03 Feb Shipping Furniture (and Other Household Goods) To Australia On A Budget

Are you planning to move to Australia? Every year, thousands of individuals decide to relocate to Australia, for a wide range of reasons, including work opportunities, or to be nearer family.

If you’re planning on making Australia your new home, no doubt you will want to bring your belongings with you  – which is when a cost-effective way of shipping furniture to Australia is of real benefit.

Read on to discover how to trim your shipping costs right back when you relocate to Australia, without compromising on the safety and security of your possessions as they are moved from one continent to another.

Pack Less and Pack Smarter

It’s common sense to declutter before you move, even when planning a local move. When every ounce of weight is potentially going to add to the cost of shipping, make sure that you only pack items you really can’t bear to be parted from. Remember that, particularly for cheaper items, it’s probably going to cost less to buy them once you’re in Australia, rather than paying the shipping costs.

As well as keeping the number and weight of the items you choose to ship to a minimum, it’s worth considering their dimensions as well. Shipping is cost by the amount of space items take up, as well as how much they weigh. Expert packing, including disassembly of larger items, frequently results in a shipment that has more compact dimensions.

If you’re struggling to minimize the size of your shipment, or are shipping furniture to Australia and are wondering how best to pack it to reduce the volume of space it takes up, it’s often worth enlisting the help of professional international movers, who have plenty of experience in packing goods in a space-saving manner.

They’ll not only be able to advise on the best way of stowing your goods, but they’ll also provide suitably durable containers to hold your items during their journey. If you’re shipping items that are fragile, have significant sentimental value, and/or that are costly to replace, get advice from professional movers to optimize the chances they’ll arrive at your Oz address in one piece.

Consider Import Taxes

The good news is that if you’re taking up residence in Australia, you won’t usually need to pay import tax on your personal belongings. You will, however, need to complete the appropriate paperwork for your belongings to be processed by the Australian customs officials. It’s important that the paperwork is completed correctly, or you could face anything from delays in your belongings being cleared by customers through to demands for import tax, or even goods being impounded.

In addition to completing the Australian Customs and Quarantine Declaration (B534), you’ll also need to provide a copy of your passport, as well as an inventory that details everything in your shipment. 

The correct paperwork doesn’t just help to ensure the speedy passage of your goods through customs, it also minimizes the risk of incurring additional charges that may be applied if your shipment hasn’t been accurately inventoried.

Inventories can be particularly challenging to complete – if you haven’t completed one before, or aren’t sure how to go about making one, an experienced, international shipping company can help.

Check Restricted Items

To minimize the risk of alien diseases, parasites, or pests being introduced into the Australian ecosystem inadvertently from abroad, there is a long list of items that can’t be shipped into Australia, or that need to be declared and subsequently cleared before they can enter the country.

As well as items that it’s fairly obvious will be restricted (alcohol or guns, for example), items such as seeds, soil, animal parts (such as tanned hide), fruit, and many other items with an organic origin are either banned from entry into the country or will need to be declared.

Importing banned items, even if they belong to you and aren’t usually considered dangerous or illegal, could still see you potentially fined and your items confiscated. The easiest way to avoid the expense and inconvenience of customs hold-ups is to make sure that you’re prepared!

If you can’t face having to cross-check all your possessions against the list of banned items, or items that need to be declared, enlist movers who are used to dealing with Australian customs regulations. 

They have the expertise not only to quickly identify items you will need to declare (or not bring), but also the experience to ensure your goods reach Australia safely and on schedule.

Save Money – Use An Established International Haulage Firm

When you opt for a seasoned haulage company that’s used to shipping to Australia, you’ll be working with a business that knows all the tricks and tips to keep costs as low as possible.

Not only can they advise on everything from the right packing materials to the cheapest way of moving your belongings from a to b, they can also help with tricky topics such as:

• the right sort of insurance for your goods when they’re in transit.
  
• how to safely transport fragile and/or awkwardly shaped items.
  
• the cheapest and safest way to ship vehicles, boats, machinery, or other large possessions.
  
• the right container size for your move.
  
• the type of timescales you’re looking at to get your goods moved.
  
• how your goods are tracked and what happens in the unlikely event your belongings get lost in transit.

UPakWeShip Offers An Affordable Straightforward Shipping Solution

If you’re moving to Australia and want an economical way of shipping your possessions to your new home, UPakWeShip is the solution. 

We provide secure crates in a selection of sizes so that customers can tailor their crate to the size of their move. 

There are also options to access pallet shipping and container shipping.

Get in touch with UPakWeShip for a FREE discussion of your requirements and a no-obligation quote.