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Home>Post & Parcels > Receiving > Customs Information
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Customs Information

Due to EU Customs rules governing non-EU goods, VAT and customs charges now apply when you buy goods outside of the EU. At An Post, we’re here to help and want to continue to make online shopping easy for you.

Expecting a delivery from the UK?

Some UK deliveries have customs charges due. If the online retailer or sender doesn't deal with them up front, they need to be paid before An Post can deliver your parcel.

When customs charges are due, we'll let you know with a postcard, email or text. You can pay them easily on our website, on the An Post app or in your local post office.

Expecting a delivery from a smaller retailer or friends and family in the UK? 

 EU customs rules mean that every parcel coming from outside the EU must be sent with electronic data before it can be delivered by An Post. If you are ordering anything new from a smaller retailer in the UK or friends and family are sending you a parcel, remind them to use Royal Mails Click & Drop service before they send it.

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Easily pay customs charges on any incoming deliveries from overseas.

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Popular customs queries

If customs charges are due on your item, you will receive a postcard in the post with details of the charges. We will also attempt to send an email and/or an SMS if these details have been provided to us by the sender (this could be a retailer or someone you know).
If customs charges are due on your item, you will receive a postcard in the post with details of the charges. We will also attempt to send an email and/or an SMS if these details have been provided to us by the sender (this could be a retailer or someone you know).
Whether the item is a gift or not, it must still be cleared through customs. You will need to pay customs charges as calculated in order to receive your item.
Gifts may be imported free of VAT and customs charges where the value of the gift (including insurance, freight and postage costs) is €45 or less and the gift is correctly electronically declared as such for customs purposes etc.
Please see the Revenue website for information on the treatment of gifts.
Your customs charge can be paid either: 
Online, using your credit/debit card and the Customs reference number detailed on the Postcard/SMS/Email; or at any post office, using your credit/debit card or cash. Please bring the email or the card you received in the post with you to the Post Office. 

Once your payment is complete, we will arrange for your item to be delivered as soon as possible. 
If you wish to dispute the customs charge for your item, you can phone our team on 01 705 7600, selecting option 1. Please have your tracking number and customs reference number to hand.
Please note that Customs take into account a number of factors when calculating customs charges. These details can be found on the Revenue website.
  • If your item has been returned to sender or you are awaiting an update on your item, it is likely that the electronic customs declaration made by the retailer/sender for your item may have been insufficient or invalid according to Customs regulations. An Post cannot amend customs declaration so items with incomplete data must be returned. 
  • The goods within your parcel may be in a category of goods treated as prohibited or restricted by Irish Revenue.  
  • For non restricted/prohibited items, you will need to refer to the sender and request that they submit a customs declaration with full details when resending your item. Our TARIC code finder helps retailers understand the required information needed. 
  • Your item will be returned to the sender if the customs charge was not paid by the “pay by date". 
  • In line with the Northern Ireland protocol, parcels arriving from Northern Ireland into the Republic of Ireland will not be subject to VAT & customs charges but must still be cleared through Irish Customs.
  • If you buy goods from outside the EU  you may have to pay customs charges (Customs Duty, Excise Duty, VAT) to Irish Revenue. 

  • An Post collect these customs charges from you and pay them to Irish Revenue on your behalf. 

  • It is mandatory for An Post to collect customs charges, An Post cannot deliver your items until these charges have been paid. 

  • A team of Irish Revenue’s customs officials are based at An Post’s Mail Centre and oversee the customs clearance of imported goods.    

Customs charges arise on the importation of most items in accordance with relevant laws.  An Post collects these charges and pays them to Irish Revenue for you. ​​

An Post may apply a fee to handle, collect and process the item. Where applicable, this fee will be added to customs charges applied by Revenue to your item. The fee is in place to cover the administrative costs of collecting and processing the payment from the addressee. 

  • Compliant electronic customs data must be supplied for all incoming non-EU items by the sender. Many smaller, more specialist British retailers are simply not aware of these requirements and/or have not put in place the necessary online shopping systems for selling to Ireland, leading to Customs delays or returns when these parcels arrive in Ireland. Please hold tight, while we work to address this and ongoing queries.
Revenue are authorised to inspect any postal packet.

Important customs links

Pay customs charges and find information on prohibited items, sending items abroad and being scam aware here.

Pay customs charges
Prohibited and restricted itemsCustoms sending informationBe scam aware

Shop online, worldwide.

While there are changes, you can still shop with ease online. Online shopping is safe and convenient, more shoppers are buying online and delivery times for most eCommerce parcels are faster than ever. We would advise customers receiving parcels from outside the EU to check with the sender that they are completing the appropriate documentation with any parcels they send. You can browse our FAQ's for further advice.
 

Read our guide to shopping online

You can also download our guide to shopping online here.

Download our guide


The An Post Guide is intended for information purposes only. Buying goods online from outside of the EU (including the UK) is subject to EU Customs and VAT legislation. For further information visit the Revenue website.

Key things to note

If you buy goods online from outside the European Union (EU) you may have to pay customs charges (VAT, Customs Duty, Excise Duty).  These charges arise on the importation of your goods in accordance with the relevant EU legislation, please see revenue.ie for more information. 

Most of your online shopping will not change as VAT and customs charges will be applied at checkout by major retailers that An Post deliver for, so no further action is required by you for delivery. 

If VAT and customs charges have not been applied in your shopping basket, Irish Revenue may apply a charge when your goods enter Ireland. 

When buying from smaller non-EU retailers

EU customs rules means that Advanced Electronic Data is required on items coming from non-EU countries. These rules also restrict and probihit some goods from coming into Ireland from non-EU markets. Many smaller, more specialist non-EU retailers are not aware of these rules and/or have not put in place the necessary online shopping systems for selling to Ireland, leading to customs delays or returns when these parcels arrive in Ireland.

For more information on ordering online from International retailers, visit our page on customs rules that apply around the world. The EU also have a guide to buying from UK websites for further advice.

 

Other customs queries

Contact us

You can get in touch with our customs support team on 01 705 7600, selecting option 1, or send us an email.

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