Ship boxes from United Kingdom to Australia
1 to 10 boxes, collected from your door in United Kingdom and delivered to the door in Australia. Price up front, customs paperwork prepared for you.
- Typical transit
- 4–7 business days
- Duty-free up to
- AUD 1,000 (about $710) for most goods
United Kingdom → Australia
Enter a weight to see your price.
Who ships on this route
- Expats and people relocating for work
- People returning home after time abroad
Classic expat and return-home demand.
Leaving United Kingdom
Sending boxes out of United Kingdom
Sending your own belongings out of the UK is straightforward for everyday things. The courier prepares the export paperwork from your packing list. The UK rules that matter most are export licenses for antiques and art, and the import rules where the boxes land.
Documents
- Itemized packing list with a fair value for each item, marked as used personal effects or gift
- Sender's passport or ID
- The receiver's tax or ID number if the destination requires one
- A UK export license from Arts Council England for any object of cultural interest that needs one; a digital copy is attached to the export declaration
Can't leave United Kingdom
- Objects of cultural interest, such as antiques and artworks, need a UK export license to leave Great Britain for any destination outside the UK. Arts Council England runs licensing, including an Open General Export Licence, and can confirm whether an item needs its own license.
- From Northern Ireland, cultural objects going directly to non-EU countries need an EU export license, and those going to the EU need a UK license. Arts Council England issues both.
- Medicines containing controlled drugs: other countries have their own import laws, so check with the destination's embassy before sending any.
- Items made from protected species (CITES), such as exotic leather, furs, or some wooden instruments, may need permits. Check with the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) before you ship.
- Couriers won't carry cash, weapons, or dangerous goods.
Arriving in Australia
Australia customs, in short
- Duty-free threshold
- AUD 1,000 (about $710) for most goods. Shipments worth AUD 1,000 or less generally pay no duty, GST, or charges at the border. Alcohol and tobacco are taxed at any value. Gifts get no separate allowance, and a parcel can't be split into smaller items to stay under the limit. Above AUD 1,000, duty, GST, and processing charges apply unless a concession fits.
- Import tax
- GST at 10%, plus customs duty on some goods, once a shipment is worth more than AUD 1,000. Duty varies by item: for example, 5% on cotton clothing and wooden furniture, and free on laptops. Wine also pays a 29% wine equalisation tax. Overseas online sellers may charge GST at checkout on purchases of AUD 1,000 or less, but that doesn't apply to your own used goods.
- Who pays
- Shipments are sent DAP. The receiver pays any duties and taxes before or on delivery. The courier may add a clearance or disbursement fee.
- Moving there?
- If you are moving to Australia, unaccompanied personal effects (UPEs) sent by air, sea, or post can come in free of duty and GST. You must be 18 or over, arrive from outside Australia as a passenger or crew member, and arrange the shipping before you arrive. Furniture, household goods, and most personal effects must have been owned and used by you for 12 months before you leave for Australia. Clothing, footwear, and toiletries have no ownership period but need Australian citizenship, a permanent visa, or a special category visa. Alcohol, tobacco, vehicles, inherited goods, goods for sale, and anything sent after you arrive are not covered. Lodge form B534.
Not allowed into Australia
- Aerosols, spray cans, and compressed gas cylinders
- Flammable liquids and solids: fuel, lighter fluid, paint, nail polish, matches
- Loose or spare lithium batteries and power banks not installed in a device
- Cash, gift cards, checks, and other negotiable items
- Firearms, ammunition, replicas, and weapon parts
- Perishable food, and meat, dairy, or fresh produce
- Cannabis, CBD, and THC products, even where they are legal at origin
- Vaping goods of any kind, with or without nicotine, even with a prescription
United Kingdom to Australia: questions
How long does it take to ship boxes from United Kingdom to Australia?
Typically 4 to 7 business days door to door after pickup, plus any time customs in Australia takes to clear the shipment.
Do I pay duty on used belongings sent to Australia?
AUD 1,000 (about $710) for most goods. Shipments worth AUD 1,000 or less generally pay no duty, GST, or charges at the border. Alcohol and tobacco are taxed at any value. Gifts get no separate allowance, and a parcel can't be split into smaller items to stay under the limit. Above AUD 1,000, duty, GST, and processing charges apply unless a concession fits. Shipments are sent DAP. The receiver pays any duties and taxes before or on delivery. The courier may add a clearance or disbursement fee.
What paperwork do I need to send boxes from United Kingdom?
A commercial invoice listing what's in each box and what it's worth today. Onvoyo prepares it from your contents list for you to review and approve. Sending your own belongings out of the UK is straightforward for everyday things. The courier prepares the export paperwork from your packing list. The UK rules that matter most are export licenses for antiques and art, and the import rules where the boxes land.
Do I pay duty on used belongings sent to Australia?
Not if you are moving there, have owned and used them for 12 months, arrange the shipping before you fly, and lodge form B534. Otherwise, shipments worth AUD 1,000 or less usually pay nothing at the border, and larger ones pay duty, 10% GST, and processing charges.
What is form B534 and how do I lodge it?
It is the Australian Border Force statement for unaccompanied personal effects. It claims duty and GST relief and is also a legal declaration to the biosecurity department. Lodge it in person with a 100-point ID check, by email to your state's Border Force office, or through a customs broker.
Can I send a gift to Australia duty-free?
Yes, if the shipment is worth AUD 1,000 or less and has no alcohol or tobacco. There is no separate gift allowance, so a gift worth more pays duty, GST, and charges like any other goods.
Official sources
Export rules for United Kingdom and import rules for Australia, checked against these official pages. Customs makes the final decision on every shipment.
- 1.Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Animal and Plant Health Agency, and Border Force · Bringing food into Great Britain (opens in a new tab)
- 2.Home Office · Travelling with medicine containing controlled drugs (opens in a new tab)
- 3.Department for Culture, Media and Sport · Exporting or importing objects of cultural interest (opens in a new tab)
- 4.Australian Border Force · Unaccompanied Personal Effects (opens in a new tab)
- 5.Australian Border Force · Import declarations (opens in a new tab)
- 6.Australian Border Force · Import Processing Charges (opens in a new tab)
- 7.Australian Border Force · GST and other taxes when importing (opens in a new tab)
- 8.Australian Taxation Office · GST on low value imported goods (opens in a new tab)
- 9.Australian Border Force · List of prohibited items (opens in a new tab)
- 10.Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry · Moving to Australia or importing personal effects/household goods (opens in a new tab)
- 11.Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry · Bringing or mailing goods to Australia (opens in a new tab)
Going the other way? Ship boxes from Australia to United Kingdom