The Bureau of Customs (BOC) is urging overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and their families to claim the remaining 294 balikbayan boxes from Kuwait still under the BOC’s custody.
In a statement yesterday, the BOC said these boxes, identified with Bill of Lading numbers ONEYKW1TA1994400, ONEYKW1TA1968500, ONEYKW1TA1998800 and consigned to Mediacom Express Cargo and Pinoy Network Cargo WLL, arrived in the Philippines from Kuwait on February 12 last year.
Unfortunately, they were abandoned by the forwarder after collecting payments from abroad.
Of the abandoned balikbayan boxes, the BOC said it has already facilitated the release and distribution of over 450 balikbayan boxes.
However, approximately 294 boxes remain unclaimed.
These are currently stored at Port Net Logistics, Inc. CFS Warehouse, located at Santa Ana, Manila.
The list of unclaimed balikbayan boxes can be viewed on the BOC website at https://customs.gov.ph/notice-to-claim-abandoned-balikbayan-boxes-consigned-to-mediacom-express-cargo-and-pinoy-network-cargo/.
To claim their boxes, recipients must present the following documents at the Port Net Logistics, Inc. CFS Warehouse: original or photocopied passport of the sender, one valid government-issued ID, both original and photocopy, and the original and photocopied proof of shipping such as invoice or bill of lading.
If claiming on behalf of someone else or as a representative, the claimant must also present a notarized authorization letter or special power of attorney as well as the valid ID of the representative.
Customs commissioner Bienvenido Rubio urges the recipients’ cooperation in reuniting the balikbayan boxes with their rightful owners.
“Let us work together to ensure that these balikbayan boxes reach their intended recipients,” Rubio said.
Meanwhile, in a separate statement last Saturday, the BOC said that undeclared foreign currencies amounting to 47 million Japanese yen or P17.2 million were intercepted last June 27 at NAIA Terminal 3.
