ABOUT US

We provide a professional and excellent weekly Shipping service to the entire Caribbean. It is our intention to make life as easy for the customer as possible. Ramsay Shipping & Removals provide you with a fantastic door to door service from your home in the UK, delivered to your destination port in the Caribbean. We do not only ship household goods, we ship pretty much anything that moves from Industrial equipment to cars and tractors. The following information is from ‘The Art Of Packing A Barrel’ By Sweet Jamaica (An amusing tale, complements of the sweet Jamaica writer).

Frequently Asked Questions

What are barrels all about?

Barrels are available new or recycled, in different sizes and are usually made of either sturdy metal or plastic; check they have been cleaned as it is not guaranteed with recycled barrels. The largest (normally) blue barrels are supplied with a plastic or silver metal lid which has a separate ‘belt like’ lever locking fastener to secure the lid firmly down in place and cost in the region of £40.00. The largest size holds around 200 – 220 litres and has a wide open top of around 40 inches for easy packing and unpacking. As far as I am aware there is no weight limit to the contents…. as long as the bottom does not fall out when it is moved! You can ship almost anything in a barrel from household goods, clothes and toiletries to car parts, paddling pools and tools.
Why are barrels a good idea?
- As the largest barrels hold 220 litres with a wide open top of approx 40 CM it makes it easy to load bulky, heavy or fragile items.
- You can send items to cut down on your weekly shop, such as, detergent for clothes, washing up liquid, bleach and other cleaning materials. Tinned foodstuffs, rice, oil, foil, teabags, coffee and so on.
- You can pack some of your home comforts alongside gifts for friends and relatives without compromising on your luggage allowance on the plane.
- Some items such as housewares are very expensive or hard to get in Jamaica compared to the deals you get at home.
What items are prohibited or restricted by Jamaican customs for personal shipping?
There are laws, rules and guidance about what items are prohibited from entering Jamaica. The Jamaican Customs website states that Prohibited Items include:

Prohibited items are absolutely forbidden from entering Jamaica, some of which include: Indecent and obscene prints, paintings, photographs, cinematograph films, lithographs, engravings, books, cards or written communications or any indecent or obscene articles whether similar to the above or not and any parcels, packages or packets having thereon, or on the cover there of, any words, marks or designs which are grossly offensive or of an indecent or obscene character. Coin-base or counterfeit coin of any country.

The following and similar publications:
1. All publications of de Laurence Scott and Company of Chicago in the United States of America relating to divination, magic, cultism or supernatural arts.
2. All publications of the Red Star Publishing Company of Chicago in the United States of America relating to divination, magic, cultism or supernatural arts.
Some meats, fish, dairy produce, seeds, sugar and other items are also restricted. There is further information on restricted items on the website, with a supporting PDF outlining the goods it applies to. Click here.
What should I pack in my barrel?

Barrels containing a mixture of food, used household and kitchen items, cleaning materials and other sundry items have the lowest tax bracket as they are considered to be items for personal use. When I asked the shipping agent in London how much tax I was likely to pay for one barrel they said it would be around $6,000 and would be payable at the wharf in Jamaica.
What happens to the barrels after they are emptied?

The plastic and metal barrels that once carried the goods, gifts and belongings of someone ‘a foreign’ to the hands of someone ‘back a yard’ are seen all over Jamaica in their retirement phase and are recycled as water storage containers, jerk bar-b-q’s (metal barrels only!) and other types of storage vessels.
How do I ship a barrel?
It is a fairly simple process to arrange from the UK side of things and I would imagine the process is more or less the same no matter where you ship from:
1. Find a good local shipping agent to buy a barrel from, usually at around £40.00 for a 220 litre plastic barrel, most agents will deliver sometimes for a small fee.
2. Pack your barrel with care! Wrap lids with brown packing tape and separate food items away from toiletries, soap powder and cleaning materials, so they taste and smell as they should. Bubble wrap fragile items and use towels, bed sheets and other soft items as protection.
3. Arrange for collection from your shipping agent and make sure they put a ‘lock’ on your barrel. Pay for shipping to either Kingston or Montego bay. KEEP YOUR RECEIPT IN A SAFE PLACE AS IT SHOULD HAVE THE BARREL NUMBERS LISTED.
4. Hope for safe travels…..
I am looking forward to meeting my barrels ‘on the other side’ after seeing them off safely in London. Next time I glimpse them they will have crossed the ocean waves and will hopefully of landed in Kingston, Jamaica wondering why it is so hot all of a sudden!
How much does it cost?

The Art Of Packing A Barrel

Shipping a crate or a barrel is not as hard as you think and with the great service at the wharf it makes it all the more enjoyable…

To send or not to send, that is the question. The lure of shipping a barrel is one that is likely to cross your mind when you are travelling to Jamaica for an extended stay, or when visiting or staying with friends and family. The thought just kind of appears in your mind as a solution, when the headache starts and the panic sets in over your luggage allowance and whether you can fit all the things you want to take with you. It is easy to get carried away though when you find the one intended barrel, becomes two, and two becomes three… we could go on, but you get the idea!

Barrel Security

Once you have packed your barrel the shipping agent generally collects it from you and a small tamper proof lock is added to the lever. Each lock has a unique ID number for every barrel and the ID number should be written on your receipt by the shippers. The lock should not be removed until someone is present to witness the customs officials strip the barrel at the wharf to work out the tax payable in Jamaica. There is no key for the lock as the sender may not be travelling to Jamaica to receive the barrel, but it is more of tamper proof security seal which needs strong pliers to cut off. The person that goes to collect the barrel at the wharf should be aware of the ID numbers and have a record of them to check the barrels have not been tampered with.

Use a thick black marker pen and write your name (or person to be shipped to) and address clearly on the barrels, so they are easily identifiable at the wharf. The shipping agent will generally add their own label as well, but it is best not to rely on it.

C15 or Yellow Form

When travelling through customs be sure to join the ‘Red To Declare Line’ at the airport and ask for an unaccompanied baggage form known as C15 or ‘yellow form’. Fill this out with the Customs/Immigration Declaration Form, the C5 or white form and hand it to a representative. This proves you have travelled and shipped the items to yourself when clearing the goods at the wharf. The customs official at the airport will check your allowances in your accompanied luggage and if you have not exceed the US$500 limit it will be transferred to the items you have shipped lowering your tax payable at the wharf.

Should they consider that you have items for resale, then higher tax will be applied. If you pack electrical items or high value items, such as tools, or large quantities of alcohol then higher tax will be applied. I would NOT advise sending down a barrel full of new clothes and shoes as you will get stung with high tax, even worse if the goods are name brand items. BE WARNED!

Jamaica Wharf Process

After much anticipation my barrels have arrived at Kingston Wharf and I cannot wait to see them again. I decided to get the barrels shipped to Kingston rather than Montego Bay and collect them myself, as not only was it cheaper, more critically it was faster, shaving off at least an extra 10 days waiting time for the ship to offload at Kingston and then make its way to Montego Bay for its last unloading. As I was desperate to get my things as soon as possible and I was staying half way between the two ports I decided it made sense and was just as easy to go to Kingston as Mo’ Bay to retrieve my much wanted belongings that I had bid farewell to in London on 17th August 2012.

C15 or Yellow Form

Jamaica Wharf Process

There are 8 (eight) easy steps to follow for clearing a barrel in Jamaica…

1 – Arrange Transportation to the Wharf – ensure the vehicle is large enough to hold the items you intend to pick up. Remember your I.D., TRN Card and shipping paperwork.

2 – Make your way to your Shipping Agent Office which will be located near to the appropriate Wharf, pay your Landing Fees and get your Bill of Lading. Make sure you know which Wharf to go to.

3 – Head to the Wharf, go to the Main Building hand in your paperwork and pay your handling charge.

4 – Go to the Manifest Building hand in your paperwork and wait for more paperwork and directions of which berth to attend to clear your goods.

5 – Once at the berth number, hand in your paperwork and wait for your name to be called. On entering the berth you will be asked to unpack your barrels for customs to look inside and value the contents.

6 – Proceed to the Customs Cashiers Desk where they will finalise the value of the items and give you a Customs Import Entry Form (C78X).

7 – Take the Customs Import Entry Form (C78X) to the Payments Office, pay the required fee and keep your receipt safe.

8 – Show the receipt to the Gate Pass Office and wait to receive a Gate Pass. Go back outside and find your driver, approach the gate and show the paperwork and the driver will also need to show their Driving Licence. Approach the loading bay near to the berth, show your paperwork and load your items into your vehicle. Drive back to the main exit, show paperwork and finally leave the wahrf.

Step One

The paperwork that I carried with me to Jamaica had an expected date of arrival printed on it as 24th September 2012, and it instructed you to telephone the office if you had not heard from them by that date. I was surprised to get a telephone call from Shipping Agent, on the 21st September advising me that the barrels were ready for collection, before I had the chance to call them. The staff were very friendly and polite and gave me the address to come to in Kingston to collect the ‘Bill of Lading’paperwork for clearing the barrels at the wharf.

I chartered a lovely, experienced driver Fenton and his mini bus for $9,000 (including Gas) through a recommendation from a friend, to drive me to Kingston Wharf and return with the 3 barrels. Fenton arrived as requested at 5.00am before ‘the Cock(erel) had taken off his draws’ as my good friend would have said and we set out in the early morning darkness for Kingston clutching my personal identification, TRN Card, the paperwork from the Shipping Agent, my C15 form from the airport and receipts for the majority of the items I had shipped in the barrels, as proof of the cost I had paid for them in the UK.

We headed through Ocho Rios and travelled east towards St.Mary, which was a more scenic and traffic free route instead of the more familiar journey through Fern Gully and Flat Bridge. Swiftly driving along the deserted A3 Highway we quickly reached Ian Fleming International Airport (formerly Boscobel Aerodrome) and continued eastward towards to Orcabessa.

Turning off the Highway and heading through the interior of the country as the sun was coming up the beauty of Jamaica was revealed in the lush green canopies of trees and the numerous hills, gulleys and riversides we passed on the journey. Our route passed Stoney Hill on the outskirts of Kingston which had a lushly covered hillside which looked serene and magnificent against the dense forest trees that covered most of the other peaks.

We reached Kingston and made our way to the shipping offices just before 8.00am where I found they were open and welcoming despite it being before the listed opening hours of 8.30am. The staff were very friendly and professional and unusually for Jamaica they worked quickly and efficiently in getting your paperwork ready for you. I handed over my paperwork from their UK offices, ID, TRN Card and my C15 Form and they gave me the ‘Bill of Lading’ which is an essential piece of paperwork to carry to the wharf. The office was clean and had a free iced water dispenser and chairs for you to rest in whilst they dealt with the paperwork. There was a $5,400.00 fee to pay for landing fees for the 3 barrels. Within about 15 minutes I was handed a small piece of card with instructions of what to do next and was directed to the Wharf.

Back in the mini-bus Fenton drove us round to the Wharf’s main gate and paid a fee to one of the unofficial car park attendants to park up outside the compound where vendors sold drinks and patties. Only 1 person (whose name is on the paperwork) was allowed to enter the compound in order to process the shipment. After showing my ‘Bill of Lading’ paperwork and ID to the friendly but officious guard I was directed to Kingsport Building which was clean and air-conditioned to the point of wanting to wear a sweater. Waiting in the line of people to reach one of the cashiers I noticed that I was the only white person in the building and was drawing some attention. I waited no more than 10 minutes before reaching the front desk and had a $2,060.00 bill to pay to the wharf for Handling Charges for the 3 barrels. I noticed the receipt had recorded that the ship had arrived at the wharf on the 18th September and that I would have been liable for paying Storage Fees had the barrels not been collected by the 29th September.

After leaving the Kingsport Building you are directed to the Manifest Building which is a short walk away; anyone who has managed to accompany you thus far is instructed to wait on long wooden benches as you have to show your paperwork and receipt for the Wharf’s Handling Charges and are guided through a guarded carousel gateway. Before you reach the Manifest Building entrance you pass some public toilets on your right-hand side which are cavernous and a little foreboding to enter on your own, but they were clean.

Once in the building you join the commercial or personal shipping line to show your paperwork to the courteous Customs Officers where they check your paperwork against their records and tell you the Berth where your goods are being stored. There is a small shop in the Manifest Building right by the entrance that sells hot and cold drinks, bagged snacks, delicious patties, bun and cheese and so on, you may find the sustenance welcoming (or at the very least a cold drink) as you may have a long wait to clear your goods.

Once out of the Manifest Building you show your paperwork and go through another guarded carousel gateway, where they direct you deeper into the belly of the wharf to the Berth Number that holds your goods (which is printed on the document). The woman guard here was especially friendly and was the first many at the wharf to ask if I could carry her back to London with me! Crossing the busy wharf road and turning right I was amazed at the size of the vehicles that were traversing the roadways and that were capable of carrying and driving with a huge container in its pincer like arms. The walkway on the other side is at a raised level from the roadway, which not only means persons can safely walk away from the formidable road traffic but it also makes it easier for loading of goods into vehicles.

Once you reach the Berth Number you hand your documents to the guard sitting behind a locked gate and wait on long wooden benches for your name to be called once the porters have located your barrels. This is where the goodies bought in the little shop in the Manifest Building come in handy…. By the time I reached this point it was coming up to 9.00am and there were only about 5 other people waiting before me.

A woman who was waiting was commenting that she was returning back the States tomorrow and had been in Jamaica for 6 weeks. She had sent 2 barrels and when she came to collect them only 1 could be found which contained clothes and gifts, the other one containing foodstuffs could not be found. After much confusion at the wharf she was instructed to go home and wait to be contacted when the other 1 was located. Needless to say the wharf called her two days before she was leaving the island to come and collect the other barrel as it had now been found, but she was annoyed that she had to buy foodstuffs whilst on the island despite spending the time and effort to ship them.

It took about 15 minutes for my name to be called where I was ushered through the gate and directed to a table where my 3 barrels were all lined up. I have to admit I was relieved to see all three barrels and was encouraged to see that they had managed to get all the way from London intact. The friendly and charming Customs Officials called over a wisely (but strong and fit) porter and he unfastened the lock that the shippers had put on back in London with a huge pair of pliers. The same porter ‘helped’ to unpack the barrels by taking out about half the items in two of the barrels and just the ‘top layer’ of the last barrel setting them out on the long stainless steel table.

The Customs Officers quickly looked over the items already laid out and asked me to continue to empty the barrels; once I had nearly emptied the first two barrels they came back over. I was asked to open a large plastic container that I had stored dishes and glasses in and had to pull out a large box containing a paddling pool for closer inspection. Generally anything in a box or carton was of interest to them and when they spied a saucepan handle (pot handle) they verbally noted that I had a pot set. They also asked about the bottle of Hennessey and Champagne that I had listed on the C15 form, but when I pulled out the bubble wrapped bottles they didn’t seem overly interested as I assured them there was only one of each. I showed them the receipt for the paddling pool and they noted the cost.

None of the barrels were completely emptied although they did look inside all 3 vessels. Unfortunately I had a few casualties as one cup handle broke off and the two champagne glasses I had sent had both broken despite packing them in bubble wrap, but at least they went together!

Once the Customs officials were satisfied I was instructed to re-pack my barrels and a very good-looking strapping porter came over and helped me to re-pack them which ended up with me standing on top of the barrels in order to fit the lids back on, much to the pleasure of the staff! Once repacked you go to the Berth Office, hand in your paperwork to the Customs Cashiers with the Customs Officers notes scribbled on it and they look up the items on the internet to check the value of the goods. As my TRN number was not on the system I had to go upstairs to the Supervisors Office where I was again dealt with by friendly and efficient staff.

Back downstairs, it took about 20 minutes to be handed back my paperwork which held the magic number on it… the amount of tax payable to clear my barrels. I searched the document with bated breath and was super relieved to see that I only had to pay $6,014.45 for all 3 barrels which was much less than the advised $18,000 ($6,000 per barrel) I was told in the UK. Please be aware the C15 Form was effective in lowering the amount of tax payable; therefore if you ship and do not have the Form or ship to someone else, you may be liable for higher tax.

Take the Receipt to the Gate Pass Office which is back up near where the barrels are located and hand in your paperwork to get a Gate Pass, so your driver and vehicle can enter the wharf and load your goods. Walk back outside the way you came in through the Main Entrance showing your paperwork at all the guarded gateways and find your driver. You are now free to approach the main vehicle entrance to the wharf, where again your ever-growing amount of documents are checked along with the driving licence of the driver. Drive Slowly (there is a 5mph speed restriction) to the berth where the barrels were checked and park up near to the loading bays.Show your paperwork to the guards, who stamp it and instruct a porter to bring the barrels to your vehicle. The wisely porter came back and loaded the barrels into the mini-bus and as I anticipated asked if I had anything for him and I slipped him a note.

Once the barrels were loaded we approached the main entrance and the Customs officials checked how many items we had in the vehicle against the documents, checked the driving licence and then took away all the paperwork except the receipts. We were finally clear to leave the compound and head back home to unpack the barrels. By just after 10.00am we had left the wharf and eagerly stopped at a patty shop before driving back home. Once we got out of the hustle and bustle of Kingston we stopped and got a cold beer and one of the bars and vendors near to Stony Hill before reaching back home near Ochi (Ocho Rios) by lunch time.

What I Thought About Kingston Wharf and Shipping Barrels

Following numerous horror stories about collecting goods from the wharf I was filled with anticipation about how long it was going to take and what the experience was going to be like collecting the barrels myself. In reflection, I have to say I was pleasantly surprised and it was nowhere near as tiresome as everyone had told me. When I mentioned this to friends they retorted that Christmas and Easter were a different matter…

Arriving at the wharf early was key to my success in this operation as it meant I beat the queues, try it yourself and you will be glad you did. Everyone at the wharf was professional but polite, friendly and (mostly) happy and were intrigued by my presence there. Bring proof of purchase in the form of receipts to show to the customs officers so that they can value your goods correctly. The best tactic in these circumstances is to be friendly and co-operative and that also means being patient when necessary… if you get ignorant with the Customs Officers you may find they get ignorant with you!