2mike&jin

Just an observation - last time I looked, (3 years ago) the tax rates on 90K of earned income (wages) were higher in China than they were/are in the US.

Except when your wife puts an orange in the bag and dog - sniffs you out in customs - boy was that embarrassing - good thing I hadn't brought back large sums.....wire transfer the only way to live safely.

Didn't work for me, even downloads during prime-Chinese TV watching time (4 PM to 4 AM) I couldn't update SW or any large files. I had the high-high speed Internet - for what it was worth. Again, Amazon and Netflix didn't work. I got PPTV2 to work for a brief few minutes but it just crapped out from the speed. This was last Nov (2011).

I"m not sure this is germane but for the OVEN, even after my tilt at the Chinese, I did sort of solve this.....We installed a Microwave that was also a Convection Oven! It was on the small side....I could bake a chicken but not a turkey, as I remember. This gave me the ability to burn things outside the WOK. (A different take on "wok the dog") I think I used it mostly for "Garlic Cheese Bread" when I made spaghetti - and for a few bake recipes "that weren't well received" by the family. I used to really like to cook but since going "Chinese" I have sort of been banned from the kitchen! I think they don't like my cooking as I don't cook things in 1000 degree Oil that splatters all over the kitchen. I'm sort of holding my breath on the new house we're in the process of building here in Hawaii - as it has a 6 burner (with additional grill) Thermador range and at "WOLF" Profession Hood with a Suck the Oil and Air out of the Ktchen - and a 1200 CFM sucker! If this doesn't evacuate the oily air - I'm not sure how I will solve the issue. Currently - no house I have will move the oily air and residual oil out of the kitchen --- it's just a 1 hour clean job every week! (I'm thinking off taping newpaper up on the walls - and changing the newspaper every week - just like a Greasy Chinese Restaurant- but it's only a fleeting thought) Again, good luck on the oven thingy!

An oven.....WHo's going to use an oven? They will think it's a clothes dryer!

Well, I'm not sure my advice is much good....but we faced the same thing when my wife purchased anew home - and then met me - she foisted the job of building it out to me. Although my Chinese was "passable" it was pretty much worthless with the folks who didn't speak Mandarin - and only spoke the local dialect. Doing it yourself is "fraught" with issues. They have stores - "Home Orient" (THink Home Depot) and I'm pretty sure with a city the size of Wuhan you could find several of them. I looked at becoming my own GC, but I just couldn't make the math work nor the headaches with some of the trades - not to mention the "graft" that it requires if it is a "New Building". Ok, what I did was hire a small GC after interviewing several Contractors to see if they (1) Understood the Scope and Processes, and (2) were reasonable in the price perspective, and more important to me (3) could I control their actions. I went with a fairly small contractor who seemed to grasp all the concepts, actually spoke a word or two of English - not so you could easily tell, but that seemed like he understood that he was dealing with a "Crazy Lao Wei". We agreed that I would pay for the kitchen cabinets/appliances and I would also select and pay for HVAC and Electronics. I also made him set allowances for several items - and that I would choose them, i.e. water heater, washer/dryer, and all lighting. It was a design-build concept, and we set off on getting it done. There were problems. (1) His first onsite supervisor was a "bad guy" and didn't care about his employer or our apartment. I helped him leave the project. (2) Tile setting quality in two or three areas were sloppy and needed redo - (5 times in one place). The concept of "this row of tiles to look exactly like all the rest" was problematic. I just kept saying no - until it was accomplished correctly. (3) I choose the most expensive HVAC unit I could buy - Fujitsu Halcyon and the installation was flawless in appearance - except "The drain was not set to completely drain - and it had to be rerouted and the building had to be re-cored to get the drain at the proper level. A pain in the ass - but no additional cost to me. During execution of the bathroom installations I continually had to ensure that S/P traps were installed, that Commode seals were put in place...and in short "over supervise" the installation of all plumbing - some really strange areas. i.e, wrong hookups (hot vice cold) to my two Fisher Paykel dishwasher drawers, no following of the instructions for install of appliances (although I had Chinese copies for them - not sure the installers could read) - stupid installs of water faucets and "garbage disposal". All, and I mean all appliances that they had never seen -- didn't get installed correctly unless I WAS STANDING OVER THE TOP OF THEM. The Chinese cooktop was installed without issue as they had done it about a 1000 times. Also, you need to be ABSOLUTELY SURE that all vents, i.e. bathroom, kitchen overhead vents - have a "CLOSING" mechanism when not blowing to "CLOSE" to keep everyone else's place in the building from emitting "Sewer GAS" and Kitchen Smells from entering your home! They don't usually do this....so you have to fight to make them figure out what to buy and how to do it. Pictures off the internet usually help in these cases. Also, they love to connect Washers/Dryers, sinks, etc....by placing a small drain - perhaps plastic - in a larger pipe in the floor by just inserting it in the pipe-end of install. No positive - closed connection. Of course after I got finished beating them up --- all of ours were closed connections, with S pipes, all with lint traps etc. (THink Kohler drains etc) Ok, you're probably getting the idea.....of the things that are problematic, plumbing, strange appliances (disposal and dishwashers) and anything that prevents "Smells". I found the HVAC guys to be great - but then again - I picked Fujitsu which is expensive. I made one mistake on appliances - I made them import a 2 drawer dishwasher from NZ, via Hong Kong to Xiamen - and it was totally foreign to them. I should've just gotten a Chinese one - albeit I couldn't find one at the time...don't be fooled by the plate warmers. In short, I carry two rotors over every trip to replace the ones in the Dishwasher drawers because they dry up and freeze up because of non use. Even having the brother-in law run it every two weeks seems to not help. One of the best appliances I put in was a "water filtration system". THink counter top device with 5 filters, dispensing hot and cold water - that you can drink! Unlimited water! It to me is a great machine and so needed in China. (I will tell you my wife still buy's bottled water for trips outside the house) Now the positive side - the GC stood by everything he promised and MADE IT RIGHT in the end. I never had to yell at him - I just told him what was wrong and how to fix it. Someone mysteriously appeared and fixed the issue. He's had people back for the last three years and never charged me a cent. I can't even imagine me doing the work myself or not being able to use him as a focal point. I didn't know enough people or enough sources of supply. I did AV on my own - and used an Audio guy - bought my own Sharp LED TV's and he installed and integrated them with the Philippine Dream Satellite (english speaking programs) so fast I couldn't believe it. All the speakers, installed in the ceilings worked, were balanced, and the integrated professional remote worked 100% the first time - with never any changes. What would I have done differently? I wouldn't have been so pig headed about having the FP Dishwasher Drawers. I wouldn't have gotten the biggest US water heater known to man - because we never use 120 gallons of scalding hot water - it is just too fast to recover with the 220. I would've split the HVAC system into two systems - to prevent the BIG outside unit from being the only source of failure for cold air. (I fixed this with a subsequent small entry way split system). I would've paid the extra money to have them "demo" the reinforced entry way door so that I could put 2-4 door's / panels that my wife originally wanted and blew off as ridiculous...seems to be a Chinese thing - but I should've listened to her and given the building manager the 20,000 yuan to "Bypass" the rules to get what she wanted - of course you all have figured it out....I hear about it every time we are entering our house in China.....SHE...."Sure wished you would've put 2 doors with 2 small side panels as a entry way....would've been so nice! )(*#&)(*)(#^$)(#^)$( Since I didn't listen to her originally I will get to listen to her the rest of my life on this issue. (You can bet the new house we're building in Hawaii has 2 doors and 2 additional side panels at the front entry way - drove the architects crazy - but I learned my lesson. Not much else with my 20/20 hindsight I would've done differently - and I'm very positive I wouldn't have done it myself. I think some people here on the site have done it - and CHOP SUEY, was sure capable of doing his place with his vast amount of experience. But, for me, it was best I hire someone I could beat on to ensure it got done my way. You're probably wondering how much I paid for this service......the GC got approximately 100,000 RMB, total for the 160 M2 place to build out and furnish just a hair short of 1M RMB. Total cost of unit, with build out, 2.6M RMB. Current ~ market price ~ 4.5M RMB. Original parking spot $18K USD sold last year for $63K USD - holding period about 5 years. Best of Luck

Ok, so if this is a setup I'll bite anyway...... The question is not "how" to transfer money to China - the issue is "what" you can and can't do with it once you get it there. Your choices are limited, but the same as in the US, someone will be more than willing to take it away from you. Step One: Call your bank give them the Bank Account Number, Name, Address of bank and account holder, and the 13 Digit SWIFT NUMBER of the bank that you want to move the money to. (Note if you don't have a bank account number in China - I will be more than happy to give you my account number and you can transfer the funds there) (Also - if you do not have an account there - you can go to a US location of said bank and open an account that will transfer and handle things for you, i.e. BOC, iCCB, HSBC, etc) Step Two: Receive all your money which will be posted within 24-72 hours in your account in China, it will be in USD. As far as rates - there is a Published daily rate for transfer between USD and any other currency, the world-around the bank will not have a choice only you will have the timing controls - exchange when and where the need arises. FINISHED: Your USD is in China and is in the bank. Some can be converted, as the need might arise, within the current law. Converting back, also has similar restrictions. Some exceptions can apply. You should be fully aware of new US reporting requirements for foreign investment accounts, and I will assume if you have that much money you have consulted lawyers, accountants, and IRS compliance specialists to avoid "real issues". If you have not "Now" would be a good time to do so. Information you get here on the this board, from the likes of me, is partial, outdated, and at best tainted by personal experience and local color - your mileage "WILL VARY". Best of luck.

FYI - they won't always let you take the oath the same day. Hear in Reno this last summer - they had a big Anniversary Ceremony Scheduled and for about 6-8 weeks everyone waited - and then everyone had to go to the ceremony at the National Car Museum - about 70 folks I would estimate - took about 3 hours to complete! UGH!!!

This is exactly what happened with our 10 yr GC.....I had mail forwarding turned on at one post office - but they won't forward "Return Service Requested/Do Not FOrward" stuff. A simple call - and a request for re-mailing was all it took.

I have just a slightly different spin...on the max amount that can be wired into the US. THERE IS NO LIMIT. The limit we all encounter, is that within the PRC, a single citizen, or person with a visa to live there, can CONVERT $50,000.00 USD per Calendar Year and do anything they want with it. When people want to transfer several million dollars out of China - it's a line of friends, neighbors, work associates etc...that line up to move the money out of the country. They all use their individual PRC ID card and each can convert/or/send the $50K overseas - or take it out and burn it in the street if they want to. There are exceptions. If you want to buy a single family house in the middle of Xiamen - just transfer your $7Million USD to the Bank - hold in USD account - then go talk to an officer to pay the purchase price in RMB - with a single conversion. Retain this paperwork/along with the sales and purchase tax - and at the other end if you ever sell - all the purchase price or the "Cost Basis" can be converted back to USD in one CHUNK. The profit however, if you owned it more than FIVE years, will not have taxes, but is subject to the same "conversion" rules. When one has profit on "Things" one usually get's the cousin, the cousins wife, the mother-in law, etc..etc..to waltz down to the bank - convert $50K, and the bank manager will usually just make ONE BIG transfer to your US bank account. YES, I have done this, yes it has worked every time...yes it is a pain in the ass. Reference the House buying: Dnoblett as always is a great resource. The limit, is in fact $50K USD per person per calendar year. The banks are linked so you can't go to 5 or 6 banks and get around the limit (I tried it). However, there is NO LIMIT on how much can be transferred out of the country -- it is in fact a PER-PERSON limit for conversion. As stated, you can bring back $10M in a suitcase if you want to...just declare it at both ends!!! (Another point on the conversion - added during edit - if someone or multiple someones have done the conversion over several years and your Chinese relative has kept $200K USD in his/her dual currency bank account - they can transfer the ENTIRE $200K USD to you in one shot, no restrictions) BUYING THE HOUSE: We all have differing views on how title should be held and most of the salient points were brought out. The issue is not a concern when buying but as others have pointed out, when selling, or during divorce. Any person that is not a USC has special "requirements" in terms of paying the "Capital Gains", leaving the country with permission (I think they call it a departure/sail approval - that no one pay's attention to), and some states - have big restrictions on NON- State residents selling without having all of the tax withheld at closing. (Hawaii is one of these that collects all possible Capital Gains, with a cost basis of Zero, on all sales of Real Estate on Foreigners or Non-Legal Residents). For example, you buy a house in Hawaii for $1M and sell it 1 year later for $2m and you are a non-resident or a foreigner - the State requires the closing Agent to withhold tax on the entire $2M a the rate of 7.2%, as if the place didn't cost you a cent. You then file for an adjustment immediately to tell them the cost basis - and they will refund that portion back to you, if it is reasonable....need to send cost paper work. Then at the end of the year you file a tax return for Hawaii and give them all the details of the sale, supporting paperwork, and the last dollars and cents are worked out. All an example of how they treat owners from a different state or country. All considerations for buying property and having any LPR, or Foreigner involved in the title. For your wife this will not be an issue. For the parents it is a big issue....recommend not to muddy the waters with this issue. Also, if you decide to get any "loan" other than from the family they will ask if any of the money has been gifted or borrowed from anyone. I thought I heard that you view the 100K as a loan from the family. DON"T FORGET TO BE HONEST - and list this as a liability...per the rules. Of course, you don't want to do this....so think about what you really want and need to do! Best of luck in buying your house......it is an exciting time in a young couples life. Sounds like there are local members there than can assist and give local knowledge.

Just wanted to add another "VIEW" only with respect to name. Dnoblett is perfectly correct......but our strategy on name was slightly different. We choose to change the name at USC application time and we encountered no issues from an immigration standpoint. FYI - I was able to get her a new passport in 10 days after the naturalization ceremony. All ID card changes were easy - and utilize the same documentation that one would use at the start of the process - i.e. the Certificate of Marriage. There is a small catch 22...in that if it's longer than 3 years since you were married and you go to the Social Security office to change to the married name - they will make you get "some other" type of verification. For us, it was a signed statement from one of her Dr's saying she was a patient - and of course her married name on the letter head. Nothing else with the Government much mattered whether doing it at the start or at USC application time. Now - that wasn't the case at all financial institutions. SInce we changed her name and she became a USC at the same time - (part of our plan) then I had to update all of our Family Trusts, Living Wills, and Medical Directives. These drove some of the financial institution changes. Some of these I just created new accounts from old accounts with her new name/trust. Some places were more difficult - in that to open an account in a name you don't have to prove much - but to change a name you have to send something that shows the new name. FYI - American Express - seems to be the most stringent, requiring a new "Federal or State ID", and the list they provide of acceptable documents is quite short. Passport seems to work in every instance. As you can infer from our strategy some of plan included estate planning, medical directives ( pre-nup), and other concerns that were not even part of the immigration process but items that were/could've been impacted in the event of one of us passing. FYI.

I had them mailed to my Mail Forwarding Address in the states, and they re-packaged and sent to me. Parents work for free....it's easier!

Second...most of the suggestions...but having just completed the entire K-1 process, that I started in 2007, I would strongly encourage you to use the DCF path. The reduced number of steps is a real key in dealing with the morass of immigration. I couldn't do the DCF, even though we lived in China, because I had some "legal work" to complete prior to the marriage which necessitated both of us being in the US prior to the marriage (Pre-Nup). You really have a chance to front-load as well as do the mundane things like "complete all vaccinations" that will greatly reduce the amount of administrative burden you will have later down the road. In short, I was so tired of giving immigration the same papers at every juncture I was about ready to pull my hair out at the end during the naturalization process. I would strongly recommend that you "CLEAN UP" your tax history, since ostensibly you will not owe any back taxes. Having the tax returns or better yet the transcripts from the IRS will make your life easier and reduce the chance for criticism during the process. You can do all of that from China - I filed my taxes, got transcripts etc....while I was living there...really no reason not to have it "perfect". Best of Luck in the process...it's long....but it's worth it!

crdzba; - what warpedbored said......works now like a charm .....and if there are no changes in the future we can get by....but I think it will change, so perhaps conversion of "Tangible Assets" to more "liquid assets" are advisable. The new US IRS reporting requirements make that much harder....but physical gold and silver are still a viable play for a foreign country. (NICE BIG VAULT in Hong Kong). The other play is to get real-estate in Joint ownership if it's not too valuable and you can trust relatives. These are just idle thoughts.....it's a world gone mad...and it's not easy like it used to be. One thing I like about my wife being a USC - besides (estate laws and being able to vote) is that we now have the freedom to go almost anywhere in the world. She "WHO would be Queen" has mentioned when we leave the Lake Tahoe/REno Mountains for winter in Hawaii she want's to route via Vancouver. - she is proud to be able to go places without a visa and restrictions and she informs me that there are actually Chinese people from Hong Kong there....who would've thunk it?

CHop SUEY.... Just a view from the CHEAP SEATS.....My JinLin just got her NEW US PASSPORT. I have worked on this issue for over 4 years and I am very uncomfortable trying to circumvent the intent and practice of the Crazy Chinese. It's been posted here how to "almost" get around all the issues by skirting through Hong Kong or other third party places - but in short - each scheme has difficulties and having stood at the ShenZhen border, as well as Macau with my wife - they are very adept at ferreting out "overstays" and avoidance of strict compliance with travel visas, permits and restrictions. I personally won't take a chance on anything immoral, fattening, or against the law. (Sometimes hard to figure out the exact answer -but the avoidance scheme is clearly wrong) I have worked through these issues to some degree - including visa's from the Chinese Consulate here in the US to visit - and it is my "opinion" that the thing you want to preserve is her Chinese ID card. As you know - they can't go to the bathroom or bank without showing the ID card. The passport is only a way to get out of the country - with the US Passport you can get in and out, without incidence - as evidenced by all of us coming and going like drunken soldiers! Again, having lived there (and yes I understand rules and requirements are ever changing) I never saw my wife asked for her passport unless we were traveling to another Country. HK and Macau only require a travel permit (Book looks like a mini passport ) which is completely different/separate from the passport. Both passports and travel permits require a valid ID. At no other time did I see my wife asked for a passport. The only time they asked for the GreenCard is at the Airport on the way out --- of course she doesn't have that any longer. A side note - I believe if one were to "LOSE" their Green Card prior to submitting the N400 for USC - and then after getting the new US passport - and then re-discovering where you lost your GreenCard - one might be able to make all the questionable schemes work -- but I wash't unwilling to hedge the bet - but I think it would work)

Everything that Dnoblett said...but I would highly recommend you name-change at Naturalization time, IF you plan on becoming a USC. We just went through it, my wife became a USC two weeks ago - and we had used our marriage certificate to get a new SS card a few months before filing(BTW- if you've been married more than three years they require other documentation - we got one of our Dr's to sign a letter), used that and the marriage certificate to get a new "Federal ID card" (or in others cases drivers license) and then waited until the filing of the N400 for Naturalization. It was very straightforward and all we did was list old name, new name, copy the documents and her name was changed in the eyes of immigration and naturalization. All of her new papers and US passport are now with her married name. FYI - she choose to keep her maiden family name as her middle name. We obviously will not alter or change anything in China. Best of Luck

Ok, minor anecdotal update to this thread. As promised I called to VISA service Agencies to see what they had experienced in the two weeks since the new requirements went into effect. One agency was completely stupid the other was marginally stupid. The best I could get out them was that several people have brought up the issue of Round Trip Tickets and the Hotel issue as well as the returning people who own homes in China. It appears several folks have written "special letters" to explain their circumstances to provide slightly differing information. I.e One way tickets and home address where they are staying. When I asked both about the "Success Rate" of the requests - which seemed like the next logical question - I got anything from I don't know - to seems to work most of the time. I called back on different days to double check - got about the same non-useful responses. (What's more shocking some of the people I talked to were Americans-and got back Chinese answers - maybe yes maybe no type responses) I then tried to ferret out the "invitation Letter" to insure that it could in fact be from anyone - but the relationship should explain the "common sense" view of why one was being invited. So I guess the path of least resistance for all of us is to; (1) Write the Invitation Letter; send to relatives, (2) Relative receives, signs and puts copy of their PRC ID card (Front and Back) attached to letter - (3) Sends back to US relative via EMS to attach to VISA request from Chinese Embassy. A week or so later the visas arrive back in your hand - administrative hassle complete! With my wife becoming a USC two weeks ago - I'm not sure my level of visiting the homeland is the same as it was before - albeit I've always had to "DRAG HER BACK". When I question her about it...she basically says - "I didn't leave anything important there", obviously a differing view than I have - but it might be the age difference and the increasing value of family as one ages!

Well I must've been in a mood when I first wanted to send a a "heavy Pink Team" in on CHinese Consulate (Same as a few years ago).....as we used to say ....LOH in the Attack Mode! But I guess my week of 2 hour Citizenship Ceremony, New Passport for Mommy Dearest, Voter Registration, and a few other Administrative hurdles left me in no MOOD to deal with a new China Visa requirement - especially with the family all being USC's and Mommy Dearest now needing a Visa and the 2 boys already with Visa's in hand. At least this Immigration thing is behind me! For all - I will call some of our favorite CHINA VISA Services Monday/Tuesday and see if I can get the same answer from at least two of them - and try to ferret out the details of people who might own their own homes - might not know "when" they might want to return - etc. It has been my experience when I was building a boat in China - that the Travel Agent in the LA area - often would dummy up the hotel/flight information for the visa and then after everything was locked in - update - under the guise - schedules change! Regardless - I'll report back what the agencies tell me as I might be in the "Go to China Mode next month" as we have one of Jin's cousins getting married - if they can ever set a date - which seems to be problematic. (I think they're trying to figure out if the first week of October will be cool enough-what a way to make a decision-never mind that some might want to travel to the wedding and planning must be accomplished) All take care - and get ready for Labor Day!!

Ok, let me see if I got this right.....My wife just Became a USC last Wed, so now if I want to get her a visa from the Chinese Embassy so she can go back and STAY in HER HOUSE, I have to have a round trip ticket and hotel reservations? Well this is BS. So has anyone actually called a "CHINA VISA SERVICE" and asked about the Embassy interpretation of this? I don't know about the rest of you - but I never buy ROUND TRIP tickets to China.....I don't want to give up my flexibility of being able to leave the next day if I want to. I also never get a paper ticket - heading to CHina or for that matter for leaving China. SO, let's see book with ORbitz, for round trip, book with Hilton for 30 days, print off all reservations, then quickly cancel everything. Seems pretty normal to me! I'm of course curious about staying in one's home vice hotel, and the impact to a new USC going back for the first time, obtaining a China VIsa for the first time - if anyone has fiction or fact I would love to hear about it. Thanks...

The one on Ebay is VER 3.0.6 reported to be the latest - and reported to be over-the-wire update-able. Also Amazon sells, same price for old version `225.00 for the new version in NEW BOX, PRIME eligible. FYI

I hope they are "signed copies", with dates -

Really good stuff in this thread - won't bore everyone - Attended Xiamen Da Xue for 20+ months, 4 hours a day, Chinese GF/now wife, of course lived in China (no Help I was in Xiamen- Min Nin Hua) ....but I kinda agree with most of what was said by BigGuy + Da Mafan (Big Trouble) ....but I'm finding that even though it's been 5 years since I was in class every day....my language skills have centered around a core 400-500 words. Although I could read when in school - I haven't a clue now. Reading is over-rated. Writing is impossible. Ok, the only effective way I continue is to review the dictionary I made for myself (my words) and try to stay up with my 2.5 year old, who has been at it only "4 months" learning from his mother. And I mean - try to stay up. I spent the first 2 years of his life teaching him Chinese (counting and simple words) - she didn't say squat to him, of course there were Chinese around the house at least 3 or 4 times a week. I complained about her lack of teaching him her native language, so she started teaching him when we departed Hawaii in March of this year for our place in the mountains - and I promise you he can make better sentences than I can --- some I have to ask her what he's saying. I've memorized more and know phrases better - but he can talk better - and occasionally he will correct my tones...gosh is that demoralizing. He also can understand and react to her at "FULL SPEED" --- I need her to talk much more slowly else I miss important information. So goes the old and slow!!! I think I've been at this Chinese Language thing "off and on" and at times in earnest - and the comments by the two mentioned above are spot on....if you want to do it....it will take dedication and lots of hard work. We used to say at Xia Da that it took between 3 and 4 years of full-time at the University in China to be able to sit the Chinese Language Proficiency Test with any chance of passing. I would assume that it meant steady effort 3-5 hours a day!! I'm not sure I have enough life left to become that proficient - medicare is my next big test in a few months. Take Care - Good luck on learning Chinese....it's a tough road only for the dedicated.

Congrats on your new love. As I read your post - I couldn't help feel "worried" that you intended "could have" joined the CCP, since it is some form of Government commitment. Most Civil Servants do not have to join the CCP, but there are certain areas that joining is encouraged. Just a "concern" as I read this. Your play would of course be slightly different if she were a member. Sorry in advance if this is not the case - just couldn't help but think it was a possibility. Take Care, best of luck.

Just a note....doesn't it say something about "do you have any commercial goods" or "for resale". How can you carry them back and be honest on the customs declaration? I might have this wrong....I don't have a form in front of me.....just thinking out loud...based on my last hassle at customs when the DOG found an orange in my 2 year olds "drag on". (Edit: Item 14 on the customs declaration form-FYI)

I can only add to all of this, take the TIME NOW to file back IRS Tax forms. If you have no filing requirements, due to lower than the threshold levels, at least file a couple of years showing you are trying to comply, have an address in the US, and are not a seeking to avoid taxes. All of the previous is sage advice from the other posters - don't do it the easy way - do it the correct way - and avoid potential problems in the future. Best of Luck.