457. Send medicines to India from

USA by courier . . .

Questions: Dear Mr. Chand, I have your book, which is very helpful, but does not answer this specific medical question. I am moving to India. But there is a major concern; I am on a critical medical prescription. My pharmacy in the US will not ship the medicines overseas and will only supply a 3 month dose at one time. So they will ship to a US address only. This I can arrange. Now comes the hard part. How do I get the 3 month dose shipped to my India address on a regular basis. I have contacted Fedex and DHL and they do not have much knowledge and indicate that they do not want to deal with the customs in India. Regards Meera Nayyar Answer: As per Customs Notification No. 21 / 2002 dated 1st March, 2002: The following goods, namely:- (A) Life saving drugs / medicines including their salts and esters and diagnostic test kits specified in List 4 (B) Bulk drugs used in the manufacture of life saving drugs or medicines at (A) above (C) Other life saving drugs or medicines [http://www.cbec.gov.in/customs/cs-act/notifications/notfns- 2k2/cs21-2k2.htm] Can be imported free of any custom duty, an import license is not required and the item can also be imported by registered courier. To ensure that the items are admitted duty free. A certificate stating the medicines are required can be obtained in India from the District Medical Officer/Civil Surgeon. Perhaps your family doctor in India will be able to arrange this. As long as the medicine being sent is not considered a dangerous product to send by courier, I don’t she why you can’t send it by courier to India. It appears to me that the person you spoke to did not perhaps fully understand your question and the indication that they don’t want to deal with Indian customs is weird. DHL and Fedex couriers deal with India customs on a daily basis as thousands of items are shipped in and out of India from across the world. Both these companies have offices in India (http://www.fedex.com/in - http://www.dhl.co.in) If the medicines being sent: • Are not deemed to be a dangerous item • Are packed properly, labeled and addressed properly • The required Customs declaration forms are filled and attached The chances are you could get it couriered to India. Perhaps you should speak to someone else in the courier company to get some clarification. You may also consider checking if the medicines you require are not already available in India. Normally most medicines are available under a different brand name, if you have a doctor in India, they might be able to help.