SEA FREIGHT TO RAROTONGA
“SEA FREIGHT FROM AUSTRALIA TO THE COOK ISLANDS”
“Guaranteed Australia’s best sea freight rates to Rarotonga and Aitutaki”
“Shipping containers to The Cook Islands with security ,integrity and professionalism”
CALL CARGOMASTER: 1300 767 136 AUSTRALIA-WIDE
“Over 20 years experience shipping to The Cook Islands”
“Moving to The Cook Islands, ask about Self- Pack your own shipping containers”
Welcome to CargoMaster, Australia’s renowned Rarotonga Freight Services specialists. Our high performance team of sea freight service experts offer many years’ experience shipping containers to Rarotonga and The Cook Islands and surrounding islands. CargoMaster is one of Australia’s most trusted shipping companies from Australia to the Cook Islands.
ABOUT THE COOK ISLANDS:
Rarotonga is the Cook Islands largest Island, it has a population of approx. 13,000 people, which equates to approx. 60% of the total population of the Cook Islands (17,000). THE SHIPPING VESSEL Endeavor was the first recorded European vessel to discover the Cook Islands in 1823.
The Island of Rarotonga is a volcanic island, the island itself stands over 4,400 meters above the ocean floor. Rarotonga is not a big island, it is only 70square kilometers. The highest peak on the island is Te Manga (660 meters).
The largest town on the island is Avarua (also the capital) .The majority of business in Rarotonga is tourism related, there are lots of resorts, hotels and lodges to stay at.
Rarotonga is encircled by a main road the follows the coast line. Because of the dense forest and mountainous interior there are no roads that cross the island. Public transport buses go clockwise and anti clockwise around the island, you don’t need to wait for a stop just ask when you want to get off!
Rarotonga International Airport is the only international airport in the cook islands. Regular flights to Rarotonga from Auckland, Sydney and Brisbane (prior to COVID)
Avatiu Port is the major port for Rarotonga and the Cook Islands. Avatiu port is located on the north coast, to the west of the capital Avarua. Avatiu Port was upgraded in 2013 ,the harbor entrance is deeper which means it can accommodate larger vessels. The port handles 90% of Cook Island imports.
SHIPPING TO AITUTAKI
CALL CARGOMASTER 1300 767 136
SHIPPING TRANSIT TIMES FROM AUSTRALIA TO RAROTONGA AND AITUTAKI
- Sydney to Rarotonga: 28 Days
- Sydney to Aitutaki: 30 Days
- Melbourne to Rarotonga: 30 Days
- Melbourne to Aitutaki: 32 Days
- Brisbane to Rarotonga: 29 Days
- Brisbane to Aitutaki: 31 Days
- Fremantle (Perth) to Rarotonga: 38 Days
- Perth (Fremantle) to Aitutaki: 40 Days
- Adelaide to Rarotonga: 34 Days
- Adelaide to Aitutaki: 36 Days
- Hobart/Launceston to Rarotonga: 34 Days
- Hobart/Launceston to Aitutaki: 36 Days
- Townsville to Rarotonga: 27 Days
- Townsville to Aitutaki: 29 Days
- Darwin to Rarotonga: 34 Days
- Darwin to Aitutaki: 36 Days
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT SHIPPING TO THE COOK ISLANDS
Prohibited And Restricted Items:
Remember, you are moving to one of the cleanest, greenest, Island Countries in the world, the Cook Islands people are very much InTouch with the environment and protecting their country from unwanted pests and diseases. Border control is very strict and heavy fines (even imprisonment penalties) apply for non compliance, your goods could even be sent back to the origin port .Certain items are restricted or prohibited and cannot be imported into THE COOK ISLANDS
Please be aware the below items are NOT PERMITTED into THE COOK ISLANDS:
- objectionable material contained on items like videotapes, films, records, CD-ROMs and in publications
- weapons like flick knives, butterfly knives, swordsticks, knuckle-dusters
- any weapon which is disguised as something else
- equipment for using cannabis or methamphetamine
- anything which you’re planning to use in a crime.
For the commodities below you should check to see if you will NEED A PERMIT:
- ivory in any form, including jewelry, and carvings
- tortoise or sea turtle shell jewelry, and ornaments
- meat or food derived from whales, dolphins, rare crane, and pheasants, or sea turtles
- medicines containing musk, or rhinoceros or tiger derivatives such as ground horn or bone
- carvings or other things made from whalebone or bone from other marine mammals
- cat skins
- trophies of sea turtles, all big cats, rare reptiles, cranes, pheasants, bears, antelope, and deer
- live species, including pet eagles, hawks, owls and parrots, many cacti, orchids, cycads, and cyclamens
- carnivorous plants.
You may not be able to bring some medicines into The Cook Islands, especially controlled drugs. This includes medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Remember heavy fines and possibility of imprisonment for non compliance
Prescription medication in most cases is acceptable, if you can present a valid doctors prescription .
If you’re returning to The Cook Islands or are immigrant after 21 months or more overseas, you may be entitled to concessions on vehicles and boats, motor cycles that either accompany you or are transported separately.
Bringing Motor Vehicles And Boats Into THE COOK ISLANDS:
You may be able to claim “household items” concession if:
- you’re relocating , or moving back to the motherland after 21 months or more away, and
- you have been using the items for their intended purpose.
You can also claim concessions on:
- private vehicles, including:
- motorcycles
- cars
- scooters
- motorhomes
- camper vans
- ambulances
- boats and
- aircraft.
You can import no more than one vehicle, boat duty-free, if you meet the Concessionary Requirements.
As a condition of the concession you will be required to sign an Undertaking that you will not sell or dispose of the vehicle, boat or plane within two years.
If you sell your vehicle, boat or plane within two years of bringing it into duty-free, you must pay Customs duty on a pro rata basis.
Ownership Rules:
You will need to qualify for a concession, which means you will need to meet the requirement to have “personally owned” the vehicle for at least 12 months prior to your departure from Australia u will have to meet a requirement to have personally owned and used the vehicle, boat or plane for at least 1 year before your departure , or surrendering the vehicle for shipping.
The phrase personally owned means includes vehicles and boats leased by the importer, and vehicles, boats purchased under a hire purchase contract or agreement, provided that in both instances the terms of the lease or the hire purchase agreement/ contract have been meet with in full by the importer prior to their importation.
Vehicles, boats owned and registered by a company cannot be entered under the concession as the requirement to have personally owned the vehicle, boat or plane cannot be met, as a company is a separate entity.
Documentation will be evidence will need to be produced to support your claim of meeting this requirement. These documents may include:
- receipts showing purchase and delivery dates
- registration and insurance papers
- evidence when the vehicle, boat or plane was surrendered for shipping .
“What if I don’t qualify for concessions”
You will have to pay Duty.
“SAVE MORE, SAVE TIME” with CargoMasters’ international self- pack shipping consolidation services to and from Lytellton!
MORE ABOUT CONCESSIONS AND EXEMPTIONS
Returning Cook Islander exemption from customs duty and taxes – 85.02
Non-Cook Islander exemption from customs duty and taxes – 85.01
Form 60 Unaccompanied Baggage Declaration
Form 60a Unaccompanied Baggage Declaration Supplementary Page
Form 63 Declaration under the Customs Act 2012 – Personal Effects
Form 64 Declaration under the Customs Act 2012 – Motor Vehicle
Form 15 Declaration under the Customs Revenue and Border Protection Act 2012
CONTACT OUR TEAM TODAY CARGOMASTER WILL SAVE YOU TOO!
TEL: 1300 767 136