I would have posted this under "Relocation", but we're not relocating.

My sister has some household furnishings (ie furniture) she would like to send me in Istanbul. They are all used (but would cost me a LOT more to buy here). Any idea what the import duties would be? And are there companies that specialize in bringing in small amounts and helping people clear them through customs? ps we do have residents' permits, but we've been here over a year and have already brought in our allotted shipment

Contact Starman, he may help you .

Kiki,

I'm having some furniture that I bought on my last trip home shipped over.
Should arrive late March. I'll tell you how it goes and if the taxes are high. (Fingers crossed!)
I had to give the shipper photocopies of my passport and resident's permit.

Oh yeah I forgot....the contact below is for the Istanbul agent that the shipper I used in Singapore gave me.

Basically if you pay for door-to-door shipping (which is what I did), they will clear customs for U and deliver to your house.

It is pricey, but if you pay port-to-port, you have to clear customs yourself and arrange your own transport to take the furniture from the port.

Call them and see what they say. If you are shipping a small quantity like I did, (i.e. not enough to fill one container), your shipment will travel as loose cargo. To get an accurate cost quotation, you need to give any shipper the exact CRATED dimensions of each piece. Meaning the size of each piece after it is packed (either in a wooden crate, or in cardboard with stuffing etc). Cos shippers charge loose cargo by volume.

Contact: Mehmet GUNAY
HT Shipping Co., Ltd. / HT Denizcilik Ltd. Sti.
Mahir Iz Cad.HT Plaza No:38
Altunizade, Uskudar, Istanbul, Turkey
Tel: (90) 216 474 88 11 (pbx)
E-mail: mgunay@ht-shipping.com

BTW when I was looking for shippers in Singapore, I also tried FedEx, DHL, UPS and they can move small amounts of furniture. But they do it by air and costs about 30% more than by sea. If you want to ship by air, you need to let them know the weight of the items, as well as the volume.

Thanks Phoenix and Blush. May contact Starman, and I will def speak to you, Blush, about how that works out!