Import Duty Calculator
Import duty = customs value × duty rate, plus entry fees or import tax. A $12,000.00 US ocean entry at an example 6.5% + 10% owes $1,980.00 duty and $2,036.57 in total.
Rates here are examples. Take yours from the tariff schedule for your HS code and origin, and confirm with your broker.
US entry fees
Fee defaults are the FY2027 limits from CBP Dec. 26-14, required from 1 October 2026. CBP resets them every 1 October.
Import VAT or GST
Tax base: the customs value is always inside. Switch on what the destination adds.
Excise and de minimis thresholds
A value at or below a threshold is relieved. Enter thresholds in the currency above.
Breakdown of the entry
| Line | How it was built | Amount |
|---|
The same shipment on FOB, CFR and CIF
| Basis | Customs value | Duty | Fees or tax | Due at entry | Share of goods |
|---|
Estimates for planning only, not a customs ruling. The calculation runs in your browser.
How to Calculate Import Duty in 5 Steps
Duty is a chain, not one multiplication. Each link has a rule set by the destination.
- Classify the goods. Find the 10-digit HTS code for the product as imported. The rate hangs off it.
- Fix the country of origin. Origin is where the goods were made or substantially transformed, not where they shipped from.
- Build the customs value. For a US entry this is the transaction value: the price paid, without international freight and insurance.
- Apply every duty line. Base duty rate × customs value, plus any additional duty lines that apply to that code and origin.
- Add the entry fees. MPF on formal entries, within its minimum and maximum, plus HMF if the cargo arrived by sea.
| Line | Formula | For a US entry |
|---|---|---|
| Customs value | Goods value, plus freight and insurance only where the destination includes them | Transaction value. International freight and insurance are excluded. |
| Duty | Customs value × duty rate | Rate from the HTS for your code and origin. |
| Additional duties | Customs value × each additional rate | Trade-remedy or trade-action lines that apply to some codes and origins. |
| MPF | Customs value × 0.3464%, held between the minimum and maximum | Formal entries. $34.58 minimum and $670.86 maximum from 1 October 2026. |
| HMF | Customs value × 0.125% | Commercial cargo through a US seaport. Not charged on air. |
| Import VAT or GST | Tax base × tax rate | No federal import VAT in the US. Used in VAT and GST countries. |
| Total due at entry | Duty + additional duties + levy + fees or tax | What the entry summary asks you to pay. |
A Los Angeles Brand Importing 2,000 Mugs by Sea
A homeware brand in Los Angeles, California buys 2,000 stoneware mugs from a supplier in Ningbo, shipped by ocean to the Port of Long Beach. Both duty rates are examples chosen to show the arithmetic, not rates for this product.
Filled fields
Goods $12,000.00 FOB, 2,000 units, freight $1,400.00, insurance $60.00, broker fee $150.00.
Example rates
Duty 6.5% and additional duty 10%. Formal entry, ocean, FY2027 MPF limits.
Result
$2,036.57 due to CBP, 17.0% of goods value, or $1.02 a mug before the broker fee.
| Line | How it was built | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Customs value (FOB) | Transaction value. Freight and insurance excluded | $12,000.00 |
| Duty | $12,000.00 × 6.5% (example) | $780.00 |
| Additional duty | $12,000.00 × 10% (example) | $1,200.00 |
| MPF | $12,000.00 × 0.3464%, inside the $34.58 to $670.86 limits | $41.57 |
| HMF | $12,000.00 × 0.125%, ocean cargo | $15.00 |
| Due to CBP at entry | Duty + additional duty + MPF + HMF | $2,036.57 |
| Broker fee | Example, billed by the broker | $150.00 |
| Total import charges | Per mug: $1.09 | $2,186.57 |
MPF and HMF: The Fees on Every US Entry
Duty is not the only line CBP collects. Formal entries pay the Merchandise Processing Fee, and sea freight pays the Harbor Maintenance Fee.
The minimum binds below a value of about $9,983. The maximum binds above about $193,666. Both are computed from the limits above.
| Entered value | 0.3464% of value | MPF charged | Why | HMF (ocean) | Fees as share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,500 | $8.66 | $34.58 | Minimum applies | $3.13 | 1.5% |
| $5,000 | $17.32 | $34.58 | Minimum applies | $6.25 | 0.8% |
| $10,000 | $34.64 | $34.64 | Ad valorem | $12.50 | 0.5% |
| $25,000 | $86.60 | $86.60 | Ad valorem | $31.25 | 0.5% |
| $50,000 | $173.20 | $173.20 | Ad valorem | $62.50 | 0.5% |
| $100,000 | $346.40 | $346.40 | Ad valorem | $125.00 | 0.5% |
| $250,000 | $866.00 | $670.86 | Maximum applies | $312.50 | 0.4% |
Sources: CBP Dec. 26-14, 91 FR 48398 (FY2027 MPF limits, from 1 October 2026); 19 CFR 24.24 (HMF). Informal entries pay a flat MPF instead, $2.77 when filed electronically.
The Example Shipment at Different Duty Rates
The same $12,000.00 FOB ocean entry of 2,000 units, with no additional duty, at a range of example base rates. Each row comes from the calculator's own formula.
| Example duty rate | Duty | MPF + HMF | Due at entry | Per unit | Share of goods |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | $0.00 | $56.57 | $56.57 | $0.03 | 0.5% |
| 2.5% | $300.00 | $56.57 | $356.57 | $0.18 | 3.0% |
| 5% | $600.00 | $56.57 | $656.57 | $0.33 | 5.5% |
| 6.5% | $780.00 | $56.57 | $836.57 | $0.42 | 7.0% |
| 10% | $1,200.00 | $56.57 | $1,256.57 | $0.63 | 10.5% |
| 16.5% | $1,980.00 | $56.57 | $2,036.57 | $1.02 | 17.0% |
| 25% | $3,000.00 | $56.57 | $3,056.57 | $1.53 | 25.5% |
The rates are examples to show scale. They are not the rate for any product or origin.
FOB, CFR or CIF: What the Rate Is Applied To
The value a rate is applied to matters as much as the rate. US law values imports at the transaction value, which leaves out international freight and insurance.
Goods value only
Freight and insurance stay outside the duty base. Closest to the US transaction value.
Goods + freight
Every dollar of freight raises the duty base, so air freight compounds fastest.
Goods + freight + insurance
The widest of the three, and the basis many VAT and GST countries use.
Import VAT and GST Countries Tax the Duty Too
Outside the US, import tax is the bigger line. On the same goods with the example duty, a 10% example tax on a CIF base comes to $1,433.49, for $2,308.39 due at entry.
| Component | Typical treatment | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Customs value | Always inside the base | It is the assessed value of the goods themselves. |
| Duty | Inside the base in most VAT and GST countries | Tax is charged on the duty, so the two lines compound. |
| Freight and insurance | Inside where the customs value did not already include them | Several authorities tax a delivered value. |
| Excise and other levies | Inside the base where the levy applies | Excise is assessed first, then taxed alongside duty. |
| Broker and terminal fees | Outside the base | They are billed by service providers, not assessed by customs. |
Import Tax and De Minimis Positions in Six Markets
Published standard rates and low-value positions, each from the destination authority, with the date we last checked. Duty rates are product-specific and are not listed.
| Market | Import tax | Standard rate | Tax or duty base | Low-value position | As at |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | No federal import VAT | Not applicable | Duty on transaction value, plus MPF and HMF | The $800 duty-free de minimis is suspended for all countries (EO 14324, from 29 Aug 2025). A CBP rule made it indefinite for non-postal shipments from 24 Jun 2026. | 2 October 2026 |
| Singapore | GST | 9% | CIF value, plus duties where dutiable | Low-value goods of S$400 or below by air or post carry GST at the point of sale from registered overseas suppliers. | 14 August 2026 |
| Australia | GST | 10% | Customs value + duty + transport and insurance | Consignments of A$1,000 customs value or less: no duty or GST at the border, excluding alcohol and tobacco. | 14 August 2026 |
| Philippines | VAT | 12% | Dutiable value plus duties, excise and other charges | De minimis of PHP 10,000. | 14 August 2026 |
| Malaysia | Sales tax | 5% or 10%, by HS code | Customs value + duty + excise | Air courier and postal goods to MYR 500 CIF exempt at the border. Low-value goods sold online carry 10% sales tax from 1 Jan 2024. | 14 August 2026 |
| Japan | Consumption tax | 10% standard, 8% reduced | Customs value + duty + other excise | Total customs value of 10,000 yen or less exempt from duty and consumption tax, with carve-outs. | 14 August 2026 |
Singapore
Philippines
The Incoterm Decides Who Gets the Duty Bill
The calculator gives the amount. The trade term decides who pays it.
Seller pays
The seller must be able to act as importer of record there, which is not always possible.
Buyer pays
The classic refused delivery: the buyer was never told a duty bill was coming.
Buyer pays
The seller pays main-leg freight only. Import charges land on the buyer.
Buyer pays
The buyer controls freight, so owns what freight does to the duty base.
Six Import Duty Mistakes That Change the Bill
Using CIF for a US entry
US duty is on transaction value. On the example below, a CIF assumption overstates the bill by $247.78.
Forgetting additional duty lines
Some codes and origins carry extra duty on top of the base HTS rate. Check every line for your code.
Leaving out MPF and HMF
On a formal ocean entry both are charged. MPF alone is at least $34.58 per entry from 1 October 2026.
Assuming the $800 de minimis
Duty-free de minimis is suspended for all countries. Low-value shipments generally need an entry and pay duty.
Declaring a lower value
A value below the price paid is a false declaration. Reassessment, penalties and seizure follow.
Using a similar product's rate
Take the rate for your exact code and origin, and record the source and the date you checked it.
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