Import Tax Calculator UK: The Short Answer
A brand owner has paid £10,000 for 1,000 garments, plus £800 freight and £50 insurance, and wants to know the bill at the border. This import tax calculator UK buyers can run before the goods land works it out in three steps: customs value, duty on that value, then import VAT on a larger value that includes the duty. With a placeholder duty rate of 10% and £300 of costs after the border, the estimate is £1,085 of duty and £2,447 of import VAT, a total of £3,532, or £3.53 a piece.
The duty rate is a placeholder, so please do not copy it. Real rates depend on what the garment is, where it was made and whether a trade preference applies, and the section below explains where to look them up. The method is the part this page can teach, and it is the same for every shipment.
Use the Import Tax Calculator UK
Enter the value of the goods on the supplier invoice, then the freight and insurance you pay to bring them to the UK border. Add the duty rate you have found in the Trade Tariff and any costs you incur after the border to reach your first UK destination, such as haulage and clearance fees. The import tax calculator UK shows the customs value, the duty, the VAT value and the import VAT, in a table that follows the order a customs declaration uses.
Import tax calculator UK
Customs value, duty and import VAT
An estimate only. The duty rate is a placeholder: the real rate depends on the commodity code, the origin and any preference. Your customs agent or HMRC declaration is the authority.
Use the pieces box to convert the totals into taxes per piece, which is the number you carry into your landed cost. Try changing the duty rate to see how sensitive the total is to it, and set the VAT rate to zero if you import qualifying young children's clothing and have confirmed that it meets HMRC's conditions.
Step 1: Work Out the Customs Value
Customs value is the base for duty, and it is usually bigger than the invoice. For most commercial imports it starts from the price paid for the goods and adds the delivery costs up to the place where the goods enter the UK. GOV.UK states that you only need to include costs up to the place of introduction: for sea freight that is the UK port, and for air freight it is where the aircraft first crosses the UK border. Costs after the border can be left out if they are shown separately.
What goes into the customs value
| Item | Included in customs value? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Price paid for the garments | Yes | The starting point, the transaction value |
| Transport and insurance to the UK border | Yes | Delivery costs up to the place of introduction |
| Loading and handling linked to that transport | Yes | Treated as delivery costs |
| UK transport after the border | No, if shown separately | Beyond the place of introduction |
| Import duty and import VAT | No | These are charged on the value, not part of it |
A summary of the principles in GOV.UK guidance on delivery costs. Your own consignment may include other items, so check the official guidance.
Our customs value calculator for clothing imports adjusts the freight and handling you add for different Incoterms, and the official rules are in the GOV.UK guidance on delivery costs to include in the customs value.
Step 2: Calculate Import Duty
Duty is the customs value multiplied by the duty rate. The rate belongs to the commodity code, which is why the same T-shirt can carry a different rate depending on how it is classified and made. Look up the code and the rate in the UK Trade Tariff, and check whether a preferential rate applies to goods from your supplier's country, which depends on the origin rules and the correct paperwork.
Many garment buyers importing from Bangladesh look at the Developing Countries Trading Scheme. Its rules on origin are specific, and the status of Bangladesh under the scheme has been changing, so read the current GOV.UK guidance on the GOV.UK guidance on using the Developing Countries Trading Scheme rather than relying on a summary, and see our guide to DCTS rules of origin for Bangladesh garments for the practical side. If a preference does apply, the duty rate you enter in the calculator may be lower or zero, but only if you can prove the origin.
How the duty rate moves the total on the example shipment
| Duty rate | Import duty | Import VAT | Total import taxes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | £0 | £2,230 | £2,230 |
| 5% | £542 | £2,338 | £2,881 |
| 8% | £868 | £2,404 | £3,272 |
| 10% | £1,085 | £2,447 | £3,532 |
| 12% | £1,302 | £2,490 | £3,792 |
Calculated on a £10,850 customs value, £300 of costs after the border and 20% VAT. Placeholder rates for illustration; they are not tariff rates.
The table shows a point many buyers miss: higher duty raises the VAT too, because the VAT value includes the duty. A 12% rate costs more than 12% of the goods once the VAT knock-on is counted.
Step 3: Work Out the Import VAT
Import VAT is charged on the VAT value, which GOV.UK describes as the customs value plus duty and other charges, with costs of getting the goods to their first destination in the UK added if they are not already included. The VAT itself is not part of that value. At the standard rate of 20% on a VAT value of £12,235, the import VAT is £2,447.
From invoice to import taxes
- 1Customs valueGoods + freight + insurance up to the UK border.
- 2Import dutyCustoms value × the duty rate for the commodity code.
- 3VAT valueCustoms value + duty + costs to the first UK destination.
- 4Import VATVAT value × the VAT rate, normally 20% for clothing.
- 5Taxes per pieceDuty + import VAT, divided by the pieces.
GOV.UK sets out the method in its guidance on GOV.UK guidance on working out the VAT value of imported goods. Whether you can reclaim the import VAT depends on your VAT registration and how you account for it, so ask your adviser. Our UK VAT calculator for clothing covers the VAT you charge your own customers.
Where the Tax Goes in the Example
The example consignment produces £3,532 of import taxes on goods that cost £10,000 at the invoice. The pie divides the total cost of getting the goods into your warehouse, so you can see how much of it is the garment and how much is freight, duty and VAT.
Illustrative split of the cost of the example consignment
- Goods and insurance68.5%
- Freight and UK-side costs7.5%
- Import duty7.4%
- Import VAT16.7%
Illustrative. £10,000 goods plus £50 insurance, £800 freight plus £300 UK costs, £1,085 duty and £2,447 import VAT, totalling £14,682. Shares rounded to one decimal place.
If your business can reclaim the import VAT, the last slice leaves your cost base and the landed cost is smaller than the total shown. Our landed cost calculator for clothing lets you choose either treatment and returns a cost per piece.
How Freight Changes the Import Tax Estimate
Because freight and insurance sit inside the customs value, they raise the duty and the VAT as well as the shipping bill. An import tax calculator UK buyers can trust shows this knock-on effect, and it is easy to see with the example consignment. Holding the goods at £10,000, the chart below shows how total import taxes move as freight rises from £0 to £2,000, at a 10% duty rate and 20% VAT.
Total import taxes on the example consignment as freight rises
Duty plus import VAT
Illustrative arithmetic on £10,000 goods, £50 insurance, £300 UK-side costs, 10% duty and 20% VAT. Taxes = duty + 20% of (customs value + duty + UK-side costs).
Every extra £500 of freight adds £160 of tax in this example, on top of the freight itself. When you compare a cheaper but slower freight option with a faster one, include the tax effect, and use the import tax calculator UK page to run both cases side by side. Quote comparisons that ignore it understate the real difference.
What Changes the Bill
Four things move an import tax estimate the most, and each is worth checking before you place an order, not after the goods are on the water. The invoice value is the foundation, so a change in price flows straight through. Freight and insurance are part of the customs value, so a rise in shipping costs raises duty and VAT as well. The commodity code and origin set the duty rate. And whether you hold the right proof of origin decides whether a preference is available.
Checks before you rely on an import tax estimate
- Confirm the commodity code for each style with your supplier or agent
- Look up the current duty rate in the Trade Tariff
- Check whether a preference applies and that you can prove origin
- Use the freight and insurance quotes up to the UK border
- Add costs after the border separately for the VAT value
- Ask your customs agent to confirm the figures before shipping
A practical checklist, not customs advice. Rates and rules change, so use the official sources.
Many first-time importers ask a customs agent or freight forwarder to review the figures before the goods ship. It costs little compared with a surprise at the border, and it often catches a wrong code or a missing document.
How Ruhrose Helps You Plan Import Costs
Ruhrose develops hoodies, fleece, jersey, denim and woven casualwear for UK buyers, with production in Bangladesh. We tell you what the price we quote covers and what you still need to add, and we support you with the product information your agent needs. For a wider walkthrough, see our guide to importing clothing from Bangladesh to the UK, and visit Ruhrose's clothing manufacturing pages to see what we make.
Before you place an order, ask yourself one question: have you added the duty and import VAT to your costing, or only the factory price?