Will I Have to Pay Taxes or Import Duties?

Note: DIY Packraft does not guarantee the accuracy of the following information. If you have updated information, please send me a message or leave a comment below. Thanks! 

Taxes in the DIY Packraft Shop

DIY Packraft is required to collect taxes only on orders shipped to Canada. Shipments to Canada will be charged 5% GST at the time of purchase. Shipments to British Columbia incur an additional 7% PST at the time of purchase.

Orders shipped outside of Canada will not be taxed at the time of purchase, but may be taxed as you import them into your country (see below).

Customs Duties/Tariffs/Import Taxes

Most countries require you to pay a tax when you import a product from a different country. The amount of tax is typically a percentage of the amount you paid for the product, or a percentage of the total amount you paid for the product plus shipping. You may also be charged a processing fee. For many countries, there is a value below which no taxes are applied (a “de minimis threshold”). This varies widely between countries – see examples below.

Avoiding Import Taxes & Fees

For international shipments, DIY Packraft is required to fill out a form indicating the value of the shipment’s contents. I know it seems like a small thing to ask me to declare a lower value on the customs form, but you are asking me to commit a crime (fraud), so I cannot agree to do it.

Import fees by country:

• Shipments to the United States – update for Americans in 2025: The Trump administration has imposed hefty tariffs on Canada (where DIY Packraft kits are made and shipped from) and other countries where I source my products, and has abolished the $800 de minimis threshold, so all imports will be taxed by the US government, regardless of their value. This means that after you place an order from DIY Packraft, then you (the importer) will be required to pay a significant tax to the US government via the courier. This tax will be a percentage of the value of the products in the parcel, and the exact percentage will be determined by the country where the products were manufactured (not where they were shipped from). If there are multiple items in the parcel that were manufactured in different countries, the highest possible tariff rate will apply to everything in the parcel. For example, if your parcel contains two items, one manufactured in a country with a 10% tariff rate and the other in a country with a 35% tariff rate, then you will pay a 35% tax on everything in the parcel, regardless of the value of each item. The tariff rate for each country is set by the Trump administration and the rates have been changing frequently. How long this system will last remains unclear at the time I update this in September, 2025. A US federal appeals court has ruled the tariffs illegal but left them in place for now. I will not pay these tariffs for you, and I will charge a restocking fee if you refuse to pay them, so I suggest you check the current state of affairs before placing an order.
• Shipments to Australia valued less than $1000 AUD should not incur any taxes or import duties.
• Shipments to New Zealand valued less than $400 NZD (including shipping) should not incur any taxes or import duties (as of 2019).
• Shipments to the European Union will probably be taxed at the local tax rate plus a processing fee. Note that in Europe the tax is usually calculated based on the total cost of the products and shipping combined, not just the cost of the products.
  • Here’s some information from a customer in Germany at the end of 2019: “If the value of the package including shipment is less than 500 Euro a tax (Einfuhrumsatzsteuer) of 19% will apply. If it’s more than 500 Euro there will be additional 2.7% custom tax (that might change regarding to the custom officer, it seemed to be quite difficult for them to determine in which category a packraft kit belongs…).” This forum post is another detailed report about receiving a DIY Packraft kit in Germany in 2020.
  • A customer in Spain sent this information from an invoice as an example in 2021:
    • PRESUPUESTO DE IMPORTACIÓN DEL ENVÍO
      SUPLIDOS Liquidación Real
      Partida: BOLSAS DE PLASTICO Valor: 237,08 €
      Derechos de aduana sobre productos industriales 15,41 €
      IVA Importación 252,49 € 21% 53,02 €
      TOTAL SUPLIDOS 68,43 €
    • SERVICIOS PRESTADOS POR CORREOS
    • Gastos por gestión DUA 20,35 €
      Gastos por manipulación 4,86 €
      IVA (Gastos de gestión) 21% sobre 25,21 € 5,29 €
      TOTAL PRESUPUESTO A PAGAR 98,93 €
• Also check the comments posted below.

If you have experience receiving parcels from DIY Packraft in a specific country, please post a comment here so others can learn from your experience.