I keep hearing this thing about how china will slap tax/duty on any iphone or ipad you bring into to china, even if its your personal worn out item.
I have never experienced this myself. but someone even showed me a chinese newspaper article on it.

I know this duty is aimed at smugglers who try to bring in 10 iphones at once to make a profit.

But are people just ignorant or use no common sense or something? they can't slap tax on a HK guy who goes in and out of china every 2 days?!?!?
anyone have news on this?

We discussed it when news of this first appeared on:

BEWARE! don't bring in IPad/IPhone into China!
http://forum.sex141.com/eforum/v ... 5535&highlight=

The relevant SCMP articles are also posted there - but of course all this is a few months back

SEAJ.

Lady was caught carrying phones into China.


Foreign women carrying 45 iPhone4S immigrants seized by Customs

At 15:11 on October 20, 2011 Nanfang Daily Yang Lei I want to comment on ( 34 )  

Reporters learned yesterday from Shenzhen Customs recently, customs law enforcement officers in Shekou Ferry Terminal, foreign passport holders from a woman carrying a suitcase seized iPhone 4S cell phone 45, preliminary estimates suggest that the market value of more than 40 million. Currently, Customs is still the case for further investigation.

October 16, a female passenger holding foreign passports from Shekou Ferry Terminal immigration. The travelers carry luggage aroused the attention of customs officials Shekou. Customs officers told reporters that the female passenger one entry, but to bring the two larger trunk, and not according to conventional luggage be checked for both procedures. In addition, the visitors walk in with a box, the action is very careful, what seems to worry about break something.

The analysis to determine the Customs officers checked the passengers as a key target. After unpacking inspection, customs officers found two suitcases from the iPhone 4S cell phone 45 (including 64G 6 部, 32G13 Department, 16G26 Department), and BLACK BERRY (BlackBerry) mobile phone 3, the initial estimated market value of more than 40 million . Currently, Customs is the case for further investigation. (Yang Lei)

Has 19,805,093 pieces of iPhone participate in discussions related to microblogging


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外籍女子携带45部iPhone4S入境被海关查获
2011年10月20日15:11南方日报杨磊我要评论(34) 字号：T|T
记者昨日从深圳海关获悉，近日，海关执法人员在蛇口客运码头，从一名持外籍护照女性携带的行李箱内查获iPhone 4S手机45部，初估市值40多万元。目前，海关仍在对案件做进一步调查。

10月16日，一名持外籍护照的女性旅客从蛇口客运码头入境。该旅客随身携带的行李箱引起了蛇口海关关员的注意。关员告诉记者，该女性旅客一人入境，但同时携带了两个体积较大的行李箱，而不是照常规为这两个行李箱办理托运手续。此外，该旅客在带着箱子走路时，行动非常小心，似乎担心碰坏什么东西。

经过分析判断，海关关员将该名旅客列为重点查验对象。经过开箱查验，关员从两个行李箱中发现iPhone 4S手机45部(其中64G 6部，32G13部，16G26部)，并有BLACK BERRY(黑莓)手机3部，初步估计市值40多万元。目前，海关正

http://news.qq.com/a/20111020/001112.htm

My personal experience is that I have been in and out of CHina about 20 times in 2011 in many different ports with my personal iPad, iPhone and mac book Air and put it all through the X-ray at customs going in and nobody cared anything about it.

I think the case is exaggerated. But I wouldn't try bringing any new ones through customs still in the original packaging.

Yup - most travelers these days don't have any problems carrying in their own phones etc and its only the organized "syndicates" trying to smuggle in goods/evading taxes that they're targeting nowadays.
All one needs is look at all the passengers getting on at the Sheung Shui MTR station laden with all manners of goods to know that such syndicates do conduct a thriving trade.

And talk about exaggeration - when does 45 IPhones translate into being worth more than 40 million? (Must be talking about Vietnamese dong!). Perhaps Google translate "Waan" into million i/o the 10,000 unit that it actually means.  But even this still translates into 400,000 or 8,888 per phone!

SEAJ

I also saw News about it on TV while I was in China. It was aired for a few days.  Most likely she got a heavy fine. If she couldn't pay the fine, all the Iphones 4S were confiscated.

I also saw News about a car that had cell phones in the car's gasoline tank.  It was crossing the border from Hk into China.

It was busted at immigration at the China border.  I wonder how immigration caught these people and found out about those phones.

I have gone into China in and out, several times, most of the time by mini-vans. Only once did we have to get out to open our luggage. The lady just quickly looked at them and said close it. She then went to the next luggage. She only opened four and we left.