How to Calculate Duties and Taxes on Imports to Australia

Goods worth AUD 1,000 or less generally clear the Australian border free of duty and GST, but that doesn't mean they're untaxed: registered overseas sellers and marketplaces charge 10% GST when you buy. Above AUD 1,000 you pay duty on the FOB customs value and 10% GST on a wider base, plus Australian Border Force charges. Tobacco and alcohol pay at any value.

• Valuation basis: FOB
• Tax base: Value of the taxable importation: customs value plus duty, international transport and insurance, and any wine equalisation tax.
• GST standard rate: 10%
• Reduced rates: None listed

Non-resident suppliers, online marketplaces and redeliverers charge 10% GST on low-value goods (customs value AUD 1,000 or less) sold to consumers, and register with the ATO.

• The ATO and ABF sites block automated page reads. The ATO low-value page and ABF charges page were opened once in a browser pane, and the AUD 48 and AUD 71 charges also appear in official-domain excerpts of ACN 2026/23. Treat as excerpt only until a person checks them.
• No changes from 2024 on were found; ABF and ATO pages do not offer a change log.
• The AUD 50 import processing charge comes only from the ABF page opened once in a browser pane. A person should confirm it.

Australia values goods for duty before international transport. The GST base then brings that transport back in. So there are two values on one import declaration, and mixing them is the commonest error.

The value of the taxable importation is customs value plus duty, plus international transport and insurance, plus any wine equalisation tax.

The Australian Border Force handles the border. The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) handles the seller side and GST registration.

Customs value × duty rate = duty. Then (customs value + duty + transport + insurance + any wine equalisation tax) × 10% = GST. The ABF adds an import processing charge, listed at AUD 50 for an electronic declaration on goods between AUD 1,000 and AUD 10,000, and nil at AUD 1,000 or less. Biosecurity charges of AUD 48 by air and AUD 71 by sea apply to brokers and importers of consignments over AUD 1,000.

Importers registered with the ATO's deferred GST scheme can defer the GST, not the duty.

1. Check for AUD 1,000: this is customs value, so leave out freight and insurance. A bulk order split to stay under is caught.
2. Classify with the HS code classifier, and check for a free trade preference if you have proof of origin.
3. Calculate duty on the FOB customs value, converted to Australian dollars.
4. Add duty, international freight and insurance to the customs value, then take 10% for GST.
5. Add the import processing charge and any biosecurity charge.

Coffee grinder sold by a registered overseas seller, AUD 600, with no border duty or GST.

Espresso machine, AUD 5,000 FOB by air.

• Calling goods under AUD 1,000 GST free: GST is collected at the point of sale, not waived.
• Applying GST to FOB only: the base needs duty, freight and insurance added.
• Sending wine or tobacco on the assumption the threshold applies: alcohol and tobacco pay at any value.
• Splitting a bulk order: orders broken up to stay under AUD 1,000 are caught, so the relief doesn't apply.

Non-resident suppliers, online marketplaces and redeliverers with GST turnover must register with the ATO and charge 10% GST on low-value goods sold to consumers. Low-value means a customs value of AUD 1,000 or less.

For the border side, Customs By-law 1305011 is the authority for AUD 1,000 duty relief, explained in Australian Customs Notice 2021/01. Goods under the limit move on a Self-Assessed Clearance declaration rather than a full import declaration.

We found no changes since the start of 2024, though neither the ABF nor the ATO offers a change log. This is guidance, not tax or customs advice. A licensed customs broker can sign off a full import declaration.