Is it cheaper to buy a new bike than ship it from the US to Taipei?

Recreation Cycling
1

I figure the answer is “yes”, but just wanted to confirm it. I

s it cheaper to buy a new mountain bike in Taipei than to ship my existing one from the USA? There’s nothing special about the bike, no expensive mods or gear, just an average moutain bike.

2

You’d be charged around 12% import duty and tax on the declared landed value of the bike if you shipped it, and then you’d need to add to that the cost of shipping itself. If that’s less than what you’d be willing to spend on a new bike, and time isn’t a factor, then why not. That said though there are few places in the world where middle of the road bikes are cheaper than Taiwan.

3

What does a middle-of-the-road road bike (not mountain) cost in Taiwan? I love my Dahon touring folder, great for long hauls on the east or the bike paths around Taipei, but I would like something faster for the hills.

4

I’ve known guys to buy two or three good bikes here, take 'em home to sell, and finance the flight on the profit.

5

Giant Boulder, etc costs less than 800 bucks, so still cheaper to ship (if you bring it as flight baggage).

I have never been charged duty on a second hand bike that was brought in by airfreight (unaccompanied).

YMMV.

If you are even moderately tall (ie larger than, say a 58cm bike frame) then you MUST import it, as local dealers do not stock or sell larger frames as a rule.

6

FWIW it doesn’t seem like Taiwan has really cheap anything. From everything that I’ve seen internationally branded products (electronics, bikes, clothing, etc…) sell at or even above the price that you’ll pay in the US (my baseline for comparison) even if it’s produced in Taiwan. So the two factors that are important is a shipping quote ($150? or more?) and the value of the bike ($500?). The one factor that sucks is that you’ll have to sell your used bike at a loss (depreciation) unless you are able to toss into your grandparents attic (like myself).

I’m actually contemplating this issue since I’m possibly headed to Korea in a couple of months. I recently bought a nice used entry level racing bike at half the new price (around 24K new) and I’m still wondering if it’s worth it to ship. And if I’ll use it enough to justify a 2nd more expensive bike.