Legal problems taking vehicle-mounted UHF or HF radios or Sat phones into countries

[Bandicoot]

Any general or specific comments regarding difficulties with customs or police etc in countries objecting to vehicles entering their country with HF or CB (e.g UHF) radios or satellite phones on board? Are there any countries that are particularly "difficult" about it, or require these communication systems to be removed or disabled prior to entry? Any suggestions/comments on how to organise this?
Thanks
Bandicoot

 

[mrlocksmith]

As far as ham radio goes, there are a number of countries that have reciprocal recognition of ham licenses from other countries. I assume that also means you can bring radio equipment along too. HTH


Mark

 

[UK4X4]

Ham I'm not sure about, but here in the middle east you can not have either !

basicly if you have a vehicle with a large quantity or aerials and lots of knobs and dials you can expect a load more questions, at most any dificult border.

sat phones these days can be had almost the same size as a cell phone so will attract less attention, than a cab full of radio gear

 

[Bandicoot]

So UK4x4, so are you suggesting that it would be sufficient to remove just the aerials before the border, or should the whole radio be removed?
Do you use any form of CB radio yourself?
Here in Australia CB radio is very popular for general "******** chat" esp if travelling in a convoy of a group of friends, and also for communicating with the truckies or heavy or slow vehicles on the road. Virtually every 4x4 would have one. Many of those going into the bush also have HF radio.
Bandicoot

 

[gjackson]

For HAM radio if the country you are traveling to has a reciprocal agreement with yours, then you are fine to bring a rig in and tx rx. If there is no agreement, then you have to get a HAM license for that country. Some countries (eg many in Africa) consider HF and most HAM sets to be military technology, and if you are found to have then you could face confiscation or worse. The antennas are the big give-away especially with HF, so if you can remove and hide, then you would probably be okay. I pull my GPS and my radio head units before going into border checkpoints in Africa anyway.

For sat phones and the like, they are pretty easy to hide, and I never really worry about them. There is something 'military' about radios and 'non-military' about phones, so in my experience it's much easier to get away with a phone. Almost everyone has cell phones now anyway, so the understanding is better. Legally I can't really say, you'd have to look into each specific country.

I have used FRS and GMRS handhelds a lot in foreign countries with no issues. The radios look like toys, which I think works out well.

Are you looking at specific countries?

cheers

 

[UK4X4]

"So UK4x4, so are you suggesting that it would be sufficient to remove just the aerials before the border, or should the whole radio be removed?
Do you use any form of CB radio yourself?"

presently my ariels are hidden in broom handles and the radio's are labled
"car stereo's" and wrapped and hidden at the bottom of a few diferent packing cases, the mikes are else where, the connections and cables also packed away in my tool box, I think.

I dread the day I have to find it all !

If I wanted truck to truck coms, little hand helds in pink would be fine ! as per Mr Jackson.

ET phone home, pick up a local sim card wherever you are, if you have an UNLOCKED cell phone.

radios simply attract the wrong sort of attention, in countries where you really don't want to end in jail as a spy.

Sat phone - local sim card and a couple of wlakie talkies should be sufficient for your needs

 

[ratkin]

Qatar amateur radio society (qars)

Don't know if these guys could help or not: QATAR AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY (QARS)

 

[xtatik]

Don't know if these guys could help or not: QATAR AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY (QARS)

Great post.
Nearly every country with active amateurs will have an oganization such as this. And, they'll be a great resource for getting answers to questions of this nature.

 

[UK4X4]

Funily enough I spotted that yesterday ! and wondered what the hell

especially after being given this for my container

PROHIBITED ITEMS

Weapons, firearms and ammunition (even decorative items of this nature)
Alcoholic beverages
Pork products
Narcotic drugs
Wireless transmitters and communication equipment
Pornographic or political material
Explosives
Any item made of ivory
ALL PRINTED MATTER, RECORDS, FILMS, BOOKS, PICTURES, TAPES, SLIDES, MOVIES, VIDEOS, COMPACT DISCS, COMPUTER SOFTWARE, ETC. SUBJECT TO CENSORSHIP AND CONFISCATION (MUST BE PACKED SEPARATELY FOR EASY ACCESS) IF CAUGHT WITH ANY OF THESE ITEMS, CUSTOMER WILL BE SUBJECT TO SEVERE PENALTIES AND POSSIBLE JAIL TERM.

In Oman it was the same - so is Saudi and the UAE.

I see a bunch of LC's with aerials too here locally but was told they were for the remote controlled jockies they use for camel races....

Would not surprise me if locals were allowed but expats no....

 

[UK4X4]

Funily enough I spotted that yesterday ! and wondered what the hell


especially after being given this for my container

PROHIBITED ITEMS

Weapons, firearms and ammunition (even decorative items of this nature)
Alcoholic beverages
Pork products
Narcotic drugs
Wireless transmitters and communication equipment
Pornographic or political material
Explosives
Any item made of ivory
ALL PRINTED MATTER, RECORDS, FILMS, BOOKS, PICTURES, TAPES, SLIDES, MOVIES, VIDEOS, COMPACT DISCS, COMPUTER SOFTWARE, ETC. SUBJECT TO CENSORSHIP AND CONFISCATION (MUST BE PACKED SEPARATELY FOR EASY ACCESS) IF CAUGHT WITH ANY OF THESE ITEMS, CUSTOMER WILL BE SUBJECT TO SEVERE PENALTIES AND POSSIBLE JAIL TERM.

In Oman it was the same - so is Saudi and the UAE.

I see a bunch of LC's with aerials too here locally but was told they were for the remote controlled jockies they use for camel races....

Would not surprise me if locals were allowed but expats no....

 

[jjohnsonphx]

This is slightly off topic, but have you thought of disguising the antenna? There are a few different ways to do this including using your FM antenna for Ham 2m and 70cm (with the proper matching equipment). I don't have any affiliation with this company and have only read reviews in ARRL's QST magazine, so I can't say for myself how well they work. http://www.licenseplateantenna.com/

On the other had, if the equipment is illegal in some countries, it might be best to not try and hide the antenna. Just a thought.

 

[gjackson]

Don't know if these guys could help or not: QATAR AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY (QARS)

Lots of countries do have HAM radio groups, and those are who you would get a license through just like in the US. Problem becomes when you are on a long multi-country overland trip, stopping to get the license can be a lot of hassle. For Mexico you technically have to go to Mexico City, so would be unable to use your rig until then and would be subject to any fines etc for possession without a license.

Tom Sheppard has a story about getting radio licensing for North Africa, and eventually giving up (after a year or more as I recall) due to time and expense.

cheers

 

[Scott Brady]

This is an issue. We nearly lost a BGAN at the Russian border (on exit). There are several stories about radio confiscations at the Belize border. So now I just use a handheld 2M and mag-mount antenna for VHF operations, removing the radio from view at borders.

We have direct reports of radios confiscated at the Belize border with Mexico.

Many countries require a permit to bring any satellite communications devices across the border. Unfortunately, there is often NO WAY to actually obtain the permit. Try to find the permit application for Russia or India - not there.

My recommendation is to always declare them, even if in a cryptic way. For example, I always list the sat phone as Motorola Emergency Phone on the customs declaration, and the BGAN as Thomas and Thrane WiFi modem. That way you are not lying, but it is also not immediately obvious what they are. . .

You just don't want to end up like this guy: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jan/17/andy-pag-satellite-phone-arrest

He didn't declare the sat. phone, and is paying the piper, so to speak.