Who is responsible for customs clearance?

For shipments to countries outside the European Union, the responsibility for customs clearance lies with the recipient (the customer).

When you order a product from us and it needs to cross the border to a non-EU country, you officially act as the 'importer'. This entails the following:

• Payment of fees: You are responsible for paying the local VAT, any import duties, and the handling fees of the delivery service.
• Provision of information: Sometimes customs or the delivery service may require additional information from you, such as an identification number or confirmation of value. It is your responsibility to provide this information in a timely manner to avoid delays in the process. Storage costs for not providing the correct information to customs or the delivery service on time are at your own risk.
• Compliance with legislation: You are responsible for ensuring that the product you import complies with the laws of your country.

The role of the delivery service 

The delivery service (such as UPS, Fedex, or your national postal service) acts as an intermediary. They handle the physical customs declaration. Once customs have inspected the package and calculated the fees, the delivery service will send you a request to pay these fees. Only after you have paid will the package be released for delivery.

The role of Celtic WebMerchant 

We ensure that all necessary export documents and invoices are correctly attached to the outside of the package. This is necessary to inform customs of the contents of the package, allowing them to clear it as smoothly as possible.

Important: 

We have no influence over the amount of the fees or the speed of customs. We recommend that you closely monitor the tracking so you can respond promptly to requests from customs or the delivery service.