Sending gifts and parcels to the USA from the UK

Rules as of 6 October 2026. American tariffs change by notice, so check the official source before every send.

For years, most parcels worth $800 or less entered the United States without duty under the de minimis exemption. It has been suspended for every country since 29 August 2025. A customs rule published on 24 June 2026 suspends it indefinitely for anything that doesn’t travel by international post, a second rule covers the post, and Congress has ended the exemption in law from 1 July 2027.^{⁠[1]Source 1⁠[2]Source 2}

Parcels that would once have used de minimis now need a normal customs entry, such as informal entry for goods worth $2,500 or less, and pay the applicable duty for each product.^{⁠[1]Source 1}

• The gift exemption survives. A genuine gift sent from someone abroad still enters free of duty and tax if what one person receives on one day is worth $100 or less. The giver can be a company.^{⁠[3]Source 3}
• But business parcels are rarely gifts. American rules say a parcel from a business firm abroad would ordinarily not contain a gift. When it does, mark the parcel and put a statement inside saying so.^{⁠[3]Source 3}
• Over $100, nothing is exempt. A parcel with gifts worth more than $100 in total loses the exemption, and duty is charged on its value.^{⁠[3]Source 3}

On 20 February 2026 the Supreme Court ruled that the emergency powers law (IEEPA) doesn’t allow the President to impose extra tariffs, and those tariffs ended the same day; the de minimis suspension continued. Since 24 July 2026, many products made in the UK carry an extra 10% tariff under Section 301 of the Trade Act. Check the current rate for each product before you send.^{⁠[1]Source 1⁠[11]Source 11}

USTR Section 301 notice (Federal Register) (opens in a new tab)

Most company gifts to the United States owe duty now. The question is who pays it, and when.

DDP vs DAP: who pays customs on your gifts?Explore the full service

• A UK export declaration and an invoice. Goods leaving the UK need a customs declaration, and the invoice travels with them.^{⁠[8]Source 8}
• A market value for free goods. For anything you aren’t selling, UK guidance says to use its market value.^{⁠[8]Source 8}
• A gift statement, if it really is one. A genuine gift from a business should be marked on the outside and carry a statement inside saying it’s a gift.^{⁠[3]Source 3}

Apparel, drinkware, notebooks and bags all travel well. Be careful with:

• Alcohol and tobacco. They are never covered by the gift exemption, whatever their value.^{⁠[3]Source 3}
• Bundles over the gift limit. A box worth more than $100 loses the exemption entirely, so a generous mixed box owes duty on all of it.^{⁠[3]Source 3}

The federal holidays at the end of 2026 are Veterans Day on Wednesday 11 November, Thanksgiving on Thursday 26 November and Christmas Day on Friday 25 December, followed by New Year’s Day on Friday 1 January 2027. Plan year-end gifts to land before Thanksgiving week.^{⁠[6]Source 6}

• Make it easy to accept. American ethics rules say it’s frequently prudent for a federal employee to decline a gift that could make them look partial. Keep client gifts modest, so they’re easy to accept.^{⁠[7]Source 7}
• Choose something they’ll keep. For a federal employee, gifts are limited to $20 or less per occasion. A small, well-made object fits inside that more easily than a voucher.^{⁠[7]Source 7}

We hold stock in the US, in St Louis. Wherever we can, swag for American recipients is made, held and sent inside the US, so those sends don’t cross a customs border. When a product has to come from elsewhere, it crosses once, in bulk, and we handle the customs on that crossing.

We ship international orders DDP: we handle customs and duties, so recipients have nothing to pay on arrival. Where a destination’s import rules call for a different arrangement, we handle that too. The cost is worked out up front, in your quote. Recipients can share their delivery details on a branded Claim Page.

See how Claim Pages™ work

From our work

From our work for n8n: a kit with a cap, a card and a logo accessory, packed in black tissue. Wherever we can, kits like this for American recipients are sent from stock inside the US.