EU Import Duty and VAT in 2026: How to Calculate Them

The three numbers you need

Every EU import calculation rests on three inputs: the TARIC code of the goods, the customs value, and the origin. The code gives the duty rate and measures, the value gives the base, and the origin decides whether a preferential rate or a trade remedy applies.

Customs duty is the same in every Member State because the EU is a customs union with one Common Customs Tariff. Import VAT is national: it is charged at the rate of the Member State where the goods are released for free circulation (or where they are dispatched to, in some cases).

Customs value

The primary method is the transaction value: the price actually paid or payable for the goods when sold for export to the EU (Articles 69 to 76 of the Union Customs Code).

The EU values goods on a CIF basis at the place where they enter the customs territory. Transport and insurance costs up to the EU border are added; costs after entry are not part of the customs value if shown separately.

Add if not already in the price: transport and insurance to the EU border, selling commissions, packing, buyer-supplied tools or moulds (assists), royalties and licence fees that are a condition of sale.
Deduct if shown separately: transport after arrival in the EU, buying commissions, EU duties and taxes, interest under a financing arrangement.
Currency conversion uses the rate published by the Member State for the relevant month.

How Incoterms change the calculation

Incoterms decide who pays which leg, not the customs value rule. Under EXW or FOB you must add freight and insurance to the EU border. Under CIF or CIP to an EU port the main leg is already included. Under DAP or DDP to an inland address, the price includes transport inside the EU, which you may deduct if it is shown separately on the invoice. DDP also means the seller pays the duties, but the declaration and the data must still be correct.

Types of customs duty

The TARIC shows the third-country (MFN) duty for each code. It can take three forms:

Ad valorem: a percentage of the customs value, for example 12% on cotton T-shirts of CN 6109 10 00.
Specific: an amount per unit, such as euros per 100 kg or per litre, common in agriculture.
Compound or mixed: an ad valorem rate plus a specific amount, sometimes with a minimum or maximum, and agricultural components for processed food (meursing table).

Measures on top of the duty

TARIC also shows anti-dumping, countervailing and safeguard duties, tariff quotas, suspensions, prohibitions and licensing. Since 1 July 2026 the steel safeguard has been replaced by Regulation (EU) 2026/1384, with tariff quotas and a 50% out-of-quota duty. Since 1 January 2026 the definitive CBAM regime applies to imports of cement, iron and steel, aluminium, fertilisers, hydrogen and electricity above an annual 50-tonne threshold per importer.

Preferential rates and proof of origin

The EU grants reduced or zero duty to goods originating in partner countries: free trade agreements (for example with the UK, Japan, Korea, Canada, Vietnam), the Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP, standard GSP, GSP+ and Everything But Arms), and the customs union with Türkiye, which works on free circulation rather than origin for industrial goods.

Preference is never automatic. You need the goods to meet the agreement's rules of origin and you must hold a valid proof: a statement on origin, an origin declaration on the invoice, a EUR.1 or EUR-MED certificate, or an A.TR for Türkiye. The current GSP Regulation (EU) No 978/2012 has been extended until 31 December 2027. See our proof of origin guide for detail.

Import VAT by Member State

Import VAT is calculated on the customs value plus customs duty and other charges (anti-dumping duty, excise) plus incidental costs such as transport to the first place of destination in the EU, if known at import (Article 86 of the VAT Directive 2006/112/EC).

Standard VAT rates in selected Member States on 22 October 2026 are below. Reduced rates apply to some goods; check the Commission's Taxes in Europe Database for your code.

Germany 19%, France 20%, Italy 22%, Spain 21%, Netherlands 21%, Belgium 21%.
Poland 23%, Ireland 23%, Portugal 23%, Slovakia 23%, Austria 20%, Czechia 21%.
Sweden 25%, Denmark 25%, Croatia 25%, Finland 25.5%, Hungary 27% (the highest).
Romania 21% (since 1 August 2025), Estonia 24%, Greece 24%, Luxembourg 17% (the lowest), Malta 18%, Cyprus 19%.

Deferment and reverse charge

Several Member States, including the Netherlands (Article 23 licence), Belgium, France and Spain, let registered businesses account for import VAT in the VAT return instead of paying it at the border. Rules differ by country, so check them before choosing the place of import.

Low-value consignments in 2026

This area changed significantly in 2026. Check the exact dates below before you price e-commerce shipments.

The end of the €150 duty relief (1 July 2026)

Until 30 June 2026, goods in consignments with an intrinsic value of up to €150 were exempt from customs duty. Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382 of 11 February 2026 removed that relief from 1 July 2026. VAT has been due on all imports since 1 July 2021, when the €22 VAT exemption ended.

The temporary €3 duty per item

From 1 July 2026 a flat customs duty of €3 per item applies to goods in consignments of up to €150 sold to consumers in distance sales, whether VAT is paid through IOSS, the special arrangement or the standard procedure. It is planned to apply until 1 July 2028, when the new e-commerce regime under the Customs Data Hub is due to start.

An item means goods in the consignment that share the same tariff classification. Because of IT limits, customs charges €3 per declaration line: in an H7 declaration lines are at 6-digit HS level, in H6 at 8-digit CN level and in H1 at 10-digit TARIC level. A parcel with a T-shirt and a phone case (two different codes) pays €6. The implementing rules are in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1200.

The handling fee

The new Union Customs Code, Regulation (EU) 2026/2108, was published on 19 September 2026 and entered into force on 20 September 2026; most of it applies from 21 September 2027 and the e-commerce rules from 1 July 2028. It provides for a handling fee on distance-sales goods released for free circulation. The Commission adopted a delegated act on 21 September 2026 setting the fee at €2 per item; it is expected to apply from 1 November 2026, ten days after publication in the Official Journal. Check the Official Journal for the final date before invoicing customers. Some Member States also charge their own national fees on small parcels.

IOSS

The Import One-Stop Shop lets a seller or marketplace charge EU VAT at checkout on consignments up to €150 and declare it monthly in one Member State. Goods then clear customs without VAT at import. The €3 duty still applies. From 1 July 2026 the declaration must show the VAT route with document codes F48 (IOSS), F49 (special arrangement) or F53 (standard). From 1 November 2026, product identifiers (codes C127, C128, C129 or Y081) become mandatory for distance sales.

Worked example: cotton T-shirts into Germany

A German retailer buys 2,000 men's cotton knitted T-shirts, CN 6109 10 00, from a Chinese factory on FOB Shanghai terms for €20,000. Sea freight to Hamburg costs €1,800 and insurance €100. Road transport from Hamburg to the retailer's warehouse in Munich costs €400 and is invoiced separately.

Customs value: 20,000 + 1,800 + 100 = €21,900 (CIF Hamburg). The Munich leg is excluded from the customs value.

Customs duty: MFN rate 12% on €21,900 = €2,628.

Import VAT base: 21,900 + 2,628 + 400 (transport to the first destination, known at import) = €24,928.

Import VAT at 19%: €4,736.32, which the retailer can normally deduct as input VAT.

Total due at import: €7,364.32, of which €2,628 is a real cost.

Same goods made in Bangladesh with a valid statement on origin under GSP (Everything But Arms): duty 0%, VAT 19% on €22,300 = €4,237.

Same goods in free circulation in Türkiye with an A.TR: duty 0% under the customs union, VAT as above.

Checklist

TARIC code confirmed for the date of import, with all measures checked.
Customs value built on CIF, with additions and deductions documented.
Origin documents in hand before the declaration if you claim preference.
VAT rate and deferment options of the Member State of import checked.
For B2C parcels: €3 per item duty, IOSS number, product identifiers from 1 November 2026, handling fee status.
CBAM and steel measures checked for metals and other covered goods.

Questions and answers

Is there still a €150 duty-free threshold in the EU?

No. Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382 removed it from 1 July 2026. Low-value distance sales now pay a temporary €3 duty per item, and normal duty applies to other low-value goods.

Does the €3 duty apply to B2B shipments?

The €3 duty applies to goods in consignments up to €150 sold in distance sales to consumers. Business imports pay the normal tariff duty.

Is import VAT a cost for my business?

For VAT-registered businesses making taxable supplies, import VAT is normally deductible. Customs duty is not deductible and is a real cost.

Which VAT rate applies if goods enter in the Netherlands but go to Germany?

If goods are released for free circulation in the Netherlands, Dutch import VAT applies, unless they are placed under a procedure (such as customs procedure 42) that exempts import VAT and moves the VAT to the destination Member State.

Can I still use IOSS after July 2026?

Yes. IOSS continues for consignments up to €150. Since 1 July 2026 these goods also bear the €3 duty per item, and the handling fee is expected to follow.