GuideAug 28, 2026 JST

Import Duty and Tax on Figures: US, UK, Canada, Australia

What a figure from Japan costs at the border in 2026: US 12.5% duty after de minimis ended, UK VAT plus £8, Canada's CAN$20 line, Australia's AUD 1,000.

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A figure that costs ¥48,180 (about $320) at a Japanese shop can arrive with a second bill attached: import duty, sales tax, and a fee from whoever carried it across the border. If you are in the US, that second bill is now a certainty: duty-free entry for parcels under $800 ended on August 29, 2025, the suspension was made indefinite in June 2026, and since July 24, 2026, a figure from Japan carries a 12.5% duty. This guide walks through what each of the four big English-speaking markets actually charges on a figure shipped from Japan, who collects it, and how to estimate it before you click “order.”

All figures below were checked against government and shop pages on August 28, 2026. Customs rules have changed several times this year in the US alone, so treat the numbers as a snapshot, watch the “Updated” date at the top of this page, and re-check the sources at the end if you are ordering something expensive.

The short version

The rest of this page explains each row and works through real prices.

United States: what changed, and what you pay now

Until August 29, 2025, anything under $800 entered the US duty-free under the “de minimis” rule, which is why most collectors never saw a customs bill. Executive Order 14324 suspended that for every country, and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) confirmed in February 2026 that the suspension continues; in June 2026 the agency made it indefinite by regulation. Gifts valued at $100 or less are the one exception that matters for hobbyists, and a shop order is not a gift.

The rate itself has changed twice this year. The 15% “reciprocal” tariff on Japanese goods was struck down by the Supreme Court in February 2026 and replaced by a temporary 10% surcharge from February 24, 2026; that expired and, from July 24, 2026, a Section 301 duty applies to products of 60 economies including Japan. The USTR notice sets the rule for Japan, Korea and Switzerland: the base (MFN) tariff plus the Section 301 tariff must add up to 12.5%. Figures and model kits fall under heading 9503, whose base US tariff is free, so the practical number for a figure from Japan today is 12.5% of its customs value.

How it is collected depends on the shipping method:

• Courier (DHL, FedEx, UPS, ECMS). The carrier files the entry, pays CBP, and bills you for the duty plus its own brokerage or advancement fee. Most carriers now hold delivery until you pay online. The fee varies by carrier and is worth checking on your first invoice.
• Japan Post (EMS, small packet, surface). Since July 24, 2026, postal parcels valued at $2,500 or less go through a new postal informal entry filed by a customs broker, and Japan Post requires the sender to prepay the duty through an approved app before it accepts a parcel worth more than $100 (documents and gifts of $100 or less still go without prepayment). In practice this means the shop, or the proxy service, adds the duty to your shipping charge up front rather than the mail carrier collecting it at your door.

A worked example: ALTER’s Morgan at ¥48,180 (about $320) shipped from AmiAmi by DHL. Duty at 12.5% is roughly $40, plus whatever DHL charges to advance it; check the first invoice, because that fee is set by the carrier, not by customs. AmiAmi does not offer DHL on US orders above about $800, so the ¥137,500 (about $915) METAL STRUCTURE Gundam Mk-II has to travel another way; on a formal entry above $2,500 the paperwork changes again, which is one more reason not to bundle several expensive figures into one box.

United Kingdom: VAT is the cost, duty is not

The UK has two lines. Customs duty is not charged on non-excise goods worth £135 or less, and above that the rate depends on the commodity; for the “other toys” line under heading 9503 that covers figures and scale models (commodity 9503 00 99 90) the third-country duty is 0.00%. So duty is effectively never the issue for a figure.

VAT is. It is charged at 20% on the goods plus postage and insurance, on every import except gifts of £39 or less. For purchases of £135 or less the rules put the job of charging VAT on the seller at the point of sale; above £135 you pay it to the delivery company before you get the parcel. If a Japanese shop has not charged UK VAT at checkout, expect the parcel to be held until you pay. Royal Mail adds a handling fee (£8 at the time of writing) for collecting the charges on HMRC’s behalf, and you have a limited window to pay before the item is returned to sender.

Example: a ¥9,800 (about $65, roughly £50) POP UP PARADE. Duty £0, VAT about £12 on the goods and shipping combined, plus the handling fee if it is collected on arrival.

Canada: the CAN$20 line and the provincial tax

The Canada Border Services Agency assesses duty and tax on mail items worth more than CAN$20; gifts from individuals get CAN$60. Figures are duty-free in Canada’s tariff (item 9503.00.90, “other” toys and scale models, MFN rate Free), so what you pay is tax on the full value: 5% GST in Alberta and the territories, HST in the participating provinces (13% in Ontario, higher in the Atlantic provinces), and GST plus PST in British Columbia, Manitoba, Quebec and Saskatchewan.

Canada Post charges CAN$9.95 per dutiable or taxable item and lets you pay online through tracking before delivery, at the door by card, or at the post office. Couriers replace that flat fee with their own brokerage charges, which are usually higher on low-value parcels, so for a single figure Japan Post’s services are often the cheaper route into Canada.

Example: the ¥48,180 Morgan is about CAN$440. In Ontario that is 13% HST, about CAN$57, plus CAN$9.95 if it comes through the mail, so roughly CAN$507 delivered before shipping.

Australia: nothing at the border under AUD 1,000

Australia is the most forgiving of the four. The Australian Border Force does not charge duty, tax or processing on goods valued at AUD 1,000 or less. Since July 2018 the 10% GST on those low-value goods is instead collected by overseas sellers at checkout, but only by sellers that are registered for Australian GST. A figure that arrives by post under that line simply gets delivered.

Above AUD 1,000 the parcel needs an import declaration, and you pay customs duty at the item’s tariff rate, 10% GST on the value plus shipping plus duty, and an import processing charge of AUD 50 for an electronic declaration under AUD 10,000. The ¥137,500 METAL STRUCTURE is about AUD 1,400, so it crosses that line on its own. Two ¥50,000 figures in one box would too; splitting shipments keeps each under the threshold.

How the big three shops handle it

None of the shops we cover prepay your duties. HobbyLink Japan’s shipping page tells customers in Europe and Canada that customs charges and handling fees are theirs to pay, and the same applies elsewhere. AmiAmi’s US notes say the same and add the DHL cap above roughly $800. Good Smile Company’s online store charges a flat US$46 for shipping to the US and tells customers it cannot estimate their import charges. If you want the full comparison of payment timing and cancellation rules, it is in our HLJ vs AmiAmi vs Good Smile guide.

The one exception is postal mail to the US: because Japan Post now requires duty to be prepaid, any shop or proxy using EMS or small packet to the US has to build that duty into what it charges you. That is not the shop being generous; it is the same 12.5%, collected earlier.

Step by step: estimating the bill before you order

1. Find the item’s price in your currency. Use the shop’s displayed conversion or a mid-market rate; customs uses the declared value on the invoice.
2. Add shipping where it counts. The UK charges VAT on the goods plus postage and Australia’s GST includes shipping; the US and Canada generally assess on the declared value of the goods.
3. Apply your country’s line: US 12.5% duty; UK 20% VAT; Canada your province’s GST/HST/PST; Australia 10% GST only if the seller charges it or the order is above AUD 1,000.
4. Add the collection fee: £8, CAN$9.95, AUD 50 above the threshold, or your courier’s brokerage fee.
5. If the total value is near a threshold (AUD 1,000, US$800 for DHL from AmiAmi, US$2,500 for a postal entry), split the order or pick a different method before the shop ships.
6. Keep the invoice. If the carrier’s bill looks wrong, every one of these agencies has a dispute or refund process, and the invoice is the document they ask for first.

Pre-orders add a wrinkle: the duty is assessed when the parcel arrives, not when you order, so a figure you reserve today at one rate can land under a different one. Our pre-order basics guide covers when each shop charges you, which is the moment your currency and duty exposure is fixed.

FAQ

Will the shop mark my figure as a gift to avoid duty? No, and you should not ask. The US gift exemption is $100, the UK’s is £39 and Canada’s is CAN$60, and each is for genuine gifts between individuals. Shops declare the invoice value.

I am in the US. Is a proxy service cheaper on duty? No. The 12.5% applies to the item’s value regardless of who ships it. A proxy can help by consolidating several items into one parcel, which saves shipping, but a single parcel above $2,500 moves from the postal informal entry to a formal entry, so consolidation has a ceiling.

Does the 12.5% apply to Blu-rays, manga and art books too? The Section 301 duty applies to products of Japan across the board unless a product is on the notice’s exclusion list. We have not seen CBP guidance specific to books, discs or other hobby imports, so assume the 12.5% applies until your carrier’s invoice says otherwise.

Can I get a refund of the duty if I return the figure? In Australia the ABF states duty is not refunded for change-of-mind returns. Other countries have refund or drawback processes, but for a single figure the paperwork usually costs more than the duty.

What if I refuse to pay the customs bill? The parcel goes back to Japan. Royal Mail states unpaid items are returned to sender after the payment window, and the other carriers do the same. Shops generally do not refund the outbound shipping, and a refused parcel counts against you at shops that track cancellations.

Three pre-orders that cross the thresholds

The three products below sit at ¥9,800, ¥48,180 and ¥137,500: one that clears every threshold, one that draws tax everywhere but Australia, and one that needs an import declaration in Australia and a non-DHL route from AmiAmi to the US. Full details are in our METAL STRUCTURE Gundam Mk-II pre-order story.

📦Most Japanese shops ship worldwide by EMS/DHL (7–14 days). Duties and import taxes are charged on delivery in most countries — check your local threshold before ordering.

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