How to export charity items to Fiji
Interestingly enough, Australians are apparently the greatest contributors to charities set up for natural disasters in the world.
This is all very generous, but often the sentiment can be in conflict with the rules and regulations of the countries that suffer these disasters.
Fiji is a country where natural disasters occur fairly regularly, and because many Australians have travelled there and the people are mostly friendly, it is very common for groups to form with the aim of supplying goods such as books, food, blankets and building materials to specific villages or areas that have suffered from these natural disasters, or sometimes just to help improve the education and way of life of villagers and children.
The sentiment is fantastic. Unfortunately this is not as simple as it seems.
First and foremost, you need to have a specific entity to send the goods to.
Too often, a group of people get together for a cause and collect books, furniture, clothing, building materials and the like, with a specific aim, but no thought has gone into working out who to send the items to.
Nor is there much consideration given to the cost of doing this.
For Fiji, it is paramount to have checked with the county’s authority as to what, why, when and how goods are to be sent. Every country has its own rules concerning such matters, and these MUST be taken into account before any such venture is started.
Please look up www.frca.org.fj for the rules and regulations concerning what you can and cannot send to Fiji. The Ministry Of Finance in Fiji MAY grant import duty and tax concessions if they consider any such donations worthwhile. Any such concessions should be sought PRIOR to the beginning of any project.
All applications and approvals can be completed in a very short period of time, or may be extended depending on the nature of the project and the effort and urgency shown by all concerned.
Presuming this has all happened and you are ready to proceed, there are a few procedures to be completed. Not the least of which is that this is going to cost money which needs to be sorted BEFORE anything can happen.
Usually, a group will get together and get all sorts of donated goods sent to one single collection point and packed into containers for shipping.
Shipping Lines WILL charge for the freight, no matter what. There may be some concessions for registered charities, but there are no concessions for individuals or groups who just get together for the supply of items for any reason.
And shipping lines have a specific time at each end for the free time allowed to have the container.
An alternative to this may be for the purchase of a container here that can be kept for extended time here and then be used for storage or resale in Fiji. There are rules concerning the size and type of containers that can be shipped. We can purchase seaworthy containers on your behalf.
In such cases, it is important that a full list of all items be made, and all items MUST be secured inside the container to prevent any movement and damage.
So, in short, what you need to do is:
1) make sure you have an entity and contact details of whom to send the container(s) to.
2) make sure you have written confirmation from the Fiji Authorities that you can do what you want to do.
3) make sure you comply with all Fiji goods requirements (eg whitegoods, motor vehicles and so on)
4) arrange collection and centralisation of goods
5) arrange to have a shipping line or your own container.
6) Have someone in Fiji who can act on your or the end customer’ behalf to deal with import customs clearance, transport to the end customer and pay any charges on your behalf.
What we do is:
1) arrange to deliver the container to your nominated site, and then return the full container to the port for shipping
2) pay the ocean freight on your behalf up to arrival port in Fiji (Suva or Lautoka)
3) arrange the necessary export clearance in order for your container to be shipped.
4) Provide you and your nominated customer or agent in Fiji with a copy of the shipping line Bill of Lading (transport document)
If you wish to proceed, please contact us to discuss your requirements and for us to jointly prepare a specific freight plan to ensure all your requirements are met for the least possible cost.
