Bringing a Laptop, Digital SLR, HD VideoCam to India Question
 

Hello,

My wife and I will be travelling from Chicago to HYD end of April to attend my wife's sister's wedding. We will be bringing with us our personal laptop, a Sony digital SLR camera as well as a Samsung HD video camera. We may also be bringing a Barnes and Noble Nook e-reader as well. Will there be an issue with customs at HYD if we come in with so many electronics?I am a US citizen and my wife is on a US Greencard. Thanks so much!

if you want to take these things back with you declare them, you will get a form receipt of some kind if the cistoms chaps are so inclined (or they will just let you go) in which you ""attest"" that the ""concerned items"" are for ""re-export"" (never mind the etymology and for the record I think its cute :-) SHow this on your way out and pick up another piece of paper for your next trip which shows you played by the rules (they keep records) If you wife has an Indian passport they willwrite all over a page of it in charming indian bureaucratese and sramp it copiously instead of gioving you a piece of paper.... i dont know what they do with US passports i think only the US has the imperial privilege to scribble things like ""application received"" on foreign passports so it used to be a piece of paper last I checked

If you want to gift or sell these things in India or even to lose them or have them stolen, then you must pay the duty just like anywhere else. US customs when minded actually check shirts in baggage from india to see if there is wear and tear to justify their import for ""PERSONAL USE"" so dont listen those who knock the Indians on this score

The laptop can be freely brought in and taken out. One laptop per pax






btw your wife's amenity kit awaits. i need an address. Pm me

Thanks so much for the advice, should I declare them or only declare the items if they bother to ask? I'd hate to go through all the hassle of it..i just want to make sure it doesn't seem like we're carrying too much electronics with us..which i guess we kind of are.

Best declare Hyderabad customs dont have muich work to do and can be ponderous

The usual policy is to challenge/dare the nitpicky customs agent out to make buck of you to make a note of it in your passport to ensure you take it home when you leave. Usually they step back at that point. If they make a note in your passport, make sure you get it endorsed back when you leave the country by the bored customs agents that sits at a desk after immigration.

BTW, FRRO do make notes like 'application received' in foreign passports when you submit your application for extension of your staying permit. :p

Thats what worries me about India.. it has all the makings of the Unted States of the 21st century:p

questions like this have been asked many times over in this forum....a simple search will get you lots of results....

I always take my laptop and camera to Hyd and have never had a problem. When I hand over my passport to the customs official, he typically asks me what electronic equipment I have. I tell him laptop and camera and he just waves me through.

I'll definately try that..should i split the electronics between me and my wife?

Not required if they r all for personal use.. u can declare it in 1 name..FWIW, u shd be having no problems on arrival as well as departure if those items are for personal use, clearly look as used and u dont have many of the same kinds like 3 digi cams , 3 laptops etc..

This was a good description.. they usually look bored :)
Even in Austria and Czech i found the Foreigners office stamping passport with ''payment recd'' in local language with amt of payment recd usually during the end of the work permit process..