My son in law and I are going to South Africa with other friends this coming June

Many of the others are going to rent rifles from the outfitter.

I and my son in law would prefer to bring our personal rifles to hunt.

Approximately what would be the cost, fees and paperwork to so? Trying to figure out if we are going overboard.

Costs with airlines vary.

The RSA does not charge a fee as I understand it. However, I have always found it useful to use a service to assist in getting the permit. As I recall the cost is $100-$150 per application depending on who one uses.

The paperwork required is downright stupid and annoying. Basically, there is a application with a bunch of info required. Copies of various documents. If you start a month ahead of time, you can get the permit before you leave. This saves a lot of time.

Look it up on line for details.

Well before your trip you will need to register your rifle with CBP and get a Form 4457. Everything involving taking your rifle revolves around this form.

Good advice above.

You can take a lot of the pain out of the process by hiring a good travel agent who knows the ropes of traveling to RSA with firearms. There are several, most notably perhaps TWG and Gracy.

The cost to the traveler with firearms of hiring the agent is typically around $300, and half that for those in your party not traveling with guns.

The agent will tell you everything you need to do to smooth the process, including getting your 4457s, hiring a meet and greet service (always a good idea in RSA, even if only transiting), and getting your SAPs gun permit in advance.

These latter things will add to the costs, but they are nominal in the context of the cost of an entire safari.

In other words, IMHO, the cost of these services is money well and smartly spent.

Good advice all. Start with getting your 4457's from US Customs and Border Protection at your local international airport. Make sure to put the rifle, the scope, as well as any binoculars and anything else of value on the form that you are taking out of the country and returning with. I do cameras as well on the form.

Henry @ Rifle Imports.com is handling our paperwork. If I remember correctly it’s around $150, and we’ll worth it.

Safari hunter,

Question for you.

Which airline will you be flying to South Africa, and the route you will be taking.

Depending on the airline and countries you fly through will determine the kind of firearm permits you will need.

When you land in South Africa you will need to clear customs and do your rifle import paper work SA520. If you have the time more than 3 hours you can perform this your self at no cost. I have accomplished this before, just be mindful that all the additional hunter who are on the same flights using an import service will be ahead of you to clear your firearm. Therefore, i would suggest like other have state use a travel agent and their services to clear your firearms. I have been using Gracy travel and the VIP service. My wife thinks that is the best money spent on the trip.

If you have flying connections out of Joberg and are flying with firearms you will need to be mindful that not all airlines handle firearms so use a good travel agent to assist you. I know that different commuters will fly to the same locations, however only one may transport firearms. You need to stay on top of that.

I have rented firearms and taken my own for different trips to different African countries. I do like shooting my own rifles and shotguns.

I really think you should contact a travel agent who deals with this.

It is your first time, and you are traveling with a group.

Better still, and this is my opinion, is to do what the others are doing and use camp rifles.

Everything should work, but I just can see some thing going wrong with a number of people traveling in a group and only two have rifles need ammo, and through Johannesburg.

1. Agent fees for your travel agent.
2. Meet/Greet service in RSA.
3. Possible airline fee if flying from JNB to another airport (Airlink charges a fee per firearm, I believe it was $80 per rifle EACH WAY last year).

I, too, prefer to use my own rifles and have taken my own every time but one. I suggest you find out what the camp rifles are and what the costs would be with using them. This way you can know whether they have something you'd be comfortable using and compare the costs directly.

Rental + ammo is common, although some outfitters just charge per round of ammo.

There is an overall hassle/worry with hauling your own rifles back/forth. In the past, I've found it to be worth it. But if the outfitter had some rifles I liked, and it was gonna be $500 more to use my own...

safarihunter,

Once you are on the ground with your own guns you will be happy that you went through a little hassle to bring them. It's not that big a deal.

Mark

To me, it’s all about hassle.

The outfitters usually charge enough that if you shoot much you would be money ahead to bring your own. That and the ammo per shot costs can be pretty absurd.

South Africa is a place that there are No government costs for bringing your own weapons, but there are a lot of folks with their hands out, and potential pitfalls.

I’ve paid Gracy Travel, and thought the cost was well worth the peace of mind. Others have done it themselves.

As mentioned above, different airlines (and countries) have different rules. If you are trying to save money, you need to look in to that aspect as well.

If you are spending the night in JNB at the Afton House or African Sky they can support the import process, meet you at the airport as you leave the secured area, walk you to the firearms office, and take you to their facility for a pleasant stay.

From my experience, if you use any of the firearms specialist that have the preapproved paperwork, including the above hotels; on your arrival the walk to the firearms office (About 100 yards.) seems to take longer than the time in the office to pick up your firearm.

I just returned from ORT tonight, and used Air2000, and it worked like a charm.

just got an email from Air Link 2 weeks ago cost for your firearms is 35.00 each total for 2 rifles is 70.00 per trip and do not forget to get an email allowing you to take them at LEAST 3 days prior to flying

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just got an email from Air Link 2 weeks ago cost for your firearms is 35.00 each total for 2 rifles is 70.00 per trip and do not forget to get an email allowing you to take them at LEAST 3 days prior to flying

Yet another reason to use a meet and greet service. . . .

what would the info from Airlink have to do with a meet and greet? you check in for your flight and pay their fee to load you rifles and your travel agent gets the email to you from Airlink 3 days or more before you check in

Just in case there's a screw-up. OIA. I was checking onto an Airlink connection a few years back and the couple ahead of me were doing it all themselves. When they got to the check-in there was an issue. At my urging, my meet and greet stepped forward and helped them. When I'm in Africa, I prefer not to take any risks, if possible. For others maybe not so. I've also had my meet and greet work with and massage issues with weight restrictions with the check-in agents. Many of the check-in agents have known the meet and greets, and vica versa, by first name. Always helps.

Folks,

What UEG said. Bruce with Gracy Travel has saved the bacon for several of my clients. I know Sadie and I would not have made it to Mauritius last year if Bruce had no "massaged" the situation at check in for Mauritius.

Mark

quote:

Originally posted by MARK H. YOUNG:
Folks,

What UEG said. Bruce with Gracy Travel has saved the bacon for several of my clients. I know Sadie and I would not have made it to Mauritius last year if Bruce had no "massaged" the situation at check in for Mauritius.

Mark

Very good advice and money well spent.

quote:

What UEG said. Bruce with Gracy Travel has saved the bacon for several of my clients.

It was indeed Bruce. And yes, Bruce is a 'living legend' and 'the man' at the OR Tambo Airport.

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Originally posted by Use Enough Gun:
Good advice all. Start with getting your 4457's from US Customs and Border Protection at your local international airport. Make sure to put the rifle, the scope, as well as any binoculars and anything else of value on the form that you are taking out of the country and returning with. I do cameras as well on the form.

Yes, the Form 4457 is a US Customs form to prove that anything of value that you are bringing back into the US, you had when you left.

Many foreign countries, like South Africa, consider it our gun permit. In the US, those forms should be valid for as long as you own the items listed on them, but foreign governments look at the date on the form as the expiration date of our "gun permit."

Make sure that the date printed on the Form 4457 is well beyond the dates that you will be in that foreign country.

I also only list one rifle and it's scope on the Form 4457. Any additional rifle/scope, binoculars, camera, etc. I put on separate 4457 Forms. It makes it a lot easier with some customs agents if you don't have an item listed on that form.

Also, another +1 on a Meet and Greet service, even if you're not traveling with a firearm.