UK import duty calculator: check your carrier bill
Enter what you imported and what your carrier charged. The calculator works out the duty and import VAT from the UK Trade Tariff, compares the carrier's fee with its published schedule, and shows you which lines to check, with the working.
- Duty, import VAT and fees
- HMRC exchange rates
- Nothing stored
- Free, no sign-up
Personal parcel? See GOV.UK.
No sign-in. The amounts you enter stay in your browser: they are used to work out the result and are not stored. To look up the rates, only your search words or commodity code, the origin and the month are sent.
From a carrier bill to what to check
- 01
Looks up the rates
The commodity code and origin give the duty and VAT rates from the UK Trade Tariff. Foreign amounts are converted at HMRC's exchange rate for the month the goods were declared.
- 02
Works out each line
Duty on the customs value, import VAT on the value plus duty plus costs, and the carrier's published fee for paying them, from the carrier's own schedule.
- 03
Shows what to check
Each line is set against what the carrier charged, with the working. Where a line differs, the calculator says what to check, not who is at fault.
What the calculator covers, and what it leaves to you
- Duty that is a plain percentage of the value, and import VAT.
- The published fee each carrier charges for paying duty and VAT on your behalf.
- Postponed VAT accounting, and goods worth £135 or less under the current rules.
- Codes with anti-dumping or countervailing measures, additional duties, quotas, excise, or duty charged by weight or quantity are shown as "Check this code", without a figure.
- A preferential rate counts when the tariff lists it as a plain percentage for the origin; a duty charge at either rate is a match. Preferential quotas and other preferences aren't computed.
Low-value consignments
Currently, no Customs Duty is charged at the border on non-excise goods worth £135 or less sent to Great Britain. For goods sold to you, import VAT isn't collected at the border either: the seller or online marketplace charges VAT at the point of sale, and a VAT-registered business that gives the seller its VAT registration number accounts for that VAT on its own VAT return instead. Gifts worth more than £39 and goods not sold to you, such as samples, pay import VAT at the border.
The £135 is the value of the goods themselves, without transport and insurance shown separately on the invoice.
The government has confirmed that the duty relief ends by October 2028 at the latest. After that, sellers and online marketplaces pay customs duty quarterly and a new fee on low-value imports applies. Until then, the point-of-sale VAT rules apply.
Sources: Tax and customs for goods sent from abroad: tax and duty; VAT and overseas goods sold directly to customers in the UK; Reforming the customs treatment of low value imports into the United Kingdom: consultation response (HM Treasury, July 2026).
The carrier fees the calculator checks against
Each carrier publishes what it charges for paying duty and import VAT on your behalf. These are the amounts the calculator uses, with the date each took effect where the carrier states one and the date we read it.
| Carrier | Fee for paying duty and VAT | Extra lines | Corrections | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Mail | Customs handling feeRoyal Mail products: £8.00Goods valued over £900 (a full customs declaration is made for you): £25.00effective not stated | None published | None published | royalmail.com, read 16 October 2026 |
| Parcelforce Worldwide | Customs clearance feeAll other imported parcels: £12.00Parcels valued over £900 (a full customs declaration is made for you): £25.00Express parcels through EMS or GLS (the higher level; Parcelforce publishes no amount): amount not publishedeffective not stated | None published | None published | royalmail.com, read 16 October 2026parcelforce.com, read 16 October 2026 |
| DHL Express | Duty Tax ProcessingDHL account holders: £12.00 or 2.5% of the fiscal charge, whichever is higherReceivers without a DHL account: £11.00 or 2.5% of the fiscal charge, whichever is highereffective 1 January 2026 | Multiline Entry: £5.00 per line after 5 | Post Clearance Modification: £68.00 | dhl.com, read 15 October 2026 |
| FedEx | Disbursement feeAll receivers: £12.90 or 2.5% of the Duty/Tax, whichever is highereffective 20 July 2026 | Additional Line Items: £5.00 per line after 5 | Post Entry Adjustment: £60.00 | fedex.com, read 15 October 2026 |
| UPS | Disbursement FeeAll receivers: £14.35 or 3% of the advanced amount, whichever is highereffective 7 June 2026 | Additional Tariff Line Fee: £6.15 per line after 5 | Post Entry Clearance Services: £74.00 | assets.ups.com, read 15 October 2026 |
| DPD | Administration feeAll receivers: £5.00 plus VATeffective not stated | None published | Value and classification adjustment: £20.00 | dpd.co.uk, read 15 October 2026 |
Questions about checking a carrier bill
How is UK import duty calculated?
Duty is the customs value of the goods multiplied by the duty rate for their commodity code and origin. The customs value is normally the price paid plus transport and insurance to the UK. Import VAT is then charged on the customs value plus the duty and any further costs to the UK destination.
Why was import VAT on the bill when we use postponed VAT accounting?
A carrier making the declaration for you applies postponed VAT accounting only if you've told it, in writing, that you want to use it. If it didn't, the VAT was paid at the border and charged to you; the import VAT certificate for the period is the evidence of that VAT. Postal consignments delivered by Royal Mail Group can't use postponed VAT accounting.
What is the carrier's fee for paying duty and VAT?
When a carrier pays duty and import VAT to HMRC for you, it charges a fee for doing so: a disbursement, processing, handling or clearance fee, depending on the carrier. Most publish it as a fixed amount, or a minimum or a percentage of what they paid, whichever is higher. The calculator checks the fee on your bill against that published schedule.
Is anything I enter stored?
No. There is no sign-in, and the amounts stay in your browser. Only what's needed to look up the rates is sent: your search words or commodity code, the origin and the month. If you ask a specialist to look at a flagged bill, only the types of thing to check are sent, unless you choose to include your figures.
What should I do if my bill doesn't match?
Check the commodity code, customs value and origin the carrier declared, and whether postponed VAT accounting was applied. Carriers offer paid correction services for individual entries, and overpaid import duty can generally be reclaimed from HMRC for up to three years.
Check every shipment automatically from your HMRC data
This calculator checks one bill. BorderAudit reads the declarations made under your EORI and checks the duty and VAT on every entry, whichever carrier made them. Free to start.
Duty and VAT rates, commodity descriptions and HMRC's monthly exchange rates: UK Trade Tariff, contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (UK Trade Tariff). Carrier fees: each carrier's published schedule, linked above with the date we read it. The checks and the guidance on what to check are ours, not HMRC's or the carriers'.