International Delivery - Duties & Taxes

For all international parcel and pallet deliveries, and now including the EU, duties and taxes will be due on the majority of consignments. When it comes to the payments of these fees there are typically two options which are; the sender pays or the receiver pays. There are a few different acronyms used to describe these options and overall they are known as Incoterms.

The usual default when booking with couriers is DAP or Delivered at Place. With this method the sender organises the transport and documentation to get the goods to the receiver, but the receiver will be contacted by their local customs or carrier to complete payment of any duties or taxes.

The alternative to the above is DDP which is Deliver Duties Paid. In this situation the sender requests to pay any duties or taxes due. Tax can usually be calculated at this point as it is based on the VAT or tax rate in the receiving country, but duty costs are usually applied once the goods are in country and vary based on the reason for transport, e.g. sales, repair or gifts, and the nature of the goods.

It is really important to establish who is taking responsibility for these costs as they can be large amounts if the the goods are of a high value and lack of payment can result in delays and the potential for goods to be returned to the sender.