Hi gatepourri,
Fortunately, I was able to find an excellent guide, published by the
U.S. Customs Service, for people returning to the United States
following a lengthy stay abroad. Following I have copied a few key
points, but given that there are so many variables dependent on your
personal situation, it would be best for you to click on the link and
read the entire guide - it is quite complete and lays out exactly what
you need to do. The good news is, you will be allowed to bring back
your household and personal goods ("belongings") free of any duty
charges (as long as you didn't move to France with the intent to stay
permanently), whether you send them along separately or bring them
with you.
>>>>>>GUIDE
Moving Household Goods to the United States: A Guide to Customs Regulations:
"Returning residents who have been living outside of the United States
for a number of years and are returning to live in the United States."
>Returning Resident
"A returning resident is a citizen of the United States... who is
returning from abroad. In order to be classified as a returning
resident, it must be understood that your time out of the country was
for a temporary period. If your intent was to move abroad permanently
(you married a nonresident), and after a time, your plans unexpectedly
changed (you became divorced), your return to the U.S. may be
classified as a nonresident move."
>Household Effects
"Household effects are furniture, dishes, linens, libraries, artwork
and similar household furnishings for your personal use. The articles
must have either been available for your use or used in a household
where you were a resident for one year and are not intended for any
other person or for sale. The year of use does not need to be
continuous, nor does it need to be the year immediately before the
date of importation. "
>Personal Effects
"Personal effects are items that belong to, and are used by, one
person, such as wearing apparel, jewelry, photographic equipment and
tape recorders. They cannot be entered as household effects."
>>>General Procedures for Importing Household and Personal Effects
"When completing the Customs Form (CF) 6059B, ?Customs Declaration,?
for accompanying goods, or the CF 3299 ?Declaration For Free Entry of
Unaccompanied Articles,? the statement that the goods are ?household
effects? is not sufficient information. The complete inventory of
imported goods will be treated as the packing list and must be
provided to Customs upon request. "
>Goods that Accompany You
"Household and personal effects that arrive in the U.S. on the same
vessel, vehicle or aircraft, and on the same day that you do, are
considered to accompany you. Articles that are shipped as freight on
a bill of lading or airway bill are also considered to accompany you
when the baggage arrives in the U.S. on the same conveyance that you
arrive on. You must complete Customs Form 6059B, ?Customs
Declaration,? listing all items with their value that you are bringing
into the United States with you. Identify those you believe are
entitled to duty-free entry, based on the information in this
publication. Explain your status to the Customs Inspector and ask any
questions that you may have before the inspection of your belongings
begins."
>Goods Shipped Separately
"Household effects entitled to duty-free entry do not need to
accompany you to the United States; you may have them shipped to your
U.S. address at a later time if you choose. Your shipment of personal
and/or household goods must be cleared through Customs at its first
port of arrival unless you have made arrangements with a foreign
freight forwarder to have your effects sent in Customs custody in-bond
from the port of arrival to a more convenient port of entry for
clearance. (Ask your moving company if they offer this service.)
Customs will not notify you that your goods have arrived. It is the
responsibility of the shipper to notify you of the arrival of your
goods. After receiving this notification you must enter the
merchandise. Failure to enter the merchandise within 15 days after
its arrival in port may result in the merchandise being moved to a
general order warehouse. If merchandise is placed in a general order
warehouse, storage charges will accrue and payment of those charges is
the responsibility of the party importing the household goods.
Failure to obtain that merchandise from the general order warehouse
within six months may result in its sale. When you come to Customs to
enter your goods, you must complete Customs Form 3299 ?Declaration for
Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles,? to give to the Customs officer.
If you cannot come to the Customs office yourself, you may designate
a friend or relative to represent you in Customs matters. You must
give that person a letter addressed to ?Officer in Charge of Customs?
authorizing that individual to represent you as your agent on a
one-time basis to clear your shipment through Customs."
>See Also
Importing an Automobile or Other Vehicle
Prohibited or Restricted Goods
Professional Equipment/Tools of Trade
Liquor, Tobacco
Firearms and ammunition
Gifts
Government/Military Personnel
You may write to the U.S. Customs Service, PO Box 7407, Washington,
D.C. 20044, if you have a question that is not answered by the
information in this brochure.
http://search.cbp.gov/cs.html?charset=utf-8&url=http%3A//www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/toolbox/publications/travel/movinghouseholdgoods.ctt/moving.doc&qt=household+goods&col=&n=2&la=en
>>>>>>FORM 3299
>FORM 3299:
https://forms.customs.gov/customsrf/getformharness.asp?formName=cf-3299-form.xft
>HOW TO COMPLETE U.S. CUSTOMS FORM 3299:
All individuals relocating to the U.S. must complete and sign the U.S.
Customs Form 3299 in order to clear their unaccompanied household
goods and personal effects through Customs. In order to make this
task a little easier, below is a brief explanation of the meaning of
certain words used in the form, and instructions for completion of the
form itself.
www.teamrelocations.com/USCUSTOM.doc
I hope this is what you were hoping for. If you have any questions,
please post a clarification request before closing/rating my answer
and I'll be happy to assist your further.
Thank you,
hummer
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