whatnot, things you won´t have available to you once you move south, so it´s best to secure one while you still have the ability to do so.

None of that has anything to do with your need to bring in used clothing. To do that, you best bet would be to find a bus driver willing to bring it to you. No kidding. Interurban buses are how people get around in this post-railroad world and a lot of bus drivers carry merchandise past the checkpoints in every state without paying Customs duty. Ask around.


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## jasavak

yossarianb52 said:


> Jasavak, I'm looking for a good service just like this here in DF. anyway you could share their info with me?




They ship from Grapevine , Texas to GTO . They don't like to handle too many items going north . Do you have family in north Texas ?


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## AlanMexicali

*Paqueteria*

Here is something I did not know! We went to the bus station in Mexicali to the paqueteria. I had cleaned out some stuff and had 3 boxes of personal stuff I wanted in San Luis Potosi. They inspected the 3 boxes and said they cannot ship ANY box that has clothes, sheets, blankets or towels in it unless I go to the border crossing to ADUANA to get a permiso and pointed to the form posted on the wall, a simple straight forwad form which costs $45.00 pesos.

A small box [1 foot by 1 1/2 foot box with stuff cost $430 pesos to ship south. The rest was clothes and bedding. I took some on the plane in carry on bags I had and we arrived there with mostly empty suitcases. No tape just cord to wrap it was also a rule. Also 2 trips to the farmacia to weigh the 4 bags for Volaris weight restriction on National flights with the cheap tickets.

They said this is the Federal law if you do not have a bus ticket and take the stuff yourself. Alan


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