Importing Goods by Post FAQ

Who can I call for general information about importing goods?

You can contact the Customs Information & Support Centre by phone on 1300 363 263 or email at information@customs.gov.au to discuss:

• tariff classification
• valuation
• calculating duty and GST
• prohibited and restricted goods; and
• other general inquiries.

Who can I call to track my parcel/s or ask about delivery?

Australia Post is the carrier of international mail. If you want to track your parcel or make an enquiry about delivery of your parcel please contact Australia Post on 13 13 18 with your tracking number at hand.

Why has my parcel been stopped by Customs and Border Protection?

All goods imported into Australia are subject to Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) and Customs and Border Protection controls. Your parcel is being held by Australia Post awaiting clearance advice from Customs and Border Protection and/or AQIS for any of the following reasons:

• a permit or approval is required
• evidence of value is required
• more information about the goods is required
• an import declaration is required
• a payment is required for duty, GST and other taxes and charges
• an AQIS examination or treatment is required.

My goods are for my private or personal use, so why does Customs and Border Protection not send them on?

The law requires that all goods — whether second hand or new, commercial or private — are subject to the assessment for duty, Goods and Services Tax (GST) and other taxes and charges and the goods are checked for community protection risks. When goods with a value exceeding A$1,000 are imported, the importer may be required to pay duty, GST and other taxes and charges. These goods must be declared to Customs and Border Protection on an import declaration.

If your goods have a value of A$1,000 or less, no duty, GST or other taxes and charges are collected unless the goods are tobacco and/or alcohol products. Australia Post will deliver such goods (excluding tobacco and alcohol products) without delay and there is no need to complete an import declaration form.

What do I need to do to clear and receive my goods?

Australia Post will deliver your goods and you do not have to complete an import declaration form, if your goods were imported by international mail (post) and:

• have a value of A$1,000 or less
• are not tobacco or alcohol products
• do not require a permit or approval; and
• no further information is required by Customs and Border Protection or AQIS.

There are different processes for goods:

• with a declared or assessed value exceeding A$1000
• tobacco and/or alcohol products
• restricted or prohibited imports

If your goods have a declared or assessed value exceeding A$1000

You will be sent a First Notice by Australia Post if your imported goods have a declared or assessed value exceeding A$1,000. In this case, you will need to make an import declaration to Customs and Border Protection for the goods.

The declaration will be assessed for duty, Goods and Services Tax (GST), Wine Equalisation Tax (if applicable) and an import processing charge will apply. You will need to lodge the import declaration and pay and duties, taxes and charges in full before your parcel/s will be delivered to you. The same requirements apply to tobacco and/or alcohol products with a value that exceeds A$1,000.

Australia Post cannot deliver the goods until an import declaration is made and any duties, taxes and charges are paid in full. There may also be AQIS requirements you need to meet before Australia Post can deliver your goods.

For more information on clearing goods when you receive a First Notice, click here.

If your goods are tobacco and/or alcohol products with a value of A$1,000 or less

If the goods you imported are tobacco and/or alcohol products with a value of A$1,000 or less, you will be sent a tax invoice by Customs and Border Protection. The information sent to you will provide payment advice — follow the directions carefully. Once your payment is received, Customs and Border Protection will advise Australia Post that your goods may be delivered.

If you prefer not to pay, you can contact Customs and Border Protection and request the goods to be returned to the sender (you may incur some costs).

If somebody sends you a gift from overseas that includes tobacco and/or alcohol products you are liable to pay the customs duty, GST and Wine Equalisation Tax (WET) (if applicable) as assessed on those products.

If the goods (including alcohol and/or tobacco products) have a value exceeding AUD$1,000, you will need to lodge an import declaration.Since June 2008, duty is calculated on the total weight of imported tobacco product as opposed to the tobacco leaf content for tobacco products such as fruit or molasses tobacco.

If your goods require a permit or approval (for restricted and prohibited imports)

If goods that arrive by mail require a permit or approval or are restricted or prohibited under any Commonwealth law, those goods may be held until you can provide the permit or approval. If you have imported prohibited or restricted goods, you will receive a letter from Customs and Border Protection. That letter will advise you what to do and provide contact details for assistance.

Imported goods may be seized by Customs and Border Protection in some cases where a permit or approval was not granted, or is not going to be granted. If that happens, Customs and Border Protection will notify you.

Usually, permits and approvals must be obtained prior to the items(s) arriving in Australia. It is your responsibility (as the importer) to know if the item/s being imported require a permit. For more information about prohibited and restricted goods click here

What if I receive a First Notice but my goods do not have a value of more than A$1000?

If you have received a First Notice from Australia Post and you believe the value of your goods is A$1,000 or less, you may need to provide evidence of the value to Customs and Border Protection.

Acceptable evidence includes an invoice (or other sales document) together with a credit card transaction record of payment or a PayPal® money transfer receipt.  Make sure you include your Customs and Border Protection reference number (from the First Notice) in your correspondence.

If your evidence is accepted, Customs and Border Protection will notify Australia Post that your parcel/s is/are cleared for delivery. You will not have to complete an import declaration form or pay duty and GST and other taxes and charges. Click here for further information and contact details.

If you cannot provide acceptable evidence of the value of the goods Customs law provides other means to determine the value of goods.

Are there charges for import declarations?

Apart from any duty, GST or other taxes that are payable (see below for how these are calculated), there is a cost recovery charge for making an import declaration. For example, the Customs and Border Protection cost recovery charge for each import declaration is $48.85 lodged by document however, for electronic import declarations the charge is $42.20. These charges are reviewed from time to time.

Do I need to provide Evidence of Identity (EOI)?

If you need to lodge an import declaration with Customs and Border Protection, you will need to meet a EOI standard. EOI checks are conducted when the import documents are presented to Customs and Border Protection for processing. You will need to provide 100 points of identification every time you present import declaration documents to a Customs and Border Protection counter.

Import declarations for goods imported by post are exempt from EOI requirements. However, Customs and Border Protection retains the right to request EOI when deemed necessary.

If you are asked to provide additional documents for your import declaration, you can email, fax or post the documents direct to Customs and Border Protection without any further EOI checks. If you do not provide relevant EOI documents with your import declarations Customs and Border Protection cannot process your form/s.

Evidence of Identity consists of:

Primary documents = 70 points each

• Full birth certificate; original Australian Citizenship certificate; passport.

Secondary documents = 40 points each

• Driver’s licence; public service identity card; student card.

Other documents = 25 points each

• Marriage certificate; credit card; Medicare card; foreign driver’s licence.

When you submit import documents for manual processing or when you are presenting import permits at Customs and Border Protection counters, you need to present your EOI documents each time. For more information about the EOI requirements click here.

How is duty and GST calculated?

The Customs value of goods imported into Australia is known as the ‘transaction value’. It is usually the amount you paid for your goods, converted to Australian currency. The exchange rate that is used is the rate applied on the day the goods were posted (exported).

When the goods you import are valued at more than A$1000, or include alcohol or tobacco products of any value, a Customs value is used as the basis for calculating the amount of any duty and/or GST and other taxes payable.

Duty payable is calculated on the Customs value of the goods. Relevant duty rates are determined by the Customs Tariff Act 1995 and are applicable at the time an import declaration is made.

GST is paid on the Value of the Taxable Importation (VoTI). The VoTI is the sum of the Customs value, transport and insurance costs (or postage and insurance) plus any duty payable and WET payable.

Below is an example calculation for an electric sound amplifier with a duty rate of 5%. The purchase price was US$1,274 and the exchange rate on the day it was exported was 0.9100 (A$1 = US$0.91). The postage and insurance was US$118.30

Customs value converted to Australian currency = US$1274/0.9100 = A$1,400.00

Postage and insurance converted      = US$118.30/0.9100  = A$130.00

Duty (amount payable) = 5% of A$1,400 = A$70.00

VoTI    = (customs value + duty + postage and insurance)

            = A$1,400 + A$70 + A$130 = A$1600.00

GST    = 10% of VoTI (amount payable)

            = 10% of A$1,600 = A$160.00

Amount payable to Customs and Border Protection

Duty + GST = A$70.00 + A$160 = A$230.00

Plus import declaration (lodged by document) processing charge of A$48.85
Total payable = A$230.00 + A$48.85 = A$278.85

How is the rate of duty determined?

The rate of duty that applies to goods is determined by the tariff classification number for the product which is found in schedule 3 to the Customs Tariff Act 1995 (the Tariff). Customs and Border Protection provides the working tariff at www.customs.gov.au and the tariff, rules, notes and instructions along with the schedules that determine the classification for imported goods.

You must classify your goods in accordance with the Customs Tariff Act 1995 (the Tariff). You may use the short Tariff (commonly imported items) included as part of the Notice to Importers provided by Customs and Border Protection or click here.

If you need help classifying your goods, the Notice to Importers has more information. You will need to provide the eight digit Tariff number and the two digit statistical code number for each type of goods you import.

What is a tariff classification?

Customs organisations around the world use similar systems to classify goods in order to apply a specific rate of duty that is payable when goods are imported. In Australia, that system is known as ‘The Tariff’ which is the common term for the Customs Tariff Act 1995.

Goods are classified to the Tariff in accordance with the instructions, rules, notes and tariff headings (and chapters) dependant upon the nature of the goods and the essential characteristics of the goods.

The Tariff also provides the rules that explain exemptions and other concessions that may apply to goods or importers.

When goods are classified to the Tariff, the final classification number is eight digits long plus a two digit statistical code required by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

What are Concessions, Exemptions and Free Trade Agreements?

Schedule 4 to the Tariff

Schedule 4 to the Tariff provides a number of concessions for duty for certain classes of people or goods. When certain concessions apply, an importation is also a non-taxable importation (no GST is payable). For more information click here.

GST Exemptions

There are exemptions from GST available for some medical aids, foodstuffs and items such as vehicles designed for use by disabled people. For more information click here.

Free Trade Agreements

Australia has a number of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with certain countries. Those agreements allow reduced duties on certain goods. For more information click here.

Other concessions

There are other concessions such as tariff concession orders (TCOs) and ministerial determinations applying to certain goods (for more information click here). 

Concessions are also available under a number of industry schemes run by AusIndustry.

Generally, FTA, exemptions and other concessional treatments are not automatically applied against your import declaration – you need to tell Customs and Border Protection that a FTA, concession or exemption applies.

When you make an import declaration and claim a concession or an exemption or when a FTA applies, Customs and Border Protection may ask you to provide information such as Certificates of Origin or other evidence to support your claim.