LouiseyPeasey said:No, it's $200 for merchandise, $100 for gifts. Above that, it's at the discretion of the customs agent.
(The $2K limit is different - at $2K additional paperwork requirements kick in and you may need a broker to help clear the item through customs.)
It's not a fixed percent - it totally depends on the details of the item. Quite often they will just let items through with no duty even if they are over the limit. Use the mail service, not a courier - UPS or FedEx will charge an additional brokerage fee that can be quite steep.
Where are you shipping from? if you use your countries mail service there should be no duties to pay at all, when it comes in to the U.S. it is transferred to the USPS which does not enforce duties. For example if you live in England and use Royal Mail once it gets to the U.S. it is delivered by the USPS.I want to ship a bag to my friend in USA.I want to know what's the duty free limit for USA parcel?I don't want my friend to pay duty for the parcel.thanks!
The USPS doesn't enforce duties, Customs and Border Patrol does. When an item comes in by whatever means, it goes through customs inspection, and CBP decides what to charge, if anything. The thing about USPS is that they do not act as a broker, so they have no vested interest in your item being taxed, because they don't get fees. So quite often, packages that come via USPS do not get charged duty (by the decision of CBP), but sometimes they do.Where are you shipping from? if you use your countries mail service there should be no duties to pay at all, when it comes in to the U.S. it is transferred to the USPS which does not enforce duties. For example if you live in England and use Royal Mail once it gets to the U.S. it is delivered by the USPS.
The USPS doesn't enforce duties, Customs and Border Patrol does. When an item comes in by whatever means, it goes through customs inspection, and CBP decides what to charge, if anything. The thing about USPS is that they do not act as a broker, so they have no vested interest in your item being taxed, because they don't get fees. So quite often, packages that come via USPS do not get charged duty (by the decision of CBP), but sometimes they do.
Ummm ok your right so USPS does not act as a broker and does not enforce the fees bc they have no vested interest in the fees. I think she can still get the idea of the point I'm trying to make. I was just trying to make it short and to the point.:okay:
No worries.Oops, sorry, didn't mean to jump on you, honest! I thought you were saying that items sent via USPS won't ever have duty. Sorry if I misread you.