Getting items trough Customs at POP

Reality again is no one will care. Keep it under us 200 in value per person. If asked or checked a small propina goes a long way.

It's all about you, nothing to do with customs.  I just came through with 4 suitcases full, VIP, no questions no issues, no problem.  Your case could be completely different, again depending on you.

Only been there once, but customs thru Santo Domingo was a breeze.

Just don't overdo.   Bring back reasonable amounts each trip, you'll get to your goal. 

Expatrusher

Thank you

Thanks

Always be covert , never overt when it is apparent that a propina may ease the process.  A smile & calm,quiet demeanor will enable you to garner a smile in return. They may refuse the offer, but never report the attempt. Just never overdo your value to an obvious extent. I'm not suggesting that you break the law, heaven forbid such a thing.  I wink quite often, such as now.

I have been bringing stuff through PUJ for the last three years, Lights, toaster oven, vacuum cleaner, printer, you name it. I even brought down 7 six foot outdoor roller blinds in a ski bag. Customs looked at that one and I just said I had a condo, he laughed and let me through. Any guests I have coming down are required to bring an extra suit case which I pack for them (lol).

Oh, and all the power tools I needed

Thanks for my morning giggle!  I have a vision of that bag in customs!

Yeah, they don't see many ski bags in the DR!

I like it.... thanks for the info, it’s  exactly what I’m looking to do.

Stupid newbie question alert!

Could you buy a plane ticket including travel insurance, show up at the US airport, check in multiple heavy bags, pay the baggage fees, "get sick", go home, have the bags flown to POP airport without you and make arrangements for someone to retrieve them for you, get your airfare refunded via the travel insurance, and then fly down a few days later to retrieve your belongings?

Nooooo my friend.  If you are not on the plane your luggage is removed.  Otherwise terrorist would easily do this!

Righto! the planes would be falling out of the skies.

Well, nobody would want that. Back to my Spanish learning then 

I have had good and bad experiences both with 40" flat screens that at the time here were 3 x the Canadian price.   Punta Cana breezed right through. Samana was forced to leave the TV because although I was willing to pay the tax they had no one to collect it. Had to go back later to retrieve it. The duty had nothing to do with the value or the international agreements that govern how duties/taxes are to be applied. Just a scrap of paper with a list of prices for electronic goods. In my case about 5x what it should have been,but still less than a TV here.
I have also over the years brought lots of power and other  tools,small appliances etc , with no trouble. I have noticed in the last couple of years there are more quality product coming in at more reasonable prices. Also eBay has suppliers from all over the world that ship here. Just keep below that magic $200 and usually no problems.

Good info.

Ebay suppliers sometimes ship here but you are better off using a miami based freight forwarder. Lots of info on here about that. Keep it below US 200 including shipment to Miami.  Remember you pay by weight to here not by value.  A 1 pound package costs the same from Miami to here regardless of what it contains.

And, there are limits to how many suitcases they let you bring at any one time. Also, they are starting to check for televisions....

The only restriction I have found is through the airline. Typically the expense for the third bag becomes prohibitive.

Several US airlines limit the number of bags you can take to DR to 2. They are also starting to restrict TV's in luggage.

Having said that though, 2 people, 4 bags, $25/$35 each (Jet Blue) is still a pretty economical way to pack mule. If you can leave the bags in DR and not pay to take them back, even better.  😎👍

I go to the thrift store and get used suit cases for a one way trip