The "Freeola Customer Forum" forum, which includes Retro Game Reviews, has been archived and is now read-only. You cannot post here or create a new thread or review on this forum.
No, not the swarthy bowler hatted assassin henchman of Auric Goldfinger.
My odd job.
Like today for instance. Usually a working day consists of posting on here, having several smokes, producing the odd report and generally trying to get women to kiss each other.
Except today. A situation that has been ongoing for almost 2 months now involving a customer exporting to China from Hong Kong.
Various emails/phone calls/letters to Chambers of Commerce, import authorities, port controllers etc trying to smooth things through.
Today I get an email from the Chinese Port Authority telling me they are holding onto a shipment of 950kg because the documents do not tally.
This is clearly rubbish, as all import/export documents are checked before shipping.
Speak to our Hong Kong office and discover that there are no standards for importing to China, and that the customs officer I have been talking to is notorious for witholding shipments and demanding penalty tax of 130% value for incorrect documents.
So what do I have to do? Negotiate a bribe with a Chinese Customs officer to release the goods. He wanted $3,000. $3,000 to release goods that are sitting there under his control. Why $3,000?
Because "ah, dis amount is correct based on da weight ratio and volume capacity of da shipment"
"Well our customer cannot afford $3000, so you will have to keep it"
"We can, ah...negotiate"
Ends up accepting $800 to release the goods.
So today Goatboy has smoked 5 ciggies, drank 2 cokes, read Q and haggled with Chinese Port Authorities over the amount of bribery money they will accept to release goods.
Who says East/West relations are strained?
My odd job.
Like today for instance. Usually a working day consists of posting on here, having several smokes, producing the odd report and generally trying to get women to kiss each other.
Except today. A situation that has been ongoing for almost 2 months now involving a customer exporting to China from Hong Kong.
Various emails/phone calls/letters to Chambers of Commerce, import authorities, port controllers etc trying to smooth things through.
Today I get an email from the Chinese Port Authority telling me they are holding onto a shipment of 950kg because the documents do not tally.
This is clearly rubbish, as all import/export documents are checked before shipping.
Speak to our Hong Kong office and discover that there are no standards for importing to China, and that the customs officer I have been talking to is notorious for witholding shipments and demanding penalty tax of 130% value for incorrect documents.
So what do I have to do? Negotiate a bribe with a Chinese Customs officer to release the goods. He wanted $3,000. $3,000 to release goods that are sitting there under his control. Why $3,000?
Because "ah, dis amount is correct based on da weight ratio and volume capacity of da shipment"
"Well our customer cannot afford $3000, so you will have to keep it"
"We can, ah...negotiate"
Ends up accepting $800 to release the goods.
So today Goatboy has smoked 5 ciggies, drank 2 cokes, read Q and haggled with Chinese Port Authorities over the amount of bribery money they will accept to release goods.
Who says East/West relations are strained?
Page:
The more confused you get the more they skin you for. Simple really.
It might as well say, "Aaah, you figure it out".
That just hurts my head
" It's complicated because there are so many rules, but we change these so there are no more rules "
" It's complicated because there are so many rules, but we change these so there are no more rules "
This is the official explanation for having to bribe port authorities:
"Importing to China is so complicated. There are rules and regulations, however, there are also ways to interpret the rules and regulations. At the end, there is no rules and regulations."
Well that's clear then...
"Importing to China is so complicated. There are rules and regulations, however, there are also ways to interpret the rules and regulations. At the end, there is no rules and regulations."
Well that's clear then...
You suck
I get paid £3.45 an hour to stand in cold ailses and pack butter and milk and stuff.
I get paid £3.45 an hour to stand in cold ailses and pack butter and milk and stuff.
I think you should go to China dressed as Oddjob and threaten them. I'll even lend you my Twin Vickers for some gentle persuasion if they aren't scared of Bond baddies.
cookie monster wrote:
> Photocopy something, Ozone is a by-product produced by photocopiers.
Yeah and then the Ozone will magically fly up to the Ozone layer and be repatriated with its friends.
Mmmmm.
> Photocopy something, Ozone is a by-product produced by photocopiers.
Yeah and then the Ozone will magically fly up to the Ozone layer and be repatriated with its friends.
Mmmmm.
If we all photocopy stuff to get the ozone layer back, there'll be no trees left. Then no CO2. So we'll have to do something to get the CO2 back, which would no doubt involve using up ozone...
cookie monster wrote:
> Photocopy something, Ozone is a by-product produced by photocopiers.
wow, how do you know that?
It's pretty cool to imagine a small ozone layer encapsulating the photocopier, non?
> Photocopy something, Ozone is a by-product produced by photocopiers.
wow, how do you know that?
It's pretty cool to imagine a small ozone layer encapsulating the photocopier, non?
Hell yes, I got one:
"From this case, we can say that there is no standards of importing procedures in China. It depends on which port, which customs officer that you are dealing with; what the relationship between the customs and what the luck you have"
"From this case, we can say that there is no standards of importing procedures in China. It depends on which port, which customs officer that you are dealing with; what the relationship between the customs and what the luck you have"
Page: