Australia country guide

• Although Australia is in remotely located, it has few trade barriers. Its sophisticated consumers and well-developed, internationally-familiar market, and well-established legal system make it favorable for doing business.
• Australia views foreign investments as crucial to economic growth and productivity.

• Australia has a high de minimis and relatively low GST and duty rates which are favorable for low-value orders.

• Australia has a low-value tax law that requires retailers to register and remit taxes if they sell above a set threshold.

• All major carriers offer shipping services to Australia, allowing for easy access.

• Australia uses various digital payment methods, including Mastercard, VISA, American Express, PayPal, ZIP, POLi, and buy now pay later.

Duty and tax will be charged only on imports into Australia where the total FOB value of the import exceeds Australia’s minimum value threshold (de minimis), which is 1,000 AUD. Anything under the tax de minimis value will be considered a tax-free import, and anything under the duty de minimis value will be considered a duty-free import.

Duty and tax de minimis 

• Tax de minimis: 1,000 AUD
• Duty de minimis: 1,000 AUD Applied to the FOB value of the goods

GST 

The standard import GST rate for Australia is 10% applied to the CIF value of the goods. Again, if you are a business and have a GST turnover of 75,000 AUD or more, then you will have to register for GST and remit taxes.

Australia’s low-value tax scheme 

Australia has a low-value tax scheme, also known as the Simplified GST law. For online retailers, if you sell, or expect to sell, over 75,000 AUD to Australian customers within a 12-month period, you are required to remit GST directly to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) via a Simplified GST for Importers process.

The general import duty rate in Australia is estimated at 5% and is applied to the FOB value of the goods.

Import Processing Charge (IPC) and Full Import Declaration (FID) charges

These fees cover the costs of processing import declarations and assessing the risks associated with the imported goods.

• IPC: This is a fee levied on importers for processing import declarations. The cost depends on the type of import declaration and the mode of transport used for shipping. As of July 1, 2021, the IPC rates are as follows:

  • For sea cargo, the charge is 102.60 AUD per declaration.

  • For air and postal cargo, the charge is 50 AUD per declaration.

• FID charge: This is a fee charged for submitting a Full Import Declaration to the Australian Border Force (ABF) when importing goods into Australia. The FID charge is typically included in the IPC mentioned above.

It's essential to note that other fees may apply when importing goods into Australia. These charges will depend on the type and value of the goods being imported. Additionally, extra fees may apply for customs broker services, freight forwarding, and other import-related services.

Australia has at least 17 trade agreements that offer a zero or highly discounted duty rate for goods manufactured in participating countries.

Australia is a member of the World Trade Organization

As a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Australia must abide by the most-favored-nation (MFN) clause, which requires a country to provide any concessions, privileges, or immunities granted to one nation in a trade agreement to all other WTO member countries. For example, if one country reduces duties by 10% for a particular WTO country, the MFN clause states that all WTO members will receive the same 10% reduction.

• DHL Express
• FedEx
• UPS
• USPS
• Toll Group
• TNT Australia
• StarTrack Courier
• MyParcelDelivery
• AusPost

Depending on the courier, additional shipping fees may include:

• Tracking
• Insurance
• Fuel surcharge
• Remote delivery charge
• Signature fee
• Overweight or oversized fee
• Special handling fee
• Dangerous goods fee
• etc.

Always needed:

• Bill of lading or air waybill
• Commercial invoice (two copies)
• Customs Entry or Informal Clearance Document (ICD)

Sometimes needed:

• An AUSFTA Certificate of Origin (if shipping from the U.S.)
• Import permit

An ABN is only needed after your sales into Australia exceed the 75,000 AUD threshold.