Elsa Babe Shipping to UK Question

[LionRage]

Looking around to buy a 90cm or 102cm for a small doll travel companion so it has to be light and easy to pack away.

I just wsnt to know if Elsa babe can ship to UK and clear customs no problem as JMDoll have already refused to ship their small dolls to UK. They mentioned about UK Border Force becoming more strict, and The Chinese shipping companies refusing to do the shipment as they have started incurring penalties!?! And I found out after paying for a doll as well, good thing i got a refund. Now I'm in the market to find a manufacturer who is willing to ship / has a stock in the UK.

Do Elsababe have UK stock or can ship to UK safely? Thank you.

[chippyminton]

Anything less than 150cm is almost certain to be seized by UK customs. It’s also highly likely that you’ll get a knock on your door from the police.

[LionRage]

Where did you get this information? Can you send me a link? It's so frustrating because I used to be able to buy a 75cm straight from China and it arrived no problem. And 150cm? I have read from another forum before that it was around 130cm and below when boder force get antsy about. Has this changed as well?

If it is really 150cm now then I'm f*cked because I prefer lighter dolls and have 1 or 2 on the wishlist of 148cm. Oh my days.

[goofy_dr_love]

Anything they consider child-like will be seized and or investigated.
Anything under or at 148cm can be seized or investigated depending if body looks child-like.

This is what i know. You can Google search usually this laws are not hidden.

[the living tribunal]

This has been discussed at length on UKLDF and by Phil at The Doll House in this thread. Recent court judgements have established that 148 cm is essentially the absolute bare legal minimum height for a sexually capable doll, regardless of whether it is a scale model of an adult or not. In practice, most dolls have to be at least 150 cm, not flat-chested, and not having overly-cute faces, in order to qualify as adult dolls. Ordering one dressed in a school uniform or similar clothing is asking for trouble, too.

In some cases, they may simply confiscate and destroy the doll; at worst, the doll is kept as evidence and you can expect the Serious Crime Agency to kick your door down at 6 am and perp-walk you out of your house, pending an eventual prosecution. This is why reputable UK vendors are very careful about what they sell. There is also a risk of a manufacturer's staff not being up to speed with current UK law and sending you a doll they ought not to; or sending the wrong doll by mistake, even if you ordered a legal one.

In short: keep in mind recent court judgements, don't buy from manufacturers directly, buy via a TDF accredited and reputable UK vendor, preferably one that imports in their name just in case the wrong doll is sent by mistake, and don't try to buy anything that such vendors don't want to sell you.

[chippyminton]

Pretty much perfect advice in the post above. If you have a quick scan through the websites of the principal UK doll vendors (The Doll House, Cloud Climax etc.) - you’ll find nothing on there below 150cm. That’s the way it is specifically because of the above.

[Elsa Babe_Young]

Hello, I have just talked to the shipping staff, they said we have shipped several small dolls to UK successfully recently. However the UK recipients have to work with the carriers for custom clearance. And recipient has to pay around additional $40~60 dollars for the custom duty of each doll.

[Mr_RubberLubber]

What tribunal said is basically the gist of it. Don't go for anything under 148cm, ever. 150cm or less is sketchy because its then in the hands of the customs official to make a judgement call based upon personal opinion. Even above 150cm you still need to be careful that your doll has no "childlike" features, such as flat-chested or childlike face. Keep in mind that importing a doll that is deemed "obscene" is punishable by up to 6 years in prison, with most sentences settling on around 2 years. Don't risk it.

Here's some info obtained from appropriate govt department that might be helpful. When they say "maximum" height, they actually mean its the minimum height that can be deemed acceptable:

Border Force are required to detect childlike sex dolls at the UK Border. To do this Border
Force assess dolls using the following criteria.

Dolls range from clearly adult material to clearly child (infant) full torsos and body parts.
The bodies can be made of childlike body parts with enhanced areas, such as breast and
buttocks, but this is not always the case.

Border Force refers to the “Girls Growth Chart” (used by medical practitioners as a
standard for child development in the UK) as a guide to assist with determining age. The
chart lists development in children from infant to 17 years of age. The maximum
acceptable height using the “Girls Growth Chart” is 147.5 cm (4 foot 10 inch). At this height
the question of child and adult can become subjective and officers will assess other
aspects of the importation and doll features based upon wider considerations. These
considerations are in line with legal guidance which is used to support the Crown
Prosecution Service around whether or not a crime has been committed involving a doll of
this nature. This guidance can be found at: Sex Dolls - Childlike | The Crown Prosecution
Service (cps.gov.uk)

The guidance is clear that a Border Force Officer must use their professional judgement to
determine what a jury is likely to conclude about the appearance of the doll when making a
seizure decision. This will consider:
a. Firstly, whether or not the doll has been created for sexual use.
b. Secondly, whether or not the doll has sufficient characteristics of a child that it is
plainly to be looked at and used for its childlike appearance.
c. Thirdly, is the article obscene?
The number of potential variables an officer may take into account when arriving at a
judgement are considerable and expand on a continued basis, for example developments
as a result of changes in the way items are packaged, marketed and described. It is for
this reason that the guidance allows for seizure decisions to be based upon the judgement
of the officer rather than set or rigidly define characteristics. This also makes it impractical
to provide you with a definitive answer in relation to when those circumstances may or
may not reach the threshold for seizure and referral for investigation.

[Mr_RubberLubber]

Hello, I have just talked to the shipping staff, they said we have shipped several small dolls to UK successfully recently. However the UK recipients have to work with the carriers for custom clearance. And recipient has to pay around additional $40~60 dollars for the custom duty of each doll.

Just because these dolls are getting through doesn't mean they are legal in the UK. BF can't check every parcel that comes through customs, so some will inevitably slip through. That doesn't make it safe to do so, it just means that not everyone will get caught.

Doll buyers in the UK need to be aware that, unless they are using a UK vendor who will import in their own company name and take on the risk, the buyer will bear full responsibility for the importing of illegal goods.

[Seth UK]

Good advice offered here. Avoid anything below 150cm and avoid anyone who tells you they can get one below 150cm through customs.

Hello, I have just talked to the shipping staff, they said we have shipped several small dolls to UK successfully recently. However the UK recipients have to work with the carriers for custom clearance. And recipient has to pay around additional $40~60 dollars for the custom duty of each doll.

$40-$60 customs duty? That can't be right unless your dolls only cost around $240. Import duties in the UK usually come in at 25% of the purchase price.

[Socratus]

Where did you get this information? Can you send me a link? It's so frustrating because I used to be able to buy a 75cm straight from China and it arrived no problem. And 150cm? I have read from another forum before that it was around 130cm and below when boder force get antsy about. Has this changed as well?

If it is really 150cm now then I'm f*cked because I prefer lighter dolls and have 1 or 2 on the wishlist of 148cm. Oh my days.

Unfortunately they're right. UK Laws are quite restrictive, to my surprise.
I was warned by Phil not to get anything too short due to UK Laws. Crazy cos women are often this short (and even shorter) where I live! But it doesn't matter to them.

That said when I did get the doll of a slightly taller size, customs did nose in, but passed it fine, but not without popping her eye out first (the eye guard was also torn), and they didn't even have the decency to put it back. It's little things like that which tells me all I need to know.


p.s Phil is having to deal with yet another dispute for a UK customer. He reckons the restrictions have stabilised, but it's still a pain to deal with some uppity inspector decides he'll (or she) try and make a name for himself on some minor detail.

[the living tribunal]

I once had to correct Star at SM on this forum for saying they could ship a 136, or some other small number, into the UK Very glad it wasn't me that wanted one.

[SxDolled]

I once had to correct Star at SM on this forum for saying they could ship a 136, or some other small number, into the UK Very glad it wasn't me that wanted one.

A 136cm doll to the UK? wow