Taxes & Customs Fees

Shipping products from Japan may be subject to taxes and to customs fees in the country of delivery. These costs are the customer’s responsibility. 

These costs include the sales tax in the country of delivery (applied to the total value of the order), duties on the cost of products (around 6% for the European Union) and fees to the carrier for handling (typically $10 to $20).

For our customers in the USA:

Most packages with a declared value that is under $2000 USD will be cleared without any fees.

For our customers in Australia: 

Orders below $1000 AUD are regarded as 'low value imports' by Australian customs. As of 01 July 2018, customs duties may apply to any goods imported from overseas by consumers in Australia. For more information please visit the Australian customs website. 

For our customers in Canada: 

Orders above $20 CAN require that you pay the applicable duties and the GST. For more information please visit the Canadian customs website.

For our customers in the EU:

From 1 July 2021, import VAT is payable on all goods entering the EU, irrespective of their value. For goods with a value of more than €150 you will have to pay Customs Duty in addition to import VAT.
To minimize fees, we recommend selecting the ePacket shipping method and not the Express Shipping Method.

Customs Duties
The customs value on which Customs Duty is calculated is the cost of the goods plus transport (including postage), any insurance and any handling charges to deliver the goods to the EU. The rate of Customs Duty that applies depends on the goods you import.

External links: Douanes Belge-Douanes Suisse-Germany, Zoll-UK customs, Revenue (Irish Tax and Customs)

We understand that custom fees are worrying for some of you. We hope that you are reassured by the fact that, when buying on Bento&co, you really are ordering direct from Japan- getting authentic and original Japanese items that are not easily found anywhere else.

For Express Shipping: FedEx, UPS and DHL usually send an invoice a few days after delivery where as EMS (JP Post shipped, delivered by your National Post) generally charges the required sum at delivery. 

For Registered & Economy Shipping: Your national carrier will generally bill you when applicable.