Shipping to UAE
dnata logistics has compiled this information sheet to help you to understand what happens when moving to the United Arab Emirates, and to inform you of procedures once your shipment has arrived. Please try and take time to read it, and if you need further advice or information, please do call us or our agent in Dubai. We are all available to help you.
This information is provided without obligation and at the individual’s risk. We accept no responsibility for any inaccuracy of whatever nature.
Our computer system will automatically generate a shipping advice email which will be sent to the email address you supply us with, giving you the name of the vessel your shipment is on, the arrival date into the port, the destination agent and other important details. This notification is usually sent a week after the vessel sails.
Our destination agent will contact you before the vessel arrives regarding clearance formalities and to obtain further information from you regarding the access at your delivery point.
When the vessel arrives in at Dubai, our agent will arrange for it to be hauled to their Customs bonded warehouse for unloading. Customs clearance will take place there, which normally takes approximately 5-10 days. This time frame can vary during the year. Deliveries to the main cities usually take place within 7 days after clearance. We will contact you to make arrangements for a suitable delivery date.
It is your own responsibility to ensure that you are aware of how current Customs regulations and your own personal circumstances affect the status of your shipment with regard to whether or not you will be liable to pay any duty or taxes on your shipment or certain items in it. Shipments can be cleared without employment pass if the owner is willing to pay GST. If a formal Customs entry has to be made, a fee may be charged for this. If you have dutiable goods in your shipment, you may be asked by Customs to supply documentary evidence (sales receipts, invoices, insurance papers, etc.) to ascertain your ownership of the goods, period of ownership, and their value.
Prohibited items include weapons, firearms (real or ornamental), ammunition, fire crackers, swords, daggers, spears etc, military uniform or equipment, alcohol, narcotics of all kinds, banned drugs, medicines, radio transmitter or communication equipment, statues and figures or animals with religious undertone, carvings and statues of humans especially in nude, pornographic materials, religious books other than dealing with Islamic beliefs and materials contrary to an Islamic State’s principles.
Please note that we will also not accept firearms, food stuffs and paint in any shipment. All video tapes, records, films, photographs, books, magazines, periodicals etc will be subject to review and censorship by the UAE Ministry of Information prior to release. Please note that all gas bottles for diving tanks, gas stoves and barbecues etc must be free of gas. Garden implements, outdoor furniture, golf clubs, tents, camping equipment, barbeques, shoes, bicycles, buggies/prams need to be cleaned thoroughly and be free of dirt, soil, grass, food etc. All dangerous goods are prohibited by sea and air shipments.
Your shipment must be cleared through Customs before you can take delivery. You must be present in United Arab Emirates in order for your shipment to clear customs. To clear the shipment you will have to complete a packing list or inventory. If your shipment is an owner-packed shipment, we will supply you with a packing list form on which you list the goods in your shipment. If your shipment is a household relocation including professional packing, our packers will make an inventory for you at the time of the relocation. You will also need to provide a copy of your passport photo page and visa page if applicable.
We hope that you have found the information on this sheet useful. Please do not hesitate to call us if you require further information or advice on any aspect of your shipment, or if you would like full details of our Dubai agent.
All information on this sheet is given for guidance only, and although we believe it to be correct at the time of writing, we do not accept any liability for errors, omissions, inaccuracies or misinterpretation. All charges, regulations and procedures are liable to change without notice.