Ship a Motorcycle by Thailand Post: Cost, Papers, Timing

You can post a motorcycle across Thailand. Thailand Post runs a large-item service called EMS Jumbo that accepts motorbikes as freight. Rates start around 1,200 THB for a bike under 150cc and rise with engine size and distance, delivery takes 2–4 business days, and the paperwork is short — two copies each of an ID card and the vehicle registration book. Plenty of people end up here because they found the bike they wanted in another province: marketplaces like Talata pool motorcycle listings from across the country, so the right bike is rarely in the right city.

The question that follows is always the same. How do you actually get it here? This guide covers the real cost, the documents, the counter process, and what happens if the bike arrives scratched.

Can you really ship a motorcycle by post in Thailand?

Yes, and Thailand Post has done it for years. The confusion is that the service quietly changed names, and most of the English-language internet never noticed.

What EMS Jumbo is

EMS Jumbo is Thailand Post's "large item" service, built for things that are heavy or awkwardly shaped — refrigerators, washing machines, and motorcycles. Bikes are classified as "finished goods," which means they are charged from a fixed rate table rather than weighed and priced by the kilo.

You will still see the name LogisPost everywhere, including on Thailand Post's own rate calculator page. Older articles use it exclusively. The current product page says EMS Jumbo. In practice, walk into a post office and say you want to send a motorcycle, and staff will know what you mean either way.

Limits worth knowing before you turn up

Officially the service accepts items from 30 to 200 kg, with a maximum size of 150 × 300 × 150 cm. A normal commuter bike sits comfortably inside that. A big bike with wide bars, a top box, or crash bars is worth measuring first, because once any single dimension passes 100 cm a surcharge kicks in on a sliding scale.

The limit that catches people out is simpler: not every post office offers this service. Thailand Post publishes separate lists of EMS Jumbo branches for Bangkok and the provinces. Call your local branch before you ride over. If you don't speak Thai, ask a Thai friend to make the call, or use Contact Center 1545 — it is worth ten minutes to avoid a wasted trip.

How much does it cost to ship a motorcycle in Thailand?

Two things drive the price: engine size, and the distance between the origin zone and the destination zone.

Rates by engine size

These are the rates Thailand Post most recently published, for bikes up to 820 mm wide.

The bottom of each range is a short hop between neighbouring zones. The top is a Chiang Rai to Songkhla kind of journey.

Two things can push the bill higher. If the destination needs a boat crossing or sits in a hard-to-reach area, add 500 THB for a bike under 150cc and 1,000 THB for anything larger. If any dimension of the packed bike exceeds 100 cm, add 300 THB; over 150 cm, add 500 THB; over 200 cm, add 1,000 THB.

The ten shipping zones

Thailand Post divides the country into ten zones and prices each origin–destination pair. Kanchanaburi (zone 3) to Ranong (zone 9) is charged at the zone 3 to zone 9 rate.

• Zone 1 Bangkok, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Samut Prakan
• Zone 2 Sa Kaeo, Prachinburi, Chachoengsao, Chonburi, Rayong, Chanthaburi, Trat
• Zone 3 Nakhon Pathom, Kanchanaburi, Ratchaburi, Samut Sakhon, Samut Songkhram, Phetchaburi, Prachuap Khiri Khan
• Zone 4 Uthai Thani, Sing Buri, Chai Nat, Lopburi, Saraburi, Ang Thong, Ayutthaya, Suphanburi, Nakhon Nayok
• Zone 5 Uttaradit, Sukhothai, Tak, Phitsanulok, Kamphaeng Phet, Phichit, Phetchabun, Nakhon Sawan
• Zone 6 Mae Hong Son, Chiang Rai, Phayao, Chiang Mai, Lamphun, Nan, Lampang, Phrae
• Zone 7 Kalasin, Mukdahan, Roi Et, Maha Sarakham, Chaiyaphum, Amnat Charoen, Yasothon, Sisaket, Ubon Ratchathani, Buriram, Surin, Nakhon Ratchasima
• Zone 8 Nong Khai, Bueng Kan, Loei, Udon Thani, Nakhon Phanom, Sakon Nakhon, Nong Bua Lamphu, Khon Kaen
• Zone 9 Chumphon, Ranong, Surat Thani, Phang Nga, Nakhon Si Thammarat
• Zone 10 Krabi, Phuket, Trang, Phatthalung, Songkhla, Pattani, Satun, Yala, Narathiwat

Getting the exact number for your bike

The ranges above tell you roughly what you'll pay. For the actual figure, Thailand Post has a free rate calculator on its website. Enter the origin postcode, the destination postcode, the real weight, and the width, length and height of the bike. There is also a field for declaring a value, which is how you buy extra insurance.

One concept is worth understanding before you fill it in: volumetric weight. Thailand Post charges on either actual weight or volumetric weight, whichever is greater, and volumetric weight is width × length × height ÷ 6,000. A motorcycle takes up far more space than it weighs, so the volumetric figure is usually the one doing the work.

Because bikes are classed as finished goods, a fixed table applies rather than a raw volumetric calculation. Knowing the principle still explains why a scooter and a big bike are priced worlds apart.

Is posting a bike cheaper than the alternatives?

There is no single answer, because "cheap" means something different to someone moving a 30,000-baht scooter and someone moving a 400,000-baht big bike.

Post office vs slide car vs private courier vs paying a rider

The slide car, courier and rider figures are quote-by-quote. Only Thailand Post publishes a public rate table, which is worth something in itself when you are new to the country and negotiating in a second language.

Which one you should pick

For a scooter or a commuter bike worth tens of thousands of baht, the post office is close to the only sensible answer. Twelve hundred baht against not riding across the country yourself is not a hard trade.

For a big bike worth several hundred thousand, run two numbers. One: post office at roughly 3,300–4,020 THB plus the cost of extra insurance. Two: a slide car, which costs more but means the bike is never lifted, stacked or handled by anyone. If the bike is heavily modified or has fragile bodywork, the slide car usually wins.

Paying someone to ride it sounds cheapest and rarely is. You add hundreds of kilometres to the odometer, you pay for fuel and their journey back, and if there is an accident on the way, nobody is liable but you.

What documents do you need?

Short list, but bring photocopies. Many post offices do not have a copier.

• Two copies of the sender's ID card (passport for foreign residents)
• Two copies of the vehicle registration book (the "green book")
• Two copies of the registered owner's ID card — required whenever the sender's name is not the name in the green book
• If the bike was bought on an open transfer (โอนลอย), the signed transfer form plus a copy of the seller's ID card

When the green book is not in your name

This is the normal case for a lot of foreign residents, not the exception. Bikes are frequently registered to a Thai partner, a landlord, a company, or the previous owner who never completed the transfer. It does not stop you shipping the bike — it just means you need two copies of that person's ID card, and you need to have asked them for it in advance.

Sort this out before you go. Turning up at the counter and discovering you need a document that lives in someone else's wallet in another province is the most common way this trip fails.

When the bike is still on finance

The original green book for a financed bike sits with the finance company; you only hold a copy. Bikes bought on open transfer are still legally in the previous owner's name. Neither situation necessarily blocks shipping, but both change what you need to bring, and different branches read the rules differently.

Step by step at the counter

1. Call the origin post office and confirm it offers EMS Jumbo and accepts motorcycles
2. Prepare and photocopy the documents above
3. Ride the bike to the branch, collect the consignment form, and fill in sender and recipient details
4. Staff inspect the bike and log existing damage — scratches, cracks, anything already broken — so it can be compared at the other end
5. Staff prepare the bike for transport: mirrors folded in, and fuel siphoned off if there is too much in the tank
6. Decide whether you want the bike wrapped in paper or bubble wrap; this costs extra
7. If the bike is valuable, tell them you want to buy additional insurance cover
8. Pay, and keep the receipt and the 13-digit tracking number

How to prepare the bike so it arrives unmarked

The most important thing you will do is not wrapping. It is photography.

Photograph the bike from every angle before you hand it over — both sides, front, rear, seat, exhaust, wheels — and take close-ups of any damage that is already there. Include a shot of the odometer. This set of photos is the only evidence you will have if the bike arrives with a new scratch, and if you are selling the bike, it is also proof to the buyer of exactly what condition it left in.

The rest is housekeeping. Empty the underseat compartment of valuables and documents. Remove anything that detaches easily — top box, plastic guards. Don't fill the tank, because staff will drain it anyway. And keep your spare key with you; never send it with the bike.

How long does it take, and where do you collect it?

Thailand Post's published delivery standard for EMS Jumbo is 2–4 business days. That number is worth stating plainly, because most English and Thai articles online still say five to seven days, which is out of date. Build in some slack around Songkran, New Year, and for remote destinations.

For motorcycles, the recipient normally collects from the destination post office named by the sender, rather than having the bike delivered to their door. Thailand Post does publish a separate surcharge for at-address delivery, so if doorstep delivery matters to you, ask about the terms and cost at drop-off.

The 13-digit tracking number on your receipt works with Thailand Post's Track & Trace system. When the bike lands, staff at the destination branch will call the recipient to come and get it.

If the bike is damaged in transit, what can you claim?

The default liability under EMS Jumbo is actual damage, capped at 3,000 THB per item. That covers a scratch or a broken indicator. It is nowhere near the value of the bike if something serious happens.

What almost nobody mentions is that you can buy additional cover up to 200,000 THB. This is stated in Thailand Post's own service conditions. You pay for it at drop-off, and for a big bike it is an easy decision. Every competing article stops at "3,000 baht maximum" and leaves it there, as if the option did not exist.

The moment that decides whether you can claim at all is collection. Do not sign for the bike before you have inspected it. Walk around it, compare it against the photos you took at drop-off, and if anything is wrong, raise it with staff at the destination branch right there, with your photos in hand. Signing first and complaining later makes a claim much harder.

Buying a bike from another province: how to agree on shipping

Deals fall apart over shipping more often than over price, because neither side raised it early.

If you are selling, put the shipping terms in the listing from the start. "Buyer pays shipping" or "shipping included" — either is fine, as long as it is stated. Serious buyers can then budget properly and won't reopen the negotiation later. Once you have dropped the bike off, photograph it at the counter, photograph the consignment slip, and send the buyer the 13-digit tracking number straight away. That transparency is worth more than any amount of reassurance.

If you are buying, don't send the final payment until you have proof the bike is actually in the system. Ask for photos of the bike, a photo of the consignment slip, and the tracking number. Inspect the bike before you sign for it at the other end.

Keep the green book conversation separate from the shipping conversation — they are different processes on different timelines. If the sale is an open transfer, have the full transfer paperwork ready before the drop-off date, because the post office will want to see it. Agree in writing who goes to the Department of Land Transport, and when. Do not leave it as a mutual assumption.

Before you commit, check the details once more: the current rate, which branch actually accepts bikes, the documents you need, and how much cover makes sense for what the bike is worth. Compare it honestly against the other transport options. And if you are still at the stage of finding the right bike or the right buyer, get that settled first — the shipping conversation is far easier once both sides know what they are shipping.

Why buy and sell motorcycles on Talata

For buyers, Talata gathers used motorcycle listings from sellers across Thailand in one place. Filter by model, price range and province, find the bike that actually fits what you want even if it lives four hundred kilometres away, and contact the owner directly to talk through condition, price and how it gets to you.

For sellers, listing takes minutes. Put in the model, year, mileage, condition and your shipping terms from the outset, and a buyer in another province has everything they need to make a decision without a week of back-and-forth. If you are hunting for a bike or ready to move the one you have, start on Talata.

Frequently asked questions

Can I buy a used motorcycle from another province and have the seller post it to me?

Yes, and it is routine. The seller drops the bike at their local post office, you collect from the branch nearest you. Settle two things up front: who pays for shipping, and when the green book gets transferred.

Who normally pays the shipping cost, buyer or seller?

There is no rule; it is whatever you agree. The common practice is that the buyer pays, since they are the one avoiding a long trip. Some sellers fold the cost into the asking price to make the listing more attractive. The safest approach is to state it in the listing from the beginning.

How much does it cost to post a motorcycle in Thailand?

Roughly 1,200–1,680 THB for a bike up to 150cc, 1,500–2,100 THB for 151–400cc, and 3,300–4,020 THB for anything above 401cc or any big bike. The exact figure depends on the origin and destination zones, and surcharges apply for oversized bikes and hard-to-reach destinations.

How long does it take?

Thailand Post's published standard is 2–4 business days. Allow extra time over holiday periods and for remote destinations. Track it with the 13-digit number on your receipt.

Can big bikes be posted?

Yes, at the 3,300–4,020 THB band, provided the bike stays within 150 × 300 × 150 cm and 200 kg. Any dimension over 100 cm triggers a surcharge. For a bike of that value, buy the additional insurance cover.

Do I need to drain the fuel tank first?

Staff will check the tank and siphon fuel off themselves if there is too much in it, for safety in transit. So don't fill up before you ride to the post office — just enough to get you there is plenty.