lpnv59
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Is it dangerous with regards to Cities?
Shipping a vintage Gibson to Spain
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Tom Wittrock
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Do you have your paperwork in order? :hmm
zhivago
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...and also does the buyer have the CITES paperwork in order on their end?
lpnv59
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I don’t have any paperwork. I’m trying to sell my cousins Gibson acoustic for her. It was made in ‘65 so it has Brazilian Rosewood. I put it on Reverb and got an offer from Spain. With the buyers having pretty much all the protection from problems in a sale, I figured I’d ask if Spain is one of the more diligent enforcers of the cities act. I guess it doesn’t matter now since I just declined the offer. I don’t want to deal with any potential headaches selling something I don’t even own, or intend to make a dime off of. No good deed goes unpunished. Thanks for chiming in
zhivago
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I think you did the right thing...it is an absolute pain to sort out a CITES mess if something goes wrong.
DrRobert
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There is a proposed "passport" for guitars that you can fill out. And a 65 should be any brainer for qualifying BUT:
1. If he doesn't get his paperwork in order, his import license, you can lose the guitar thru no fault of your own
2. If the border people are being difficult that day, they can seize the guitar and you or the buyer would have to go to court to get it back, not something you can do from here.
I think my advice in this case would be to get the documents if it's worth your time, then tell the buyer they have to come over and pick it up in person! Then it's their problem to import it!
1. If he doesn't get his paperwork in order, his import license, you can lose the guitar thru no fault of your own
2. If the border people are being difficult that day, they can seize the guitar and you or the buyer would have to go to court to get it back, not something you can do from here.
I think my advice in this case would be to get the documents if it's worth your time, then tell the buyer they have to come over and pick it up in person! Then it's their problem to import it!
slimdave
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Cities is not a big issue when importing to Spain. Been there, done that. But there’s always a risk...
I live in Spain, so pm me if you have questions or need help.
I live in Spain, so pm me if you have questions or need help.
Tom Wittrock
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OKGuitar
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I always do the paperwork and compel the buyer to do his end. There are some countries who really don't care and others who are really diligent.
Germany and Austria are really hard core. UK can go either way. France and Italy are generally pretty loose. I rarely ship to Spain. Most of Asia doesn't seem to care. Australia never seems to check even though I always do the paperwork. The other thing to consider is what you do with the paperwork. I put it inside the box with no notification that its in there. That way, if it sails through, no problem, no delay. If they open it to inspect, it's right there--no problem except it might be delayed while they process the paperwork and get the correct import certification from the recipient. If you tell them the paperwork is there or you put it in the pouch, they will almost always open it and hold it for a day or more. I ship dozens of guitars overseas every year and nearly all have Brazilian rosewood (335's). I won't even consider sending one with no paperwork anymore. I've had two guitars seized and both were released once the paperwork was sorted out. One was seized by UK Customs, the other by US (incoming).
Germany and Austria are really hard core. UK can go either way. France and Italy are generally pretty loose. I rarely ship to Spain. Most of Asia doesn't seem to care. Australia never seems to check even though I always do the paperwork. The other thing to consider is what you do with the paperwork. I put it inside the box with no notification that its in there. That way, if it sails through, no problem, no delay. If they open it to inspect, it's right there--no problem except it might be delayed while they process the paperwork and get the correct import certification from the recipient. If you tell them the paperwork is there or you put it in the pouch, they will almost always open it and hold it for a day or more. I ship dozens of guitars overseas every year and nearly all have Brazilian rosewood (335's). I won't even consider sending one with no paperwork anymore. I've had two guitars seized and both were released once the paperwork was sorted out. One was seized by UK Customs, the other by US (incoming).
lpnv59
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Interesting stuff. So where do you get the proper documentation? I declined the offer on my cousins acoustic. But for future reference. Thanks:yah
OKGuitar
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First, get in touch with US Fish and Wildlife. They will walk you through the process.
Cliff Gress
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"I need a butler and a trip to Spain."
lpnv59
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Thanks. Funny, I got another offer on it from another Spaniard. B-25 acoustics become hot in Spain for some reason.