Will I Need To Pay If Receiving A Parcel From Abroad?

When it comes to purchasing items from different countries, it’s only natural to feel a little apprehensive about whether or not you’re going to encounter any potential issues along the way while you wait for your parcel to arrive on your doorstep.

Just think about it: unlike domestic shipping, international shipping comes with a variety of additional risk factors that might impact the arrival of your parcel.

This can include everything from your parcel getting lost during shipment, unexpected customs delays and, of course – unexpected fees.

The only question is, what’s the likelihood of you needing to pay a fee when receiving a parcel from abroad?

If you’re currently asking yourself this question, then rest assured you’ve come to the right place.

In this article, we are going to be taking a closer look at some scenarios that might land you with an unexpected shipment fee. Read on.  

Will I Need To Pay If Receiving A Parcel From Abroad?

No matter where you happen to be in the world, if you are going to be receiving a parcel from abroad, then there is a very high chance that you might be required to pay a customs fee – and this can be dependent on a number of factors. 

While it is impossible to give a clear cut answer on whether or not you might be required to pay a fee when receiving a parcel from abroad, it is important to note that the country that you will be receiving the parcel in will decide whether or not there will be a customs charge that you will be required to pay.

Even though the goal is for all parcels to breeze through customs, there is always a potential that a parcel might suddenly incur an unexpected customs charge when landing in its destination country. 

However, so long as the sender of the parcel has ensured that they have taken the time to fill out all of the necessary information/documentations prior to international shipment – then you should find that your parcel is not held at customs, which means that you won’t then be required to pay any unexpected fees.  

Typically, the sender will be sent all of the relevant documents required for customs when selecting which courier delivery service that they want to go with.

From there, the sender will be required (and responsible) for completing all of the necessary paperwork to ensure that the parcel does not get held up at customs once it reaches its intended destination. 

For example, for the majority of customs across the world, it is generally accepted for all senders to attach their customs documents to the outside of the parcel in a clear plastic wallet/pocket for the customs team to then check once the parcel has been delivered to the intended country. 

By making sure that all of these best practices have been followed, it means that there will be a greater chance that you will not be required to make any unexpected payments!

This is because the customs team will have all of the necessary paperwork to ensure that the parcel you are receiving does not need to be checked or held up at customs for further processing.

What Factors Affect Customs Duty?

Unfortunately, it is important to note that even if your sender does take all of the necessary steps to prevent any issues at customs – there will always be a possibility that you might find yourself stuck with a customs duty charge that you will need to pay in order to relieve your parcel. 

To help you gain a better understanding of what might cause you to encounter an unexpected customs duty fee, let’s take a look at some of the most common factors that can affect the customs duty fee that you might be required to pay when receiving a parcel below:

1. The reason for export: The reason for sending a parcel might not only land you a custom duty fee unexpectedly, but lead to a higher amount owed. 
2. The country it has been sent from: Another reason that might lead you to unexpectedly pay a customs duty fee is the country that the parcel has come from. You should make sure that you’re doing your research prior to purchasing from a country you’ve never bought a product/item from before.
3. What classification the product is in: This is another hugely important factor that can greatly affect whether or not you will be required to pay a custom duty fee when receiving a parcel from another country. Again, if you don’t want to find yourself paying any unexpected fees, you should be sure to do your own research.
4. The origin of the product material: This is another factor that might cause you to encounter an unexpected fee at customs. If the customs team at the destination location does decide to check your package, they might decide to charge a custom fee due to the origin of the material the product has been made from.
5. The value of the shipment: Last but certainly not least, the final factor that might cause you to get a custom charge (even if the sender has done everything right to prevent any issues) is the overall price of the shipment value. If it is over a certain amount, then the customs team will have the ability to charge a certain amount based upon the taxable value of the overall package. 

Ultimately, there is no way for you to outright avoid any custom duty or delay when ordering an item from abroad, as whether or not your package will be given a customs fee will greatly depend on a variety of factors that day.

If you are very concerned about getting a hefty customs fee to pay, then one way that you might be able to get around this is by making sure that the sender directly outlines that the package is a gift.

However, in order to greatly reduce the chances of being given a fee to pay at customs, it is imperative that the sender makes sure to provide a complete breakdown of all the items that are being sent in the package.

This includes providing accurate value for every item that is included in the package, the contact details of the recipient, as well as making sure that all of the necessary documents have been filled out and provided in a clear slip (preferably on the outside of the package) by the sender. 

When all of this has been done correctly, then you should find that your package is sent through customs without any issues. 

The Bottom Line

There we have it! To sum up everything that we have listed above, whether or not you might be charged a customs fee is dependent upon a variety of different factors.

However, by making sure that the sender has filled out all of the necessary information and declared the value of each item in the package – you should find that your package breezes through customs without a hitch. Thanks for reading!