Taking jewelry on DCL, register before you leave

[DCLtakemeaway]

DH was reading that it might be a good idea to register belongings that you take out of the country with Customs and boarder protection so you don't have to pay duty on them when you try to come back into the US with them. We got to thinking about the jewelry that I want to take along. I would most likely only take a few pairs of earings, maybe a necklace or two and my wedding rings. Have any of you that have been to the Carribean ever had a problem with customs making you pay for jewelry that was from home? How do you prove that you brought it with you and did not purchase it while on an island?

 

[clovely]

Wow, we've only gone through customs once to and from Jamaica and once to and from the Bahamas. None of the jewelry I was wearing was ever questioned. Honestly they barely looked at the stuff we did declare or even the forms. I guess they could be difficult about it if they wanted to but I wouldn't think that would be very good PR.

 

[flexsmom]

I've done a lot of international travel, particularly to/from Thailand and Hong Kong which also has great jewellry offerings, but have never once been challenged on whether or not something I was bringing in was new or had already belonged to me. I know theoretically they could do this, but I have not heard of anyone getting hung up with this. That's not to say it hasn't happened to someone, somewhere, though!

 

[DisneyVegas1]

Well I am here to tell you , that indeed they have stopped me . Heres the story ..I was getting off a Carnival ship and I had my rolex on , now keep in mind I only wear this watch on special occassions and it looks brand spankin new and I have had it for 4 years - The customs agent said he saw it sparkle from the minute I started coming there way . He asked me all kinds of questions about it , basically saying I bought it on the cruise , fortunate for me , I always bring the watch box with me so when I dont wear it I have a case to put it in and my wife always puts the reciepts in the bottom of the watch box , so needless to say we had to go through our luggage to get the box to show him the reciept . We were POed about this , Plus it was the worst cruise we were just getting off , we swore off cruiseingagain untill we did Disney . Well after that they didnt even say they were sorry , just that they were doing their job ...So my words to you is if your jewlery looks worn your okay , if it looks brand new and pricey bring a receipt or somehow declare it before leaving ..

 

[dis-happy]

I agree, if it is expensive and looks new, bring the receipt! We did this on a cruise a couple of years ago--one of the stops was St. Thomas where everyone on the ship it seemed was buying jewelry. Earlier in the week dh had give me my 40th bday present--an very expensive diamond necklace. He planned ahead and made sure he had the receipt and documentation for customs. Doing so really saved a hassle.

 

[jlima]

I got my Rolex in St. Thomas in July 01 . . . our cruise last summer was the first time I had been out of the country since then and I brought my receipt and papers with me, just in case . . .

 

[mom_rules]

We have always been told to bring our appraisal certs and receipts with us just in case we are questioned (only ever happened once coming back into Canada from US). Better safe than sorry-don't want to have to pay duty on something twice!
If you are in doubt-leave the jewellery at home.