FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Balikbayan Boxes are packages that contain a variety of items. These can be gifts, presents (pasalubong), personal effects, household goods such as kitchen ware, tools, clothes, linens, towels, chocolates, instant coffee, coffee creamer to mention a few. Balikbayan Boxes are sent by Filipinos residing or working abroad to their families or relatives in the Philippines to express their love and care through gift-giving.

Yes we accept boxes from any of our competitors and we also accept odd size or custom size boxes.

For odd/custom size boxes, we need to know the exact measurements (Length x Width x Height) in inches to determine the price. We would also need to know where you are sending it in the Philippines.

According to the Philippine Customs you can send Non-commercial goods or goods not in commercial quantity strictly for personal use only, such as: wearing apparel, clothing, foodstuffs/grocery items/canned goods; the value of which must not exceed US$500.00. (customs.gov.ph…)

Here are some of the items that you can send to your love ones:

• • canned goods, cookies, chocolates, noodles, coffee, tea, coffee, instant coffee creamer, clothes, small electronics, souvenirs, kitchen wares, shoes to name a few.

The following items are not allowed in Balikbayan Boxes: (Updated July 15, 2017 based on the guidelines release by  dti.gov.ph)

• Prohibited / Illegal Drugs and other substances
• Firearms, Ammunitions, Explosives
• Jewelries
• Motor Vehicles
• Motorbikes
• Stolen goods
• Flammable items
• Very Fragile Items
• Pornographic materials, gambling cards and toy guns
• Currencies, Checks, Money Orders and Travel Checks
• Pirated products, i.e. dvd, cd, tapes, etc
• Items of Commercial Quantity
• Plant seeds and plant materials and
• Any food stuff that are not in cans, sealed packages or in bottles

You can click on SCHEDULE PICK-UP on the top menu of the website and fill out our online form, or call us at 877.522.7461 and we will schedule an appointment around your availability.

Our driver will do all of the heavy lifting, but we do ask that the path to your door is clear of as many obstructions as possible, to make the move go quickly and easily.

There are always conditions beyond our control when it comes to shipping internationally. Once the container with your box leaves our terminal, it is an approximately 5 to 6 week voyage to the Port of Manila. Once there, we must wait for customs to clear. From that point, it depends on where in the Philippines you are shipping to, typically within a week for Luzon up to two weeks to Mindanao.

Upon shipment of your box, you will receive an e-mail and/or text notification with a tracking number and a website link to our online tracking system.

Only a very few. These mainly include hard to reach areas that can not be reach. Contact us if you have any doubts.

Clear or tan colored 3mil thick tape is the best. They hardly warped or come undone. We don’t recommend cloth tape or duct tape. Over the seam of the boxes where the edges connect on top of the Balikbayan Box, we do recommend you apply black or dark tape so that your items can not be seen.

We highly discourage it. The main reason is that it tears very easily. We write the invoice number on the outside for easy tracking and accountability. When it is written over the saran tape and it tears and the numbers are sometimes taken off, thus delaying the arrival of your boxes. Also please do not apply ROPE around your balikbayan box, it tears up the other balikbayan boxes.

Due to customs regulations and rules. Engine internal parts and motorcycle parts cannot be shipped to the Philippines. When the boxes arrive at the central port in Manila, they are scanned for contraband and illegal or hazardous items. When one is found, it jeopardizes the entire shipment and will delay the entire shipment. Please don’t delay everyone else because you wanted to send your cousin a piston, camshaft or engine block.

YES YOU CAN! Most Filipinos do. We highly discourage you from sending tools that are of high value. For example, do not send $1000 Sears Craftsman or Kobalt Laser guided Power Miters with Bluetooth technology. Remember these are Balikbayan Boxes. While they are handled as carefully as possible, they are loaded on top of each other, compressing Electric equipment, especially fragile ones are not the best time to try out how tough they are. We will guarantee the delivery, but if your electric items do not function, we will not be held liable.

We will reimburse you for the cost of sending your balikbayan box. We never encountered any incident where our boxes didn’t get delivered, but if somehow your box did not get delivered you will be reimbursed for the cost of sending the box. We will ONLY reimburse for the cost of sending the box and NOT the items in the box. This is the reason we do not recommend sending high value items. For example, we will not be liable to reimburse you for a $1000 laptop that was sent inside the box and when it arrived in the Philippines, it does not function.

Yes. Remember it is your decision if you send it in the box. But again we highly caution you not to send it, due to the Balikbayan boxes being stacked and handled.

Yes, every Balikbayan box are also banded to prevent pilferage and any attempts to open it. Take a look a our pictures gallery and you will see as they are being banded and after the boxes are banded for extra security. So you do not need to apply any rope or other binding around your Balikbayan Boxes.

We normally have a shipment every month, usually during the middle of the month. Kindly contact us for the exact shipment dates.

We have no minimum or maximum number of boxes. Some customers send 1 every month, some send once a year, and some send 10 at a time. When you are ready to send, we’ll be there for you.

There are no discounts for shipping more. The price per box that we offer is the best in the entire state and is very fair, competitive and set at the most affordable rate possible.

Most TVs sold today has “Multi-Voltage” capability. Best way to tell is to look at the back of the TV. In fact look at your very own TV. Take a look right close to the cable or the sticker on the back. It will say either 110v-120v or 110v-240v. If you see something that looks close to that, where it will be somewhere between 110v-240v, then you know your TV will automatically adapt to the correct power voltage and you do not need to buy a transformer or voltage regulator. Or have the local neighbor jerry-rig it. And if you are still not sure, if the TV that you are looking at is Multi-Voltage, contact us and we will try our best to help.

Yes you can, but we highly discourage it. Keep in mind that computers and other electronic items are very sensitive equipment. During the delivery process, the boxes undergo plenty of movement and shock. This could potentially damage your electronic equipment. That’s just something that you want to keep in mind. It is still up to you if you want to send it, but UCS will not be liable for any damaged items inside your box.

PRINTING YOUR “TO” AND “FROM” ON PAPER IS THE BEST LABEL TO USE.

Here is a list of what to print:

• FROM Name, Address and Phone Number
• TO Name, Address and Phone Number

Our Goal is to make sure your Balikbayan Boxes are delivered timely and to the right person. You can help us achieve that goal by making sure the information written on the box is correct and readable. We will call before delivery to make sure the person is home. (We will not just leave it at the front door!) So if the address is not correct, if the person on the box is not there, or if the person can’t be reached because the phone number is wrong then it will delay the delivery.

** IMPORTANT:  Please make sure the information on the INVOICE and box LABEL are exactly the same. **