What does PostNL do?
PostNL now handles customs declarations for shipments to the United States.
We submit the declaration and prepay the import duties. These costs, including an administration fee, will be added to your PostNL invoice afterwards.
Important:
Make sure to calculate the import duties in advance and include them in the checkout process of your webshop - just like you would with shipping costs.
Want to use this service?
Then you’ll need to sign a contract addendum. You’ll find the documents in the business environment of PostNL under News: Bereid je nu voor: weer versturen naar de Verenigde Staten.
Frequently Asked Questions
Due to new import regulations in the United States, several things have changed.
Customers in your webshop who live in the US now have to pay more when ordering products that are manufactured outside the US. Import duties must now be paid on these items.
Make sure you know how much import duty applies to your products. That way, you can pass these costs directly on to your customers — and avoid paying them yourself.
You can easily calculate the additional costs using this online tool.
New import regulations
Since 29 August 2025, the exemption from import duties for shipments under $800 has been removed.
This means that all shipments to the US are now subject to import duties, regardless of their value.
- Stamped letters
- Bulk mail
- Consumer-to-consumer gifts under $100, without commercial intent
Business gifts are no longer allowed without paying import duties.
Yes, consumers can still send gifts. A gift is something you give without expecting anything in return.
Business gifts are no longer permitted.
Consumers can send gifts under $100 to recipients in the US. You must still provide the correct customs information when creating the shipment.
Note:
Ordering something from a webshop and having it shipped directly to the recipient counts as a business transaction. That can no longer be sent as a gift.
What are my options?
We offer a Postal Delivery Duties Paid (PDDP) solution. This means PostNL handles the customs declaration for all business shipments to the US.
Here’s what we do:
- We submit the customs declaration
- We prepay the import duties
- You receive the costs afterwards on your PostNL invoice
To use this service, you must sign a contract addendum. Once we’ve received and processed the signed document, you can resume shipping to the US.
Processing takes 1 to 2 working days.
You’ll find the contract addendum in the business portal.
If you ship via PostNL on account but don’t have a fixed contract, please sign and return the document according to the instructions. After that, you can resume shipping to the US.
You give permission for PostNL to prepay the import duties and invoice you afterwards.
Calculate the import duties in advance and include them in your webshop’s checkout process.
This keeps the total cost clear for your customers and helps you avoid unexpected charges.
You can easily calculate the costs using an online tool.
- Calculate what US customers will pay in import duties
- Create an overview of all products you ship to the US
- Determine the correct country of origin for each product
- Find the correct 10-digit HS code
- Update your customs forms and product labels
Sender:
- Company name
- Street name and number
- City
Recipient:
- Full name
- Street name and number
- City
- State/province
Customs information:
- Country of origin (determines import duty)
- ShipmentType: always ‘commercial’
Customs details (in English):
- HS code (10 digits, describes the product type)
- Value per item (in euros or US dollars)
- Clear description of the goods (e.g. “Cotton T-shirt” instead of “clothing”)
- Country of origin (where the product was made or substantially processed)
Costs
- Shipping costs: unchanged
- Import duties: vary by country of origin (e.g. 15% for Europe, 35% for China)
- PostNL fee: for submitting the customs declaration and prepaying the duties
These costs will appear on your invoice.
Make sure to calculate and pass them on to your customers in advance.
There is no official list available. Use this online tool to calculate the costs the US customs will charge. The tool takes trade tariffs per country into account.
Other questions
In many cases, both:
- On the customs form/commercial invoice
- Physically on the product or packaging, in English (e.g. Made in Netherlands)
For some product categories (textiles, electronics, toys), physical marking is legally required.
- Delays at customs
- Possible return of the shipment
- Fines or additional charges for the recipient
- Seizure in case of serious errors
Yes. For each product type, list (in English):
- Description
- Quantity
- Value
- HS code
- Country of origin
Yes, you can now send items to the U.S. overseas territories again. These are regions that belong to the United States but are not part of the 50 states. Examples include islands such as Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Please note that shipping rules differ per destination.
You can now send items to:
- Puerto Rico (PR)
- American Samoa (AS)
- Guam (GU)
- Marshall Islands (MH)
- Micronesia, Federated States of (FM)
- Northern Mariana Islands (MP)
- Palau (PW)
- United States Minor Outlying Islands (UM)
- Virgin Islands (VI)
Important: The rules differ per destination.
For shipments to Puerto Rico, the same import rules apply as for the U.S. mainland. You must always provide customs information and pay import duties, regardless of the value of the shipment.
To send items there, you also need a contract addendum. This authorizes us to advance the import duties on your behalf and charge them to you afterwards.
For the other destinations, these rules do not apply. You can send items there as usual. Just make sure to use the correct country code when creating your shipment. These are shown in parentheses in the list above.
Yes, certain products you send to the United States are exempt from import duties. Below you’ll find the HS codes (Harmonized System codes) of the products that qualify for exemption.
Exempt products (HS codes starting with these numbers):
49 – Printed books, newspapers, pictures and other products of the printing industry; manuscripts, typescripts and plans
3704 – Photographic plates, film, paper, paperboard and textiles, exposed but not developed
3705 – Photographic plates and film, exposed and developed, other than cinematographic film
3706 – Cinematographic film, exposed and developed, whether or not incorporating soundtrack or consisting only of soundtrack
5807 – Labels, badges and similar articles of textile materials, in the piece, in strips or cut to shape or size, not embroidered
8310 – Sign plates, nameplates, address plates and similar plates, numbers, letters and other symbols of base metal
9701 – Paintings, drawings and pastels, executed entirely by hand
9702 – Original engravings, prints and lithographs
9703 – Original sculpture and statuary, in any material
9704 – Postage or revenue stamps
9705 – Collections and collectors' pieces of archaeological, ethnographic, historical, zoological, botanical, mineralogical, anatomical, paleontological or numismatic interest
6307.90.30 – Surgical towels
6307.90.85 – Other made-up textile articles, including dress patterns
8523.80.10 – News photographs, still or motion picture, microfilm, slides and sound recordings for exhibition purposes, developed and not exposed, or exposed and developed
8523.29 – Magnetic media (other than cards incorporating a magnetic stripe), other than unrecorded
8523.41 – Recorded software CD/DVD and recorded data discs
8523.49 – Other optical media
9405.61 – Illuminated signs, illuminated nameplates and the like designed for use solely with light-emitting diode (LED) light sources
9405.69 – Other illuminated signs and nameplates
Explanation:
The exemption applies to all products whose HS code begins with one of the numbers listed above.
For example:
All products whose HS code starts with 49 (such as books or newspapers) are exempt.
Products with codes beginning with 3704 or 5807 are also exempt.
And products whose code starts with 9405.61 are exempt as well.
The digits that follow after these numbers in the HS code do not matter; only the starting numbers determine whether the exemption applies.
Important:
As the sender, you are responsible for checking whether your products are still exempt from import duties. PostNL cannot be held liable for this.You can verify this through the official U.S. government website of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS). Please note: this is an external website. PostNL has no control over its content, accuracy or whether it is up to date.