International Shoppers- What you need to Know Before Purchase
When shipping products outside the US, it can be somewhat costly. Postage is determined by weight, size of package, and service used. Not all items can be shipped into other countries due to weight/size restrictions on packages and customs restrictions. It is recommended that you check with your customs office before purchasing to see if item can be imported into your country. Your country should have a website that will tell you what can/cannot be imported. ( you can use the USPS Index of Countries and Localities for a reference guide for shipping/mailing restrictions)
Duties/taxes/brokerage fees/customs/VAT/ importation fees are charged at time of delivery. The customer is responsible for those charges. Usually the carrier will not release a package until those are paid or they (the shipping carrier) may send you a bill at a later date for those fees. Fees vary by each country. Please review and check those before you purchase so you are not surprised later at delivery.
If an item can be shipped worldwide, the shipping calculator will provide a rate. Not all items are available for international shipment. If a rate does not calculate, it most likely is not available for shipment outside the US.
Most items that ship international are usually sent by USPS (United States Postal Service) but some are sent by UPS, DHL or Fedex . Some items are too large for USPS so DHL, UPS or Fedex must be used.
USPS does not have a real time tracking system like UPS, DHL or Fedex. Sometimes the Post Office 'may' scan an international package, but most times they do not and sellers will have no control over that. If you check on USPS with your customs declaration number, it may bring back a message that there is no record of mailing. That message does not mean it was not mailed. The post office just has not made a scan on it at that point and there is no way to know if/when they will scan it. Really the only mail class for USPS that has 'tracking ' is express mail which can be costly and some do not offer this service. UPS/Fedex/DHL will usually have higher brokerage/import fees at delivery than those of USPS, but UPS/Fedex offer real-time tracking, a service the USPS does not provide. USPS can take longer to deliver than UPS/Fedex, but the brokerage/import fees are often less than UPS/Fedex.
When purchasing from outside your home country, please remember that international packages will take longer to arrive then domestic orders. Once the parcel is in your country, it will also pass through your customs office which can add time to the delivery. Customs can hold a parcel for several weeks and open up packages for inspections. Usually international packages arrive somewhere within 4 weeks but can take longer depending on the Post Office and customs clearance and there is nothing sellers can do to speed up the process. If a package has not arrived by the 45th day after the shipment date, you should contact the company you purchased from.
Here is some other additional information we have found through various sources online:
Q. Why do I have to pay Customs duty and VAT?
A. Customs duty is charged on most goods imported into the EU. The duty rates are set out in European Community Legislation and in the Customs Tariff which classifies the goods and gives the rate of duty. All goods imported into the UK are subject to import VAT. It is charged at the appropriate rate that applies to identical goods sold in the UK. It is applied to protect UK businesses from unfair advantage from cheaper foreign imports. ( source: HM Revenue & Customs website)
Q. Why do I have to pay the Royal Mail clearance fee?
A. When Customs charges are due on goods arriving in the UK, Royal Mail and Parcelforce Worldwide will charge a handling fee. This is a contribution to cover their costs for handling your package, carrying out the Customs formalities, paying the import charges on your behalf and collecting it from you. This fee is completely separate from any Customs charges and if you have any questions about this you should speak to Royal Mail or Parcelforce Worldwide. Other carriers also make charges for their services. ( source: HM Revenue & Customs website)
From our experience we know that some Countries have restrictions/prohibitions on importing medicines/supplements/medicinal products. Please check your countries restrictions before purchasing. We know Germany, Italy, Australia, Mexico, Ireland , Sweden , Denmark, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Ecuador, Russia, Egypt, Norway, Romania, Portugal, Latvia, Greece, Kuwait, Finland, Liberia, Lebanon, Ukraine, Venezuela, Czech Republic, United Arab Emirates, Tunisia, Chad, Oman, and Brazil.
We know that playing cards have importing restrictions for Italy, Germany ,Greece and Spain.
Please check with your customs to see if an item can be imported into your country before purchasing.





When buying online, I always make sure that the item I'm buying is not that huge. Mostly I buy shoes, shirts and some baby products online. The cost is not an issue for me as long as they deliver the items in good condition.
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As an international purchaser it is always a great thing to get some tips on shopping online from over the oceans. I’ve had some great experiences where parcels have taken longer to travel in my own country than what they did from one continent to the other. So this is interesting reading indeed.
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I was just thinking about International Shoppers- What you need to Know Before Purchase and you've really helped out. Thanks!
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Great post, thanks! Maybe you could do a follow up article about this?
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