Shipping from the UK to Italy: what your customer will actually pay

Italy is one of the UK's most important EU export markets — particularly for fashion, homeware, food, and luxury goods. What sets it apart for UK sellers isn't the charges, which look much like the rest of the EU. It's the customs clearance: parcels can sit at Italian customs for a week or more, and the August Ferragosto shutdown slows things further. Here's what your Italian customer will pay — and how long they'll actually wait.

Italy's VAT rate

Italy's standard VAT rate is 22% — around the EU average. Applied to the CIF value of your shipment, this is the main charge Italian customers face when receiving UK parcels.

For a £180 product with £14 shipping and 0% duty, your Italian customer faces a VAT bill of around £43 on delivery. For higher value orders the number grows quickly.

Italian customs — the slow lane

If there's one thing UK sellers consistently report about shipping to Italy, it's that Italian customs (Agenzia delle Dogane) can be slow. Very slow. It's not unusual for parcels to sit in customs in Milan or Rome for 5–10 working days, particularly during August when much of Italy shuts down for Ferragosto.

This doesn't affect the charges your customer pays, but it can add a week or more to delivery. If you're shipping to Italian customers, build extra time into your delivery estimates and communicate this clearly. An Italian customer who was told to expect 7–10 days is far more patient than one who expected 3–5.

Import duty

Under the UK-EU TCA, most standard UK-made goods attract 0% duty when exported to Italy. Fashion items, homeware, ceramics, art, and general consumer goods typically qualify. Some specific textile categories and processed foods may attract duty — check your commodity code if you're unsure.

The €150 threshold — no longer a duty exemption

Since 1 July 2026 the €150 figure no longer marks a customs duty exemption — the EU abolished it. What it still sets is the ceiling for IOSS: sell through IOSS (or a marketplace that handles it) and Italian VAT is collected at checkout on consignments whose goods value — excluding shipping — is €150 or under. IOSS and postal consignments carry a temporary flat duty of €3 per item until July 2028, paid by the seller or platform rather than at the door. Without IOSS, duty is due at any value — unless the goods are UK-originating and you claim TCA preference with a statement on origin, which takes it to 0% — and the 22% import VAT is collected from your customer on delivery, plus a handling fee. Given how long Italian customs can take, keeping orders inside IOSS where you can is worth the effort.

Italian customs handling fees

Italian express couriers typically charge handling fees of €10–20 per shipment requiring customs collection — slightly higher than their northern European counterparts. Poste Italiane's standard postal presentation fee is lower, at around €7.50. Either way, the fee is charged to the recipient on top of VAT and duty.

A real example

A UK fashion brand ships a silk scarf worth £120 and a leather wallet worth £95 to a customer in Florence. Total order: £215.

A £66 bill at the door on a £215 order — plus a potential 7–10 day wait. Italian customers who weren't warned about either the charges or the timeline are likely to refuse delivery or leave negative feedback.

What to do

Calculate the full landed cost before shipping to Italy, and be generous with your delivery time estimates. ClearShip calculates the UK-to-Italy landed cost instantly. A clear upfront message about both the potential VAT charge and the realistic delivery timeframe will save you difficult conversations.