Traveling to other countries with equipment

M

monster

Well-known member
I will be in Hungary in a few months and wondering if any of you have any experience with bringing along equipment to another country.

If I bring a camera, mics, and other gear what type of issues can I expect while going through customs?

Also, has anyone just had their gear shipped to another country?  I checked UPS and their fees were so high that it would be more practical to just buy certain pieces of gear while over there.

Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated.   :)
 
Re: Traveling to other countries with equipment

We traveled into Mexico through Texas and on to Belize last August. Going was no problem whatever - coming back was more difficult.

If you are taking gear - professionally appointed and accessorized gear - you'll need to fill out a US customs form declaring every piece of it prior to leaving the country. We were held up at the Mexico to US border for some time because we didn't know it was an issue.

Also prepare a full manifest of the gear you're taking - it wouldn't hurt to have domestic proof of purchase for the big items (camera, DATs, production mixers and mics).

I don't know the name of the form you need, but you should be able to get the required document number through the immigration office near you. We got lucky, but I wouldn't risk it knowing what I know now!

Good luck, safe travels...

e
 
Re: Traveling to other countries with equipment

[quote author=overlandfilms link=board=Offtopic;num=1106669316;start=0#1 date=01/25/05 at 08:34:02]We traveled into Mexico through Texas and on to Belize last August.  Going was no problem whatever - coming back was more difficult.

If you are taking gear - professionally appointed and accessorized gear - you'll need to fill out a US customs form declaring every piece of it prior to leaving the country.  We were held up at the Mexico to US border for some time because we didn't know it was an issue.

Also prepare a full manifest of the gear you're taking - it wouldn't hurt to have domestic proof of purchase for the big items (camera, DATs, production mixers and mics).

I don't know the name of the form you need, but you should be able to get the required document number through the immigration office near you.  We got lucky, but I wouldn't risk it knowing what I know now!

Good luck, safe travels...

e[/quote]

Thanks for the info, but I am more concerned about any issues I may have with bringing the gear into Hungary or other European countries.   I am not so worried about safety but actually if I will have problem getting it through their customs.

Any more advice?
 
Travel and red tape...

Travel and red tape...

Nothing to do with Europe, but when we called the Mexican consulate regarding bringing our gear into Mexico, we were told that we'd need to secure special work visas, importation papers for the gear et-cetera.

Basically, the more questions you ask, the more bureaucracy you're bound to face.  I'm not saying that you should avoid asking...

In Belize, the border agents documented every major asset we brought in, then "looked over" their own manifest on the way out.  Undocumented importation of high-end electronics, vehicles, mechanicals and boats is a major issue because the government cannot correctly tax the transactions.  We had to sign an affidavit claiming that we would come back in as many vehicles as we entered in!

Every country is different - I'd start with the consulates that correspond to your destinations here in the states (or wherever you are!) and go from there.  

e
 
Re: Traveling to other countries with equipment

I went through 8 different countries in September with no problems whatsoever.
 
Re: Traveling to other countries with equipment

I took a huge Pelican case full of all my gear through England and Scotland with no issues whatsoever. For what thats worth. :)
 
Re: Traveling to other countries with equipment

monster

A hungarian custom officier can stop you on the street now and ask you what you have, where you got it etc....etc... It is good to have some kind of documentation of those equipments you are traveling with. After joining the EU has they not so much control between Hungary and other EU lands but they can do control where ever they like.

I was filming in Hungary 2 times in 2004 . Never had any problem. We had permition to film.
 
Re: Traveling to other countries with equipment

if anyone stops you
just hand them some
(insert russian accent here)VODKA!!!!
VODKA!!!!
 
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