What is CIF value and why does it matter?

CIF is Cost, Insurance, and Freight: the goods value plus insurance plus freight to the destination port. Most customs authorities assess import duty and VAT on the CIF value, not just the goods price, so it is the correct base for both charges.

How is import duty calculated here?

Import duty is the duty percentage for your HS code applied to the CIF value. The HS code classifies the product and determines its rate, which can range from zero to over 20 percent depending on the goods and trade agreements.

Is VAT charged on top of duty?

Yes. In most countries VAT is applied to the CIF value plus the import duty, because duty is treated as part of the taxable import value. This tool follows that order so VAT is calculated on the duty-inclusive amount.

What charges does the broker fee cover?

The customs broker fee covers entry preparation, classification, and clearance handling. It is a flat per-shipment cost added after duty and VAT and is not itself subject to import tax.

Spreading the full landed cost across the number of units gives the true per-unit cost at your door, which is what you need for pricing and supplier comparison rather than the bare factory price.

International Freight Cost Estimator

International shipping invoices hide the real cost of importing goods across freight, duty, tax, and clearance lines. This estimator stacks every component into one door-to-door figure and divides it across your units so you can price products and compare suppliers on true landed cost.

How it works

The model builds CIF, then applies duty and VAT, then adds fixed fees:

cif        = goods value + insurance + freight
duty       = cif × duty rate
vat        = (cif + duty) × vat rate
total      = cif + duty + vat + origin + destination + broker fee
per unit   = total / units

VAT is deliberately charged on the duty-inclusive amount because most customs regimes treat import duty as part of the taxable value of the goods.

Example and tips

Importing 1,000 units worth 10,000 with 1,800 ocean freight, 150 insurance, a 6.5 percent duty rate, and 20 percent VAT: CIF is 11,950, duty is about 777, VAT is about 2,545, and with 300 in port charges and a 150 broker fee the total is roughly 15,722, or about 15.72 per unit. Always confirm your HS code rate against the official tariff schedule for the destination country, since a misclassified code is the most common cause of a wrong duty estimate.