Forum

US Customs seized package sent with DHL
 

I guess more and more packages are getting seized by DHL these days. Mine just got seized today. I asked the agent what happens next, I was told that I will be receiving a letter. Does anyone know what this letter will be about? Will copyright owners get notified about this?

what was content of package?

US CUSTOMS seize the packages. DHL is the carrier of them from China to the USA. Be aware of that. Does it mean DHL is a problem? Not really.
Right at this point, a lot of goods coming into the USA are not being landed. The goods in 99% of the seizures are counterfeit. Deal in counterfeits and those are the consequences.

Phakes more than likely. Why does it matter what they are? There is a message being given in a round about way by US Customs stop importing foo-foo items.
If that is not obvious then ....:rolleyes:

If you've read any of Enigma's posts it's DVDs

They were dvd boxed sets. I never thought my packages would get seized. Have had at least 50 packages sent to the same address, and never had a problem. Just filed a dispute with dhgate. Anyone know how they handle these type of cases? Do they refund the buyer?

You need to contact the seller and work out what to do. Usually you get things resolved.:ranger:

If the content is legal.You should make your shipment delivered by a large firm

For those of you that have received a letter, when should I be expecting it? I think it is needed to get the full refund, if the seller doesn't resend the goods. Also, once a package is seized, do they put the name and address on some type of blacklist?

Thanks

Recently had this same thing happen by DHL, agent called me and said that the seller needed to provide a "letter of authority" from the brand manufacturer, which of course they couldn't supply. The main reason being they labeled the shipment as "dvd drivers" which was pretty dumb on their part in the first place.

They gave me an option of agreeing to dispose of the shipment and nothing would happen to me in return for not knowing I was purchasing possible contraband. I asked for a delay to communicate with my supplier. Three days later they destroyed of the shipment, I never found out whether or not my address and name were flagged for contraband.

I continued to communicate with my seller and after weeks of negotiating back and forth whether they send me a full refund or re-send the items. I opted for a full refund, however my supplier disagreed to that. I would have been fine with a re-shipment in the very beginning, but I was worried about my address being flagged and whether or not my supplier was sending the correct merchandise and not scamming me because he did not want to lose profit(the reason for this being the dispute process would end once I agreed upon the terms, the payment would be released and I would no longer be protected by their escrow service, so if they had sent me an empty envelope with tracking information I would be screwed). We agreed upon a re-shipment and a week later the package arrived in perfect condition with the exact description of product I ordered. The power of trusting others is very powerful.

I'm satisfied, the only thing that is a little of a put-off is that my shipment arrived with a BUNCH of red tape from customs and one of my items were opened, well the shrink wrap was. Curious.....:confused:

Hi Jamblix,

So you never received a letter from customs? Don't you need to show that letter of proof that your package indeed got seized. Thanks again for your help.

Yes, I have received several seizure letters. You have to scan letter to your supplier on DHgate. From there, in my experience, you'd have to wait several weeks negotiating with your seller. I think it takes a while because seller is maybe waiting to see if it will be delivered and that your not scamming them by making bogus US Customs letter (very easy to do). They would either refund or resend as jamblix said.

No letter yet and it's obvious the shipment got seized if you check out the tracking number.

I have had 8 packages arrive in the past 2 weeks via DHL/USPS.
Some of them took over 6 weeks to arrive.
I had 10 packages coming from 1 seller.
Only 6 made it out of China.
I am in the middle of the dispute process through dhGate right now.
2 other packages from a different seller made it in only 2 weeks.

I have not had any seized by DHL/Customs yet.... knock-knock-wood

The packages I have had seized before by US Customs I did receive letters.
The first one takes about 2 weeks and the 2nd one is about a month later.
You should get these 2 letters from US Customs for EACH package them seize.

To place a resolve on my issue I stated above.....

Today I did receive my refund from dhGate.

If you have a decent purchase history, once you provide the seizure letter DHgate will normally refund your payment within 24 hours, they always have for me.

I haven't had anyhting taken since switching from Chicago to New York, crosses fingers.

I finally received the letter for the seized package. Should I even bother opening it or can I just write "Not at this address, Return to Sender." Or do I toss it in the trash?

Thanks

i share in the situation by package was seized by US CUSTOMS today...... got a call from DHL...

is there anyway to prevent this..?

So, I don't get it. What's the point of these letters? Does anything happen to you if you get them? Any penalties? How long can you go on just ignoring customs before they come knocking on your door in person?

A lot of packages are getting seized right now, especially anything going through CHICAGO.

I've seen this letter before, it just tells you of your rights to dispute the seizure and explains what law they are alleging was violated. I would not respond to such a letter.

I would also DEFINITELY stop using that address for ordering anything from outside the USA. Get a PO Box, a UPS store address, use a friend's address, or whatever. If you have enough packages seized, you could end up with a legal problem. And although I cannot prove it, I believe that once a package going to an address is seized, the risk of seizure is higher for any subsequent packages. It is not worth the risk.

Are you guys ordering way over 21kg.? I was gonna place another order dhl but I usually only do the min. 21kg. It seems most dhl seizures are usually alot larger and sometimes more then 1 box.

It's funny you mention 21kg. The very first package that got seized for me was exactly that weight or just a little over. Wouldn't it be awesome if customs weren't allowed to seize packages less than 21kg. It would be the best loophole ever.

I had a few jerseys seized by customs when I ordered these from china. A month later, I recieved a letter from the customs, which I ignored. A week later, which is today, I recieved a letter from NHL requesting information such as source from where it is coming from, surrender any merchandize I may have, provide information on sold jerseys and revenues earned and provide written assurance that I will refrain from such activities.

At the end, they mention 'We require your full cooperation with the above mentioned items in 2 weeks. We look forward to your timely response'.

Has anyone ever recieved this letter? Any suggestions you can offer me would be helpful.
Thank you!

wow in that case what is it that we do.....start using ⊗⊗⊗⊗ names and different address's.....

different address,also different name,

can you use a ⊗⊗⊗⊗ name with an address you have access to for ordering from china...?

It comes through the post office and I know they can match a name and address. Basically if that name never got a package or letter there because its not a registered address to them will they deliever an international package there?

I have 2 packages that are being held in OHIO customs right now, sent via DHL. First package is 3 days and the second is 2 days. Tracking number says "clearance delay". I just opened a mail forwarding address in NY and this are my first orders with this address. They were OOP dvd's and they were addressed to a business name, toys & etc not my real name. I thought they will land straight in NY customs, I didn't expect Ohio.

Should I expect a call from DHL soon??

EMS to NY JFK customs got me today on a package. "Turned over to Customs" in the tracking remarks.

most of the time that means customs holds look over and release but I try not to use ems whenever possible

I am currently having the same issue. I do not know if they will be released or not. I called DHL and they told me that one of three things would happen.

1) Package released
2) DHL will call for info requested by customs (Invoices, Letter of Auhtority, etc.)
3) Package seized, if that happens the website tracking should say "Shipment Held".

Thier rep told me that right now they have no more information but that something should happen within a few days.


FYI.... These were to 2 different names and addresses. Maybe there is a crackdown going on???

It is not diffculty to provide the info to DHL,you just ask for your shipper (sender side) to provide the invoice statement to them,and then you will have possibility to get it released,and we have happend this before and we sent the dvds to usa customer but custom ask for some document and then shipper side send the invioce statement to usa side,and got released.

Do you mean I should ask my supplier to do that even though DHL has not asked for anything yet?

Honestly, when I called, I thought they were either going to tell me they needed more info or items seized. But DHL is telling me they have no information yet. It this normal?

If your items are phakes and the rights owners send you a letter asking for you to pay them a fee or they will take legal action DO NOT RESPOND! This is them just trying to get some extra dollars from you. If they take you to court you can win strait up definatly! if this is the first time an order has been seized under your name they cant do **** and you can just claim that you dident know any better and you were the one being scammed by the phakes sellers.

Trust me....i know from experience with nike :D

Also to try and reduce this from ever happening again make sure you find a good well experienced supplier who has good connections.

I have had many packages delivered using the same name as the package that was seized. The address was different but the items were EXACTLY the same and the name was EXACTLY the same. Australian customs are tough some of the toughest in the world as well!

In my experience the best way to get shipments through customs from China, DHGate or wherever is to use EMS. Nothing more than 50lbs, packaged in styrofoam and plenty of tape so customs inspectors will not want to touch it or even try to open it up.

The good sellers know how to do this, marking the price correctly and labeling the items inside, etc. Find yourself a good supplier and customs issues won't be a problem anymore.

Exacktly.

I have been useing EMS for a while now and its fine.

Its all about how your supplier goes about sending your packages. The things all suppliers usually take into account are weight and solid packaging to make the inspectors to not even bother.

If your making a big order dont have it all sent at once! The weight needs to be controlled and they need to be let through customs on a time basis.

:peace:

You'll know when its seized when it shows "Shipment on Hold" on the dhl website You won't get a call. Let us know the status. Hope you get it soon.

:peace:

Same boat here....

Placed 2 orders from dhGate.
4 boxes total.
1 box made it to me already ~ 1 box is almost to me but through Customs.
2 boxes are held in customs by DHL in Cincinnati.
Tracking shows this:
6/23/2010 5:01 am Clearance Delay
6/20/2010 1:54 pm Clearance Delay

Fun Fun Fun

Same here. This is the first order through DHL that has been seized.

4:36 am Please contact DHL Customer Service.
2:54 pm Clearance Delay
2:54 pm Processing for clearance

So by my estimation I believe my address is blacklisted if it is scanned for clearance and the same second held up in clearance delay. Sure enough, I called and received the dreaded news items were confiscated by US Customs. I've had several packages seized at Customs in San Fransisco through EMS. I wonder if Customs in Los Angeles at DHL communicate with San Fransisco. They must. Also, do anyone know if NY communicates with either San Fransisco or Los Angeles?

Looks like everybodies getting there's seized, I had 1 DHL shipment show clearance delay but it was released several hours later, thank god I'm dropshipping for now. Maybe they're just cracking down during the World Cup.

World Cup.....Thats what I'm thinking. I'm nearing the 48 hour mark. Hope it gets released.