The first foreign order in international dropshipping brings up the border charge, the reach of tracking and the carrier’s payout for a lost parcel. For consumer orders of up to €150 shipped into the EU from outside it, the border charge has been a flat €3 customs duty per item since 1 July 2026. The UK and the US have rules of their own.
Border taxes: the €3 EU duty and VAT in Great Britain
The EU duty is temporary: the Commission says it applies until 1 July 2028, after which normal customs duties depending on the type of good apply. Its Access2Markets portal adds that the duty applies to consignments of €150 or less sold to consumers whichever VAT regime the seller uses. On a €20 item, €3 is 15% of the price.
Great Britain works on a different rule. For consignments of £135 or less sold directly to customers rather than through a marketplace, HMRC’s guidance says the overseas seller must charge and account for UK VAT. That means registering for VAT in the UK and knowing the exact VAT rate of every product sold. The £135 limit counts the total value of the consignment, not each item in it. Above £135, normal import VAT and customs rules apply at the border.
A store that sells to US customers from abroad meets a third rule. CBP’s rules of 24 June 2026 suspend duty-free de minimis treatment indefinitely for imports valued at $800 or less. The suspension itself followed an executive order that took effect on 29 August 2025, and CBP says that currently all shipments of $2,500 or less are subject to applicable duties, with a short list of exceptions.
Who pays the import charges is settled in the terms of sale. ICC Academy lays out the two options in Incoterms 2020, the rules for business sales contracts. Under DAP the buyer manages and pays import clearance. Under DDP the seller carries out and pays all customs formalities, import included, which may be difficult for a foreign seller. DHL Express may ask the consignee to pay duties before delivery, and under its US terms a parcel that the consignee refuses to take, or refuses to pay duties on, is returned to the shipper at the shipper’s cost, where DHL can return it.
USPS tracking depends on the service and the country
USPS says tracking is included with many international products, but not all, and that destination restrictions can apply. For parcels sent abroad, the Postal Service warns that, depending on how and where you ship, you may not get the same level of tracking information as for a US package. Freight that moves as air cargo rather than post can be followed by its air waybill through air cargo tracking, and ocean replenishment by container tracking.
In international dropshipping the parcel leaves from someone else’s stock, so before a product goes on sale in a foreign market, put two questions to the wholesaler: which service carries it to that country, and what its tracking shows there.
DHL’s liability cap and Shipment Value Protection
Under DHL Express’s US terms, liability for one shipment carried by air is limited by the Montreal Convention or the Warsaw Convention as applicable or, in the absence of either, to the lower of the market or declared value and 26 Special Drawing Rights per kilogram, approximately $35 per kilogram. The shipper that finds this too little can request Shipment Value Protection or arrange its own insurance. Shipment Value Protection, which DHL may be able to arrange, covers the full value of the goods. The shipper has to ask for it in writing or in DHL’s system and pay the applicable charge, which DHL says varies with the shipment value, the destination and the type of goods. It does not cover indirect loss or loss caused by delay. Claims go to DHL in writing within 30 days of the date it accepted the shipment, with one claim per shipment.
A shipment carried only by road across a border falls under a lower limit in the same terms: 8.33 Special Drawing Rights per kilogram, about $11.
Frequently asked questions
Do EU customers pay duty on low-value dropshipped orders?
Yes. Since 1 July 2026 consumer consignments of up to 150 euros entering the EU from outside it carry a flat 3 euro customs duty per item, whatever VAT regime the seller uses. The European Commission says this temporary duty runs until 1 July 2028.
Who pays UK VAT on a dropshipped order under 135 pounds?
For goods sold directly to UK customers, not through a marketplace, the overseas seller charges and accounts for UK VAT on consignments of 135 pounds or less, which means registering for VAT in the UK. Above that value, import VAT and customs rules apply at the border.
How much does DHL Express pay for a lost parcel?
Under its US terms, for air carriage without Montreal or Warsaw Convention limits, DHL Express caps liability at the lower of the value and 26 SDR per kilogram, about 35 dollars per kilogram. Shipment Value Protection, bought separately, covers the full value.