Quick answer: What Is Import Duty? A Complete Guide — what is import duty? It is a tax charged by a destination country on goods brought into it, and it applies to most AliExpress orders above the country's de minimis threshold. You pay it as part of the total landed cost, which is the price plus shipping, duty, excise, VAT, and any levies. Use the DutyPricing calculator to get the exact figure for your country and order instead of guessing.
What Is Import Duty? A Complete Guide
The sticker price on AliExpress is not the price you pay. What Is Import Duty? A Complete Guide begins with a simple fact: the total you pay at your door is the item price plus every tax and charge the destination country applies on arrival. Cross-border duty is a tax charged by the country importing the goods, and it applies to most orders above that country's small-parcel exemption. This guide explains the definition, the order of charges, and how to find the real figure for your country and your order.
DutyPricing is a cross-border customs-duty calculator for African countries Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda. It estimates the full landed cost of importing a product: the price plus every tax and charge that applies on arrival, from import duty through vat on imports to any excise or levies.
Import Duty vs. VAT vs. Customs Fees: What's the Difference
They are different charges, and they stack. Import duty is a tax on goods crossing a border, usually set by product type. VAT is a consumption tax charged on top of the duty-inclusive value of the goods. Customs fees are the administrative charges a broker or the agency takes for processing the entry. Excise applies to specific goods, and levies are additional targeted charges. You may pay all four on a single parcel, and they are calculated in a fixed sequence, not added at random.
Duty on imports is not a single moving part. The same shirt faces different import duties depending on how the destination country classifies it and what rate applies, so a figure that fits one country will not fit another. Avoid treating the three terms as synonyms: duty targets goods, VAT targets value, and fees target the act of processing.
How Import Duty Is Calculated: Value, HS Codes, and Rates
Import duty calculation starts with the customs value. Customs values a parcel in most cases as CIF: the item price plus international shipping and insurance. Duty is then the customs value multiplied by the rate for the product's HS code, which classifies every good into a tariff line. You are still not finished, because VAT and any excise load on top of the duty-inclusive base. The sequence, followed exactly and used in the worked example below, is:
- Customs value (CIF) = item price + shipping + insurance.
- Import duty = CIF × import-duty rate.
- Excise (if any) = (CIF + duty) × excise rate.
- VAT base = CIF + duty + excise. VAT is charged on the duty-inclusive value.
- Total landed cost = CIF + duty + excise + VAT (+ any levies and fees).
Rates are the hard part. They change, they vary by country, and they depend on the HS code, so an accurate figure is possible only with calculation per country and per order, not with a default. Tax on imports is the umbrella term for all of these charges combined, and the only reliable way to get your number is to run your own order. Use the DutyPricing import duty calculator to get your exact figure.
A Worked Example with Hypothetical Rates
This is an illustration only. Suppose you buy items totalling $80 with $12 shipping and no insurance, in a destination that uses these clearly-hypothetical rates: 5% import duty, no excise, and 15% VAT. The customs value is $80 + $12 + $0 = $92 CIF. Import duty is $92 × 0.05 = $4.60. There is no excise, so the VAT base is $92 + $4.60 = $96.60, and the VAT is $96.60 × 0.15 = $14.49. The total landed cost is $92 + $4.60 + $14.49 = $111.09. The real rates for this order depend on the destination country and the products, so treat the numbers above as an illustration only, not as any country's real rates.
The worked example makes a point worth stating plainly: cheapest freight is rarely the cheapest landed cost. A carriage quote that excludes duty, VAT, and clearance is not a price; it is half a price. Compare the all-in landed cost or you are comparing nothing. When one courier quote saves $15 on shipping but the tax on imports and duties on the full value push the total above the cheaper option, the saving evaporates once border charges apply. Always compare total landed cost, not quoted freight.
De Minimis Thresholds and Exemptions Explained
Most national customs systems let low-value parcels through without duty. The value below which a shipment clears without import taxes is the de minimis threshold. Orders under the threshold are exempt from import duties and frequently from VAT; an order above it is charged in full. Each country in the list sets its own threshold, and thresholds change, so no single number holds across Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda. When you want the figure for your own market, run your order through the DutyPricing import duty calculator.
When AliExpress Orders Trigger Customs
An order triggers customs when its customs value exceeds the destination's exemption, or when the product is one the country restricts or charges excise on. Products below the threshold typically pass without a bill. Goods near the border line get scrutiny, because a single shipment can decide the tax. For a clear reading of when your order may trigger an entry, the import duty guides on de minimis and clearance are useful starting points.
Who Collects the Tax: AliExpress Checkout vs. Carrier at Delivery
There are two timings for paying import taxes on an AliExpress order. In some cases the tax is collected at checkout: AliExpress charges you a prepaid amount that covers the duty and taxes, often via a carrier's DDP arrangement, and the parcel is released without a later bill. In the other case your carrier delivers the package and presents the national customs bill at the door. The checkout screen for your order shows which model applies; the difference matters because a checkout prepayment gives certainty, while collection at delivery surprises you afterward. For an explanation of how the marketplace estimates that prepayment, read How Does AliExpress Estimate Duties?.
The Customs Duty Links (Prepaid Duty) Option vs. Paying Later
Prepaid duty, also called duty delivery paid, moves the tax settlement to the moment of purchase. Paying later leaves it to the foreign delivery. The choice is more about certainty than about avoiding the charge; the duty is due either way. Prepaid duty means you know the landed cost before the parcel arrives and avoid a surprise at the door. Paying later may skip an upfront tax if the order slips under threshold, but it leaves you exposed to a bill you did not plan for. For a breakdown of what customs will actually tax, see How Much Will Customs Charge Me? A Simple Guide.
Common Pitfalls: Under-Declared Values, Delays, and Fines
The commonest mistake is under-declaring the invoice. A buyer marks a $400 phone as a $40 "gift" to dodge import duty. Customs values it at the real market price anyway, the parcel sits in a bonded warehouse, and the buyer later pays the duty plus storage and a penalty. That is more than an honest duty would have cost. Under-declaring is a false economy: the customs value is what the goods are worth, not what the invoice claims. Compute the landed cost honestly before ordering.
Delays come from incomplete paperwork, incorrect HS codes, or confusion over who settles the charge. Avoid them by classifying the shipment truthfully and estimating the true amount before ordering. The rules sit on common standards: the World Customs Organization standardizes classification across countries, the World Trade Organization tariffs track applied tariff lines, and UNCTAD publishes trade analysis that helps put a rate into context.
Duty-free thresholds change, and rates are set per product and per country. Treat any figure you read elsewhere as something to verify against the DutyPricing import duty calculator for your own destination, because your total landed cost, the price plus every import tax and charge on arrival, is the real price of the parcel.