Shipping advice on recent purchase

[Onaquest17]

I have a question about some pearls I recently invested in from the Philippines. My friend had purchased for me, for i am in the US. She tried to mail them to me but she was told that she can not do that. Does anyone know what my options would be to bring them to the US?...

 

[Pearl Dreams]

Onaquest, is this the photo your friend took of the pearls she is buying for you? I'm just wondering because to me it looks like an image cropped from a video.
How well do you know your friend? Has money been exchanged yet?

I suggest you request a few more photos, for your own protection, and hold off on payment if you have not paid yet. I'm having trouble thinking where or how someone who is not in the industry could just buy a batch of round, undrilled pearls like that in the Philippines. That would be an expensive batch.

I don't know what export laws are for pearls in the Philippines. I am also not in the industry.

I guess I'm concerned that you may have been scammed.

 

[Onaquest17]

Pearl Dreams, thanks for your concerns, I know nothing lol... Word was passed that that they had some good deals in manila. So my friend took a look because it maybe an opportunity to get in the industry.We both have no idea but she found these from a street vendor at a reasonable price. There is no kind of certificate so we don't know if we were scammed or not but from what I been reading, it sounds like we got a good deal. I would like to get them to the US so i can take them to get appraised. This picture was took with a cell phone and I trust her knowledge as much as I trust mine. I don't think she can mail them...I'm wondering if I would have any trouble if I go pick them up ?

I will post more pictures later, I appreciate your time , thanks

 

[Pearl Dreams]

I think your friend probably bought cultured freshwater pearls imported from China, and dyed to resemble golden pearls. Freshwater pearls are being nucleated with beads now and can be very large.

GSS pearls are expensive and I do not see any way street vendors could be hawking them at any bargain rate. If the deal seems too good to be true, it is. My understanding is that pearls not used by Jewelmer are sold to wholesalers who then sell them at the fair in Hong Kong.

If you post large photos with good close up shots we can comment further on the pearls.

I do not know anything about exportation laws for the Philippines but if you plan to fly to go get these pearls in person, I think you will lose money.

 

[Katbran]

I can't imagine why she can't send them. Something like that needs to be Fed Ex, TNT, DHL etc and insured. Maybe ( I have no idea as I've never shipped a single expensive package) they have a limit on the insurance for certain things ? If so then sending two packages would be an option. They certainly shouldn't be sent by regular mail ! Definitely don't send money till this is sorted out.

Pearl Dreams is very correct to warn you about dyed pearls and treated pearls. It's very risky buying GSS unless you have a trusted seller.

 

[Onaquest17]

Thanks Katbran for your inquiry. We did go to Fed Ex and they told us that we can not mail them that we need to register them with the Bureau of Fisheries in the Philippines. My concern is that there is no certificate with these Pearls and if that wold be a problem. I really did not know this could be a big deal. But Fed Ex send don't try to mail them because the packages are x -rayed. So I'm thinking maybe going and picking them p is the best bet. I really don't know and hope to find someone that could shed some light on this subject.

Pearl Dreams here are some more pictures, there still kind of blurry but in one of the pics you can see the fish bites. I been researching and I think there is a possibility of them being SS Pearls, what do you think?

Thanks for your guys help!

 

[Katbran]

Why not send them an email at their web site. ..or even call them. They have quite a good web site. I wonder if you just say they are 'pearls' and not GSS ( since you don't know that they are) if you still need a certificate to mail them. Seems odd given the number of pearls that must be purchased in those stalls. Either way I'm not sure it's worth the money to fly over and get them. Think what that does to your costs. You add several thousand dollars to the purchase price.

 

[Bailey1856]

I would just have your friend send them through registered mail that you have to sign upon receipt without the jewelry box and mark them as beads and as a gift in a bubble envelope. Going to the Bureau of Fisheries seems like red tape and most likely just to extract more money out of you.

 

[Pearl Dreams]

If they are SSP, the greatest likelihood is that they have been dyed. I have read in threads here on P-G that the vast majority of golden pearls sold in the Greenhills market are dyed (but there are a lot of FWP there also.) Can it be any different for pearls sold on the street?

The lack of a certificate poses problems to you if you hope to sell these, as you will need to ascertain exactly what they are by submitting them to a lab-- and that will cost money, too. Plane fare added to that could make it impossible to turn a profit-- or even break even.

A few considerations:
• If they are mailed without proper documentation, and this is discovered by xraying the package, might they be confiscated?

• If you fly there to get them, do you have to make a statement about what you are taking out of the country upon departure? I don't know how it is in the Philippines, but I have had my wallet and even my bag searched when leaving certain countries. In any case you would need to make a declaration when arriving at the airport back home. Did your friend get a receipt showing what she paid for them?

Weigh whatever you spent on them against all the upcoming costs and risks, and act in your own financial best interests. Perhaps your friend can resell them locally, if that turns out to be the best option.

 

[Frost Me]

I think you should revise your title on the thread, add more detail for a larger response from experts.

 

[Onaquest17]

Frost Me, thanks for the advise, I agree lol

 

[Onaquest17]

Bailey1856, that also was are thought to disguise them and send as gift.We contacted Fed Ex and they said don't even try cause all the packages are x-rayed , so if they suspected, search, discover then we just lost out on a chunk of change. Its still a thought , just as a last resort thou or if someone can reassure me this can be done and has been done...Have you or know someone who has, mailed anything of value to a foreign country? Thanks for the advise!

 

[Sea Urchin]

Onaquest- I wouldn't sink any more substantial amounts of money into this because it all sounds too sketchy, even if your friend is trustworthy. Maybe ask your friend to just send the pearls to you insured (but inexpensively) and leave it at that. Best wishes.

 

[Pearl Dreams]

Is regular mail (packages) also xrayed?

I'm asking because in the UK I understand internationally mailed packages are xrayed to ensure that no one is shipping flammable substances like perfume by air. A number of people on forums I read have had their perfumes confiscated and destroyed.

 

[Pearl Dreams]

I have been searching and searching online for any guidelines that might affect your mailing pearls out of Manila. I cannot find anything that refers to it in any way, pro or con.

Here's what I suggest: Use this contact form to ask the Philippine embassy how you can have your friend ship the pearls legally to you:

http://www.philippinesusa.org/philippines/contact-us-main/:

 

[perlas]

The courier may not accept your pearls to be shipped out because any fishery products has to have the permit of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and you do not have a finished jewelry but undrilled pearls which may be considered a fishery product.

Under the Philippine Fisheries Code Article 4 Section 61d, "No person, shall import and/or export fishery products of whatever size, stage or form for any purpose without securing a permit from the department."

Here is the link and a screen cap of the provision from the Bureau of fisheries website.

http://www.bfar.da.gov.ph/lawAndRegulation.jsp?id=2#post



It may be as simple as getting a permit from the Bureau. You may opt to write them an email and make an inquiry at info@bfar.da.gov.ph.

On your pearls, I haven't encountered in Manila someone selling South Seas from a street vendor. Usually they are in shops or stalls. Your pearls look like South Seas to me but they seem not to have the dark golden colors and many are not rounds. I see some of them are bi-colored. They are still nice as jewelry but there is a high premium on round and unblemished pearls with good size. Because of the shape, I assume they are cultured, and if the total number of pearls you invested in are the number in the photos, flying to Manila from the US may cost you more than the actual value of the pearls.

On going out of the Philippines, there are many tourists that take South Sea Pearls out of the country. Take people that buy from Greenhills alone. Many make purchases of undrilled pearls or in jewelry, but ofcourse the pearls can be from China, Australia, Indonesia, Japan, French Polynesia, etc.

 

[Pearl Dreams]

perlas to the rescue with great information! Thanks so much.

 

[pearlescence]

They're x-rayed to check for explosive devices and other terrorist stuff on entry to the UK. UPS failed inspection and had it's importing licence revoked for a while some years ago.
Perfumes are not a problem as such. But tehre are quite strict rules on mailing stuff these days internationally and internally, so that packages don't catch fire on planes etc
Perfume isn't banned as far as I know. Indeed I've imported some. But nail polish and remover has to be labelled as such and lithium batteries have special rules too.
If you send them regular post with a low declaration you are just trying to evade tax and/or duty, and that is probably why items were impounded and destroyed.
Is this really a friend just going shopping for you or are you in contact with someone a bit shady hoping for a big bargain?

 

[Pearl Dreams]

Off topic again about perfume:
Wendy, on the forums I read it's the senders in the UK who have posted about having had their packages destroyed and receiving notice of the same from the postal service. In the USA we are also not allowed to mail perfume by air, since it is an accelerant. It has to go by ground with special labeling. I don't know about any xraying being done here.

 

[Katbran]

It's the alcohol content in perfume that makes them unsafe on planes-we also cannot ship it by airmail . Though we can receive it by mail from overseas...so I'm not sure how that works lol

I'd be surprised if they didn't X-ray packages coming into the country. I was told that all international packages coming in here are put through X ray. I imagine it's a quick scan to match up the shapes inside with the customs declaration. I was told that Fed Ex and DHL etc all X-ray the packages coming into the country.