| I have no experience traveling with a bass to China. I've brought a guitar with me to Italy and a mandolin to Brazil with no issues. If you are traveling with expensive equipment that you don't want to have the foreign customs treat as an import, you can obtain something called a Carnet which is a lot like a passport for goods. I have used them for runway shows in Japan to avoid high duties and tariff quota issues. Carnets are issue by the International Chamber of Commerce. I think I used a third party named Roanoke but I don't know if they are still in business. Carnets are also used by bands etc. The trick is to get the items validated by the foreign customs upon entry and exit. You don't need to accompany the goods but you need a reliable agent at the foreign country to make sure the foils are stamped. I have an idea that a carnet would run a couple hundred $ so its probably only practical if you are bringing a lot stuff or something really expensive.
By the way, I'd investigate shipping as luggage as air shipping something that bulky from China to U.S. is expensive and charged by volume not weight.
Best,
Ed
Last edited by Dubbin : 01-20-2007 at 07:50 PM.
Reason: addition
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