Try to get written confirmation of the charges you'll have to meet at the NZ end to reduce the chances of a 'nice' surprise when your container arrives....
You will usually have to pay the following:
1. A Port Authority or Shipping Line transit charge. I think ours was around $300 for a 20' container into Lyttleton. This coves the cost of craning the container off the ship and moving it around the port. It has to be paid before the authorities at the port of arrival will release your container.
2. Customes charges if applicable. There's nothing to pay on personal goods if you arrive with PR.
3. MAF fees for a bio-security inspection of your belongings. The cost of this depends on the number of items that will need inspecting - usually garden furniture, sports equipment, vacuum cleaners and lawn mowers etc. We had 20 items inspected for $120. There is an extra charge if the MAF inspectors do the inspection at your new home. Expect about $50 if you live within 20km of a MAF office. More if you live further away. It may be less if they inspect the container at the dock.
4. An administration charge made by the NZ removal company. This is the bit MB mentioned earlier. Some removal companies were (and probably still are) charging about $500 to cover the admin. This is unacceptable, especially if you have paid for a door-to-door delivery. A reasonable charge would be $50 on top of your MAF fees, not an extra few hundred.
The Moving Company tried to charge us over $700 when we had paid for door-to-door. I refused to pay and refused to let them do the work. I got a big refund from our UK shippers, who were rubbish (Not naming names, but it begins with A, ends with K and has RROWPA in the middle). I did the MAF and Customs forms myself, got a haulage firm to deliver and collect the container for $180 and hired three or four big fellas to unload it. They charged something like $200 for five hours.
And finally (for now), ask about the claims procedure if you take the shippers insurance policy. You might need to get the unpackers to sign the form to verify any damage. It's near impossible to get this done after the event, so make sure you have copies of the relevant forms on arrivals day.
Hope that helps.
