How to Ship Laptops to South America Without Losing Your Mind (or 80% of the Device Value to Customs) 

Brazil customs held your laptop for six months? Colombia “lost” your shipment? Welcome to the club. Here’s what actually works for getting IT equipment to LATAM employees.

There’s a reason IT teams dread the words “we just hired someone in Brazil.”

A Reddit thread in r/sysadmin captures it perfectly. Someone tried to ship a laptop from the US to Brazil and described it as “a terrible experience”—outrageous customs fees, long shipping times, the laptop held in customs, and ultimately a hefty tax bill just to get company equipment to a company employee.

The top response? “They don’t. They buy them locally.” At Rayda, we specialize in exactly the markets where shipping equipment is a nightmare—and Latin America is near the top of that list.

We’ve learned what works, what doesn’t, and why so many companies just give up and write off the loss. Let’s break down the reality of getting IT equipment to South America.

Why south America Is Uniquely Difficult  

If you’ve shipped laptops domestically or even to Western Europe, you might assume international shipping is just… slower and more expensive. LATAM will teach you otherwise.

Import Taxes That Feel Like Robbery  

Depending on the country, you can expect to pay 80-150% of the device value in import duties and taxes. Yes, you read that right. That $1,500 laptop might cost you an additional $1,200-2,250 just to get through customs.

Brazil is particularly brutal. Argentina isn’t far behind. Even “easier” countries like Colombia and Chile will add significant costs that weren’t in anyone’s budget.

Customs Delays Measured in Months, Not Days  

One sysadmin reported network equipment stuck in Brazil customs for six months. Another described a laptop held in Colombia for over a month with “little to no communication” and the whole process feeling “very extortion-like.”

This isn’t unusual. When you ship to LATAM, you’re not looking at FedEx’s estimated 5-7 day international delivery. You’re looking at weeks of uncertainty, followed by surprise fees, followed by maybe getting your equipment.

Equipment Gets “Lost”  

Sometimes the laptop just… disappears. One IT manager reported that Colombia customs managed to “lose” a laptop they shipped to a developer. No explanation, no recourse, just gone.

Is it corruption? Theft? Bureaucratic black holes? Probably some combination. Either way, you’re out a laptop and your new hire still doesn’t have equipment.

The Corruption Factor  

We’ll let a Reddit commenter say what we can’t: “Brazil is corrupt as fuck, and most of the other countries aren’t much better. If you don’t have a local who can grease palms it’s always going to be a cluster fuck.”

Is that an overstatement? Maybe. But the sentiment is shared by enough IT professionals that it’s worth acknowledging. Some shipments clear quickly; others get stuck for reasons that have nothing to do with proper documentation.

The Workarounds People Actually Use  

Given how painful direct shipping is, IT teams have gotten creative. Here are the approaches we see:

1. Buy Locally from a VAR  

How it works: Find a Value-Added Reseller in the destination country and purchase equipment there.

Pros:

• No customs, no import taxes
• Equipment arrives quickly
• Local warranty support

Cons:

• Limited selection—the exact specs you want may not be available
• Managing vendor relationships in countries where you don’t speak the language
• Pricing can be higher for the same equipment
• Still need to solve the retrieval problem when employees leave

Verdict: This is the most common solution, and it works—if you can find reliable vendors and accept the limitations.

2. Fly Employees to the US for Onboarding  

How it works: Bring new hires to headquarters for orientation. While they’re there, issue them a laptop. They take it home as personal luggage.

Pros:

• Avoids commercial shipping entirely
• Good onboarding experience
• Laptop arrives with the employee

Cons:

• Flight + hotel + time costs add up fast (though one IT manager noted “the math came out cheaper if I flew them in for a day or two” compared to shipping)
• Some countries (Argentina, Brazil) require travelers to declare serial numbers of electronics when leaving so they can prove the items left with them when returning
• If they don’t declare properly, they personally get hit with import taxes at their home customs
• Reimbursing employees for those taxes creates its own paperwork
• Doesn’t scale if you’re hiring 50 people

Verdict: Works for small numbers of hires, especially if you’re already doing in-person onboarding. Gets complicated fast at scale.

3. Have Employees Buy Locally and Expense It  

How it works: Send the employee an Amazon link (or equivalent), have them purchase the laptop themselves, and reimburse them.

Pros:

• Zero shipping logistics on your end
• Fast—employee can have equipment same-day in some cases
• No customs involvement

Cons:

• Asset ownership gets murky (did they buy it or did you?)
• Spec consistency goes out the window
• Tax implications for the employee in some countries
• Retrieval when they leave? Good luck.
• Doesn’t work for employees without the cash flow to front the purchase

Verdict: Quick and dirty solution for contractors or short-term hires. Not great for building a real equipment program.

4. Use “Puerta a Puerta” Consolidation Services  

How it works: These are shipping services commonly used by Latin Americans to buy products from US websites. They have receiving centers in the US (usually Miami), consolidate packages, and handle customs clearance to the destination country.

Pros:

• They know the customs system and have established processes
• Often faster and more reliable than shipping direct
• Your employees might already use these services and can recommend one

Cons:

• You’re trusting a third party with company equipment
• Tracking can be limited
• Still subject to import taxes (though they may know how to minimize them)
• Not designed for business equipment—more for personal shopping

Verdict: A clever hack that works in a pinch. Your employees in Brazil probably know a service they trust.

5. Mark Equipment as “Used Electronics”  

How it works: Since the laptop has technically been opened and configured by IT, you declare it as used rather than new, which can significantly reduce import duties.

Pros:

• Legally defensible—it IS used once you’ve touched it
• Can meaningfully reduce customs costs

Cons:

• Some customs agents won’t accept this
• If the laptop looks brand new in brand-new packaging, you might get challenged
• Inconsistent results

Verdict: Worth trying, but don’t count on it working every time.

6. Ship via DHL with Full Insurance  

How it works: Use DHL (reportedly more reliable than FedEx for LATAM), pay for insurance, accept that you’ll pay 80-150% in taxes, and just budget for it.

Pros:

• Equipment usually arrives (eventually)
• Insurance covers loss
• You maintain control of the asset

Cons:

• Expensive—you’re potentially paying 2-2.5x the laptop cost by the time it arrives
• Still subject to unpredictable delays
• Doesn’t solve the retrieval problem

Verdict: If money isn’t the issue and you need to ship, DHL is the least-bad carrier option.

The Math Nobody Wants to Do  

Let’s say you’re hiring someone in Brazil and want to ship them a standard $1,500 laptop.

Direct shipping scenario:

• Laptop cost: $1,500
• International shipping (DHL): $150
• Import duties + taxes (100%): $1,500
• IT staff time dealing with customs (5 hours × $50/hr): $250
• Total: $3,400

And that’s assuming it arrives. If it gets stuck in customs for months, you’re also paying for a delayed and frustrated employee, potential workarounds (cloud PCs, borrowing equipment), and the opportunity cost of your IT team’s time.

Local purchase scenario:

• Laptop cost (local VAR, typically 10-20% markup): $1,750
• Shipping within country: $30
• IT time for remote enrollment: $50
• Total: $1,830

The local purchase wins by a landslide. And that’s why “buy locally” is the default advice.

But local purchase has its own hidden costs:

• Finding and vetting VARs in multiple countries
• Managing vendor relationships across languages and time zones
• Inconsistent specs and availability
• No solution for retrieval when employees leave
• Scaling this across 10+ countries is a full-time job

What About Device Retrieval?  

Here’s the part nobody talks about until it’s too late: if it’s hard to get laptops INTO Latin America, it’s even harder to get them OUT.

When that employee in São Paulo leaves the company, what happens to the laptop? Your options:

1. Ask them to ship it back – They probably won’t, and if they do, you’ll pay import duties bringing it back to the US
2. Write it off – Expensive, but common
3. Have a local presence collect it – Do you have someone in São Paulo?
4. Use a retrieval service – The only scalable solution

Most companies just… give up. The laptop becomes an expensive paperweight in a former employee’s closet.

A Better Approach: Local Sourcing + Local Retrieval  

The companies that successfully manage equipment in LATAM don’t try to ship from the US. They build (or partner with someone who has) actual local infrastructure:

• Local sourcing – Purchase equipment in-country to avoid customs entirely
• Local warehousing – Store equipment locally for faster deployment to new hires
• Local retrieval – Physically collect equipment from departing employees
• Device redeployment – Wipe and redeploy locally instead of shipping back to HQ

This isn’t something most IT teams can build themselves. You’d need vendor relationships, warehousing, and logistics partners in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Mexico, and wherever else you’re hiring. That’s why specialized providers exist.

What Rayda Does in Latin America  

Full transparency: Rayda was built specifically for the markets that everyone else struggles with—and Latin America is core to what we do.

When you deploy equipment through Rayda in LATAM:

• We source locally – No customs, no import duties, no six-month delays
• Devices deploy in days – Not weeks or months
• We handle retrieval – When employees leave, we collect the equipment locally
• Devices get redeployed – Wiped, inspected, and ready for your next hire in the region

We have actual presence and logistics infrastructure across Latin America, which means we’re not just “shipping there”—we’re operating there.

Whether it’s Brazil (the hardest), Argentina (almost as hard), Colombia, Mexico, Chile, or anywhere else in the region, we’ve figured out the local dynamics so you don’t have to.

Quick Wins If You’re Handling This Yourself  

Not ready for a managed solution? Here’s how to minimize pain:

Default to local purchase. Seriously. Unless you have a specific reason to ship from the US, just buy in-country.

Build relationships before you need them. Finding a reliable VAR in Brazil when you need a laptop yesterday is miserable. Do the research now.

Use Autopilot or DEP. If you’re buying locally, zero-touch deployment lets you enroll and configure devices remotely without touching them first.

Budget for the real cost. If you must ship, budget 2-2.5x the device cost. Anything less and you’ll be scrambling.

Mark as used if you can. It’s legally accurate once you’ve configured the device, and it can reduce duties.

Ask your employees for recommendations. They know the local shipping services, the reliable vendors, and the customs quirks. Use their knowledge.

Plan for retrieval from day one. Don’t wait until someone quits to figure out how you’ll get the laptop back.

The Bottom Line  

Shipping laptops to South America the way you’d ship to another US state is a recipe for frustration, delays, and budget overruns. The import taxes alone can double your equipment cost, and that’s before you factor in the unpredictable customs delays.

The companies that do this well either:

1. Build local procurement capabilities themselves (expensive, time-consuming)
2. Partner with someone who already has local infrastructure (faster, more scalable)

If you’re hiring in Latin America and want equipment deployment to be somebody else’s problem, Rayda can help. We’ve already figured out the vendors, the logistics, and the retrieval process across the region.

Book a demo and stop paying 150% import duties on laptops that might arrive eventually.

Hiring in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, or elsewhere in LATAM? We’ve probably deployed there. Reach out and we’ll tell you exactly what to expect.