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Buying goods online for personal use

  1. Overview
  2. Buying goods from outside the European Union (EU), including the UK
  3. Buying goods from a European Union (EU) country
  4. Buying goods from the Canary Islands
  5. How to locate your goods following arrival to Ireland
  6. How to pay your import charges
  7. How to claim a refund of Customs Duty and Value-Added Tax (VAT)

How to pay your import charges

  • For goods being imported by post:
    • An Post will communicate directly with you, the importer.
    • The import charges owed may be shown on a customs docket attached to your package.
    • You may be contacted by An Post through a customs charge notification card which may include contacts through SMS or email.
  • For goods being imported by courier:
    • The courier will calculate the amount of charges you owe.
    • Most couriers pay the import charges directly to Revenue on your behalf and recoup the import charges from you.

You must pay these charges to An Post or the courier before they will release your goods to you.

If you are a regular importer, Revenue may ask you to register for an Economic Operators Registration and Identification (EORI) number.

Next: How to claim a refund of Customs Duty and Value-Added Tax (VAT)

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