Flying into Manila on Tuesday evening - first visit to the Philippines. I'll be carrying some personal gifts for Kris and her son (plus the wedding ring for her to see!) - the total cost is around £550. Are there any requirements re declaration I'll have to abide by? I'll have all the receipts with me. Thanks. Gerry
Don't even think about it (though take the receipts by all means). Not an issue at all. (I think I've only had my bags looked into once in dozens of arrivals over the past 26+ years).
As Graham says it is very unlikely to be an issue, you can carry in pretty much what you want if it is leaving again, computers electronics and so on, they won't inspect it, if you want to be really safe don't take a large DVD collection or anything like that, but seriously the chances of being checked are vanishingly small.
Not unless those are something obvious like tv or ipad and any other techy stuff, they wont bother with it. I was travelling with lots of jewelry but was never stopped or asked as its personal belonging (and easy to conceal). They are more concerned with cash over $10k or equivalent. And Never put that ring (or any valuable) in a check-in bag or out of your sight.
Probably cheaper in any mall in the Phils mate Such a long time since I was in the Barras used to go up there in my early teens (1970s) and buy ancient electronic components and other junk loved the place
They don't care about most electronics, I've had bags full of computers and electronics over the years as it was always cheaper to buy in the west, particularly second hand, taken over as gifts, which meant I was going to assemble it all into working machines for the family, never questioned. I did once see a Filipino couple in Manchester airport with a 50 inch or larger flat screen TV being checked in, utterly gigantic box, hate to think what it cost them in excess baggage, by the time we hit NAIA I saw it coming out on the carousel, the outer cardboard box was now gone, I was cringing at the way it fell over onto the belt and imagining how it would have been treated at all the stages before that Absolute madness the excess baggage fees were probably half the price of buying the same or better model in the Phils, just guessing, but given the treatment it would have had it was a silly idea to transport it that way.
I take my movie collection with me, but it always leaves with me too, it is several hundred original quality rips on a hard drive which is about 3.5 inch long by 2.5 inch wide, the drive is fully encrypted and is only ever a copy of an unencrypted one I have here, I paid for everything on it, all the original DVD's, the drive just makes it compact.
I agree with all of them here. There is a very low chance that the immigration/officers will check your bag unless it's a very big appliance or whatever that are visible to their eyes. I've bought some things and a jewelry in Singapore. When I got back, they never bothered checking my hand-carry bag. Enjoy your holiday!
I did have small issue when checking in for a Cathay Pacific flight about 3 months ago. I had a the circuit breaker panel for house in one of the bags. They were more concerned from a security issue.
In the good old says of President Marcos you just handed your passport to the Customs officer with a thousand peso note carelessly left in it, just as you do now with hundred peso bills for the traffic cops.
These days the traffic police (CITOMs) expect several thousand to be tucked in your black plastic license wallet.
