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Customs Duties, Taxes, and Fees

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ShipWorks Content Team

Updated

Duties are fees imposed by customs authorities on imported merchandise. The fees are based on the value and/or gross weight of the international shipment and may differ according to the item(s) in the shipment.

Either you or your customer will be responsible for the payment of all duties, taxes, and fees assessed by the customs authority. Depending on the carrier, you or your customer may also be charged a brokerage fee for the services of the customs broker.

Illustration of woman at a retail checkout counter that says Delivery Duty Paid

Customs brokers are specialists in customs clearance procedures and are employed to act on the customer’s behalf. They help clear your international shipment through customs and border patrol services. Certain carriers act as a customs broker for their customer's international shipments. They ensure your documentation is prepared properly and streamline the process of clearing customs.

Brokerage fees are assessed based on the brokerage service provided by the carrier and vary from country to country. They can include a variety of fees, such as Entry Preparation Fees and Disbursement Fees.

Paying Duties, Taxes and Fees

During label creation you will choose if the sender or recipient will pay any customs duties, taxes, or fees that may apply to the shipment.

  • Delivery Duty Unpaid or DDU is when the recipient is responsible for paying customs duties, taxes, and fees. This is the standard option supported by all carriers.

  • Delivered Duty Paid or DDP is when the sender is responsible for paying customs duties, taxes, and fees. Not all carriers support DDP for international shipments. Learn how to set your shipment to DDP in ShipWorks.

    • The method of billing differs depending on your carrier:

      • Your Carrier Accounts: When shipping from one of your connected carrier accounts, any duties, taxes, and/or fees applicable to the shipment could be added to your monthly carrier invoice or you may be contacted by the carrier to be billed separately. If you are unsure how your carrier bills you for DDP shipments, contact your account manager for details.

      • ShipWorks Carrier: When shipping with a ShipWorks Carrier that does not support Prepaid DDP the fee will be deducted from your ShipWorks Balance as an adjustment after the shipment has been delivered.

        For US-Based Accounts: when using DDP on UPS from ShipStation, FedEx from ShipStation, and DHL Express from ShipStation that supports our Pre-Paid Duties and Taxes Guarantee you'll be charged the flat DDP fee when you create the label (both label fee and DDP fee will be deducted from your ShipStation Balance).

Tools to Estimate Duties, Taxes, and Fees

If you need help estimating the duties, taxes, and fees or your shipments here are several government entities and companies that provide a duty and tax calculator. Brokerage fees can be determined by visiting your carrier’s website.

Country

Resources

🇺🇸 United States

🇨🇦 Canada

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇦🇺 Australia

Still Need Help?

Please feel free to reach out to one of our awesome Technical Support Representatives in St. Louis.  We are happy to help.

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