Customs Duties

Your package may be subject to customs tax and VAT (Value Added Tax). These extra charges are forms of tax that are not included with Discovery Japan Mall or our shipping charge. They will be collected from you directly when the package is delivered, and it will be your responsibility to complete the payment in order to receive your order. Furthermore, your government may allow your postal service and couriers to charge fees to cover the administrative costs involved in customs clearance (instead of using the tax money to fund the effort).

Although it varies from country to country and it is not possible for us to find out the details. So, please make sure to find out the customs policy of your country before placing your order.

However, generally speaking, packages may be exempt from customs fees if the value of items included is less than a minimum value. For example in Europe, packages used to be exempt from the collection of VAT if the total price paid for items inside the package is less than 22 Euro. However, as of April 2012, this minimum value relief has been removed.

We are required to declare the value of prices paid for items accurately on the package to ensure that your package arrives without serious troubles at customs. Please do not contact us to undervalue your order.

As the customs office applies the customs charges randomly on arriving parcels, we are not able to predict or control it on our end. So, once again, please make sure to find out the customs policy of your country.

Some countries do not charge customs charges on most packages arriving from Japan and actually collect them only from a few percentage of them, but in many countries, these charges are collected on most packages arriving from overseas. Below are approximate rates of customs tax and VAT in some countries that we know of.

  • French VAT: 20%
  • German VAT: 19.0%
  • UK VAT: 20.0%
  • Netherlands VAT: 21.0%
  • Italian VAT: 21%
  • Brazilian Customs Tax: 60% (plus eventually costs of transport and insurance).
  • Mexico VAT: 16%
  • Canada VAT: 5%
  • Thailand VAT: 7%
  • Switzerland VAT: 7,6%
  • Australia VAT: 10%
  • China VAT: 17%
  • Russia VAT: 18%
  • Spain VAT: 21%
  • Finland VAT: 23%
  • Sweden VAT: 25%
  • Danemark VAT: 25%
  • Norway VAT: 25%
  • Paraguay VAT: 10%
  • Peru VAT: 18%
  • Chile VAT: 19%
  • Argentina VAT: 21%
  • Uruguay VAT: 22%
  • Venezuela VAT: 12%
  • Ecuador VAT: 12%
  • Bolivia VAT: 13%
  • Colombia VAT: 16%
  • India VAT: 12,5%

Please note that above are approximate rates. Since they vary widely from country to country, it won't be possible for us to find out the accurate rates on our end. If your country is listed below, please visit the websites from the links to find out the accurate rates before you place your order. If your country is not listed, contact the customs office of your country.

France
Germany
United Kingdom
Italy
Denmark
Netherlands
China

Discount by Points and Coupon

Points and coupon redeemed on an order do not alter the value of items themselves, even though they lower the total amount we bill you for the purchase. However, as far as customs officials are concerned, it does not matter how much we were paid for the product and service we offer. They will determine the customs duty solely on the verifiable price of items that brought into the territory.

Sending Your Order as a Gift

To send your order as a gift, select "Send my order as a gift, and do not print prices on the packing slip" in the "Shipping and Gift Options" step at the time you order.

If you select this option, we will mark your package as a gift. Also, the prices of items won't be printed on the Packing Slip, which is a list of items to be included inside the package. However, we are still required to declare the value of items on the outside of the package.