CUSTOMS · INDIA

How customs duty is calculated on a courier parcel into India

India has no duty-free allowance for courier parcels. Every dutiable consignment pays three charges stacked on top of each other, and the order they stack in is what makes the total look higher than the headline rate. This guide walks through the arithmetic once, so you can predict the bill before you buy.

By Ravi Shrivastav, founder, ExpressBox · Updated 27 Oct 2026

Start from the CIF value, not the price tag

Indian Customs assesses duty on the CIF value: the cost of the goods, plus the insurance, plus the freight to India. If you paid US$200 for a jacket and US$35 to ship it, the assessable value is US$235 (plus a notional 1.125% for insurance when none is declared), converted to rupees at the customs exchange rate notified for that fortnight, not the rate your card charged.

This matters more for low-value parcels than high-value ones. On a US$40 item with US$30 shipping the freight nearly doubles the base that every percentage is applied to. Consolidating two or three orders into one forwarded parcel does not reduce the duty rate, but it does spread one freight charge across all of them, which is the single easiest way to shrink the bill.

The three charges, in order

Basic customs duty (BCD): a percentage of the CIF value, set by the goods' HS code. Personal imports cleared under heading 9804 pay a flat 10%; commercial goods pay the rate of their own heading, which can run from 0% on some books to 20% or more on footwear and garments.
Social welfare surcharge (SWS): 10% of the BCD, not of the value. On a 10% BCD it adds 1% of the CIF value.
Integrated GST (IGST): charged on the CIF value plus the BCD plus the SWS, at the goods' GST rate. Under heading 9804 the rate is 28%.

Because IGST is charged on a base that already contains the duty, the effective rate is higher than the three percentages added together. For heading 9804 the all-in figure is 42.08% of the CIF value: 10% BCD, 1% SWS, and 28% of 111, which is 31.08%.

Worked example: a US$200 personal parcel

Line	Working	Amount
Goods		US$200.00
Freight to India		US$35.00
Insurance (notional 1.125%)	1.125% of 235	US$2.64
CIF value		US$237.64
BCD at 10%	10% of 237.64	US$23.76
SWS at 10% of BCD		US$2.38
IGST at 28%	28% of (237.64 + 23.76 + 2.38)	US$73.86
Total duty and tax		US$100.00 (42.08% of CIF)

In rupees at a customs rate of about ₹88 per dollar that is roughly ₹8,800 on a ₹17,600 parcel. The courier collects it before delivery, usually by a payment link sent when the parcel lands, and may add a small clearance fee of its own. ExpressBox quotes the duty estimate up front so the number on the doorstep is not a surprise.

Why a gift pays full duty

Until December 2019 a gift up to ₹5,000 could be cleared duty-free through the courier channel. Since 12 Dec 2019 the Courier Imports and Exports (Electronic Declaration and Processing) Regulations no longer allow gift clearance by courier at all, with two exceptions: Rakhi, and life-saving medicines. Writing "gift" on the box does not change the assessment; the parcel is cleared on its declared value at the full rate. If a relative abroad is sending you something, budget for 42.08% of the value plus freight.

Personal (9804) or commercial: which heading applies

Heading 9804 covers goods imported by an individual for personal use, not for resale, through post or courier. The courier files a simplified bill of entry (form CBE-XIII) for low-value dutiable parcels up to ₹1 lakh, and the 42.08% all-in rate applies regardless of what the item is. The advantage is predictability: a watch, a pair of shoes and a protein tub all pay the same rate.

A business importing stock, or any consignment that looks commercial (multiple identical units, an invoice to a company, a GSTIN on the paperwork), clears under the item's own HS code. The BCD can be lower or higher than 10%, the IGST follows the goods' GST slab (5%, 12%, 18% or 28%), and a registered business can claim the IGST back as input tax credit, which is why commercial clearance often ends up cheaper for a GST-registered buyer even when the headline duty is higher.

Documents that stop a parcel from being held

A commercial invoice showing the seller, the buyer, each item with its value and the currency. A screenshot of an order page is accepted by most couriers; a parcel with no value evidence is assessed on the officer's valuation, which is rarely lower.
KYC of the receiver: for an individual an Aadhaar or PAN; for a company the GSTIN and IEC. Couriers ask for this before the parcel reaches India and hold it at the hub until it arrives.
For restricted goods, the licence or NOC the item needs: a CDSCO import permission for medicines beyond a personal quantity, a WPC approval for some wireless devices, a FSSAI clearance for food supplements in commercial quantity.

The most common hold we see at the Delhi hub is a missing KYC, not a duty dispute. Send it on the day you book and the parcel clears on the day it lands.

Questions we are asked

Is there any value below which no duty is charged on a parcel into India?

No. Unlike the UK, the UAE or China, India has no de minimis for courier imports. Even a ₹500 item is dutiable, though for very small amounts the courier's clearance fee is often more than the duty itself.

Can I pay the duty in advance?

Yes. On an ExpressBox import quote the duty estimate is itemised and can be paid with the shipping, so the parcel is delivered without a doorstep payment. Any difference against the final customs assessment is settled afterwards.

My parcel was assessed at a higher value than I paid. What can I do?

Customs may reject a declared value it considers too low. You can file a reply with proof of payment (card statement, order confirmation with the amount actually charged). The courier's clearance team does this on your behalf; it adds two or three working days.

Customs figures are those in force on the date above and are the same as on our lane pages; rates change, so confirm against your quote before paying duty.