Exporting / the United States
Exporting to United States: what your buyer pays on arrival
The duty free allowance a small consignment used to travel under is gone, so the question a seller has to answer is no longer whether the shipment is small enough.
Every other page on this site answers the importer. This one answers the seller, from the same rows. The figures below are the ones a buyer in United States meets on arrival, read from the tariff schedules this site holds, and a shipment priced here prices the same in the duty calculator because both go through one function.
What your buyer pays when it lands
Duty first, on the FOB value, then the consumption tax on the value plus the duty. Estimate uses the US customs valuation method, which excludes international freight and insurance from the dutiable value.
The dearest thing a seller can put in front of United States out of what this site prices is 610990, t-shirts, man-made fibres, knitted, at 32%. On the duty free ones a seller quoting a landed price is quoting tax and carriage rather than tariff, which is a different conversation to have with a buyer. Between 851650 at 2% and 610990 at 32% there is enough difference to decide whether a DDP price is worth quoting at all. Averaged across the 8 codes this site prices in it, chapter 61 is the dearest chapter into United States, at 18.6%. 20 codes here are charged per unit rather than on value, so a percentage will not price them and this guide does not try.
The valuation rule is 19 U.S.C. 1401a(b)(4)(A) and 19 CFR 152.103: transaction value is exclusive of costs incident to the international shipment, where those charges are separately identified. This site reads the third country rate, which is what applies when no trade agreement is claimed, so a buyer who can claim one may pay less and never more.
Who collects it
U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The charge falls on the importer of record, which is whoever is named on the customs entry, and that is decided by the delivery term the two of you agreed rather than by the tariff. Which is why the section below matters more to a seller than the percentages above do.
Named here on the evidence of the low value source cited below, which is a source this site already holds rather than a recollection. This site does not hold a primary source for the collection procedure itself and does not describe one.
The low value regime, and what it does to the rates above
United States relieves nothing: the duty free allowance was suspended, so the duty above is charged whatever the consignment is worth. A smaller shipment pays less because the value is lower, not because a threshold spared it.
CBP's own internet purchases page still describes the former 800 dollar clearance in the present tense. It is out of date rather than wrong about what used to apply, and it is not the source for this record.
The source, in its own words
Today, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) began enforcing President Donald J. Trump's Executive Order ending the de minimis loophole. In July, after being informed that adequate systems were in place, the president ordered the suspension of de minimis globally, effective August 29.
US Customs and Border Protection, "CBP ready to enforce end of de minimis loophole", national media release of 29 August 2025. https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/national-media-release/cbp-ready-enforce-end-de-minimis-loophole-securing-borders-and
One shipment, priced the way your buyer will see it
330741, incense and other odoriferous preparations, invoiced at USD 2,000.00, priced in USD because a threshold is set in the destination's currency and nothing here is converted.
| Goods value on your invoice | USD 2,000.00 |
| International freight | USD 120.00 |
| Cargo insurance | USD 30.00 |
| Value the duty is charged on, FOB basis | USD 2,000.00 |
| Duty at 2.4% | USD 48.00 |
| United States charges no consumption tax at the border | USD 0.00 |
| What your buyer pays to take delivery, before commercial charges | USD 2,198.00 |
The same shipment appears from the buyer's side on the 330741 page and in the duty calculator, priced by the same function. An illustration, not a quotation: broker fees, handling and any trade remedy on the origin sit outside it.
DDP or DAP, and why it decides who pays the figures above
Under DAP, delivered at place, you get the goods to the agreed place and your buyer is the importer of record. They clear the goods, they are named on the entry, and the duty and the tax in the table above are theirs to pay. The price you quoted is the price they pay you, and the border charge arrives afterwards as a separate bill, which is where a buyer who was not expecting it refuses the parcel.
Under DDP, delivered duty paid, you are the importer of record. You clear the goods into United States, you pay CBP what the table above says, and your buyer pays only the price on your invoice. It is the better experience to buy from and it puts the whole of the landed figure on your side of the deal, so the number to quote from is the total in the table rather than the goods value.
The choice is not a customs decision and nobody at the border makes it for you. It is a term of your contract of sale, and the only thing customs takes from it is who is named on the entry.
DDP and DAP are Incoterms, which are rules published by the International Chamber of Commerce and incorporated into a contract by the parties. They are not customs law and this site does not quote the ICC text, which is not published free of charge. What is written above is the consequence for the charges this site does price, and nothing here should be read as the definition of either term.
What has to be on the invoice, and on the goods
A paragraph carrying a worked figure is dropped everywhere on this site, because a percentage beside the word duty is a rate, and a rate has exactly one home here. What was quoted, and what was left, is recorded under each passage below.
The commercial invoice. 19 CFR 141.86, Contents of invoices and general requirements, published by the Code of Federal Regulations, as served by the eCFR of the National Archives. Quoted below as published.
(a) General information required on the invoice. Each invoice of imported merchandise, must set forth the following information:
(1) The port of entry to which the merchandise is destined;
(2) The time when, the place where, and the person by whom and the person to whom the merchandise is sold or agreed to be sold, or if to be imported otherwise than in pursuance of a purchase, the place from which shipped, the time when and the person to whom and the person by whom it is shipped;
(3) A detailed description of the merchandise, including the name by which each item is known, the grade or quality, and the marks, numbers, and symbols under which sold by the seller or manufacturer to the trade in the country of exportation, together with the marks and numbers of the packages in which the merchandise is packed;
(4) The quantities in the weights and measures of the country or place from which the merchandise is shipped, or in the weights and measures of the United States;
(5) The purchase price of each item in the currency of the purchase, if the merchandise is shipped in pursuance of a purchase or an agreement to purchase;
(6) If the merchandise is shipped otherwise than in pursuance of a purchase or an agreement to purchase, the value for each item, in the currency in which the transactions are usually made, or, in the absence of such value, the price in such currency that the manufacturer, seller, shipper, or owner would have received, or was willing to receive, for such merchandise if sold in the ordinary course of trade and in the usual wholesale quantities in the country of exportation;
(7) The kind of currency, whether gold, silver, or paper;
(8) All charges upon the merchandise itemized by name and amount, including freight, insurance, commission, cases, containers, coverings, and cost of packing; and if not included above, all charges, costs, and expenses incurred in bringing the merchandise from alongside the carrier at the port of exportation in the country of exportation and placing it alongside the carrier at the first United States port of entry. The cost of packing, cases, containers, and inland freight to the port of exportation need not be itemized by amount if included in the invoice price, and so identified. Where the required information does not appear on the invoice as originally prepared, it must be shown on an attachment to the invoice;
(9) All rebates, drawbacks, and bounties, separately itemized, allowed upon the exportation of the merchandise;
(10) The country of origin of the merchandise; and,
(11) All goods or services furnished for the production of the merchandise (e.g., assists such as dies, molds, tools, engineering work) not included in the invoice price. However, goods or services furnished in the United States are excluded. Annual reports for goods and services, when approved by the Center director, will be accepted as proof that the goods or services were provided.
(b) Nonpurchased merchandise shipped by other than manufacturer. Each invoice of imported merchandise shipped to a person in the United States by a person other than the manufacturer and otherwise than pursuant to a purchase or agreement to purchase must set forth the time when, the place where, the person from whom such merchandise was purchased, and the price paid therefor in the currency of the purchase, stating whether gold, silver, or paper.
(c) Merchandise sold in transit. If the merchandise is sold on the documents while in transit from the port of exportation to the port of entry, the original invoice reflecting the transaction under which the merchandise actually began its journey to the United States, and the resale invoice or a statement of sale showing the price paid for each item by the purchaser, must be filed as part of the entry, entry summary, or withdrawal documentation. If the original invoice cannot be obtained, a pro forma invoice showing the values and transaction reflected by the original invoice must be filed together with the resale invoice or statement.
14 of the 23 paragraphs the selector matched are above. The selector was the whole section, every numbered paragraph of it that carries no worked figure. Read from https://www.ecfr.gov/api/versioner/v1/full/2026-08-26/title-19.xml?part=141§ion=141.86 on 2026-09-07. The whole document is at https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-19/section-141.86.
Marking the goods. 19 CFR 134.11, Country of origin marking required, published by the Code of Federal Regulations, as served by the eCFR of the National Archives. Quoted below as published.
Unless excepted by law, section 304, Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), requires that every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the United States shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly, and permanently as the nature of the article (or container) will permit, in such manner as to indicate to an ultimate purchaser in the United States the English name of the country of origin of the article, at the time of importation into the Customs territory of the United States. Containers of articles excepted from marking shall be marked with the name of the country of origin of the article unless the container is also excepted from marking.
All 1 paragraph(s) the selector matched are above. The selector was the whole section, if it carries no worked figure. Read from https://www.ecfr.gov/api/versioner/v1/full/2026-08-26/title-19.xml?part=134§ion=134.11 on 2026-09-07. The whole document is at https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-19/section-134.11.
Proving origin, from the seller's side
A preferential rate into the United States is an entitlement rather than a discount, and it has to be proved: CBP accepts a document you or your buyer make out, and what that document has to contain is set by the agreement rather than by either of you.
- What counts as proof. A claim under the agreement rests on a certification of origin, which needs no prescribed format and may travel on an invoice or another document, though not one issued outside the agreement.
- Who may make it out. The importer, the exporter or the producer may complete it, and whichever of them does has to sign and date it through a responsible official who knows the facts.
- When it has to exist. The importer has to be holding that certification at the moment the claim is made rather than finding it afterwards.
19 CFR 182.12, Certification of origin, and the importer obligations under it, published by the Code of Federal Regulations, as served by the eCFR of the National Archives. Quoted below as published.
(1) Need not be in a prescribed format but must be in writing or must be transmitted electronically pursuant to any electronic means authorized by CBP for that purpose;
(2) May be provided on an invoice or any other document, except an invoice or commercial document issued in the territory of a non-USMCA country;
(3) Must be in the possession of the importer at the time the claim for preferential tariff treatment is made;
(4) Must include the following information to be valid:
(5) Must include the following statement: "I certify that the goods described in this document qualify as originating and the information contained in this document is true and accurate. I assume responsibility for proving such representations and agree to maintain and present upon request or to make available during a verification visit, documentation necessary to support this certification."
(3) The address of the importer provided under paragraph (a)(4)(v) must be in a USMCA country's territory.
(c) Confidentiality of producer information. For the purposes of the information provided under paragraph (a)(4)(iv) of this section, a person that wishes for this information to remain confidential may state "Available upon request by the importing authorities."
(d) Responsible official or agent. The certification of origin provided for in paragraph (a) of this section must be signed and dated by a responsible official of the importer, exporter, or producer, or by the importer's, exporter's, or producer's authorized agent having knowledge of the relevant facts.
8 of the 14 paragraphs the selector matched are above. The selector was every provision of the section that states what the certification must or may do, leaving out the enumerated list of data elements, and carrying no figure of money and no dash. Read from https://www.ecfr.gov/api/versioner/v1/full/2026-08-26/title-19.xml?part=182§ion=182.12 on 2026-09-08. The whole document is at https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-19/section-182.12.
Whether a product originates under the agreement is decided by that agreement's own product rules, and this site holds none of them. What the rate is worth once you have proved it, and the tax and any low value relief sitting on top of it, are on the United States guide; the terms are in the glossary and the wider question in the agreements FAQ.
One thing is true of every destination on this site and does not need a national source: the classification is yours to get right. The code you put on the invoice is what the duty above is charged under, and a code that is wrong is wrong in both directions, so a reader deciding one should be on the code page and the chapter note rather than on this page. Start at 330741 or in the full directory.