Your parcel isn’t stuck. It just has a bill to settle.
We help with that…
US Duty Payment
Everything You Ever Wondered About Duties, Customs, and DDU
At Mark 3 International, we like to keep shipping as smooth as silk. That includes explaining exactly what’s going on when we mention DDU and what it means for you. Read on for more clarity and less confusion…
Q. Why am I getting a duty request from Mark 3 (and is it time to panic)?
Firstly, no panic needed. If you’ve ordered goods from outside of the US, they’re subject to duty and tariffs when they arrive.
It can be tricky to calculate the duty and tariffs required by customs for items, so sellers ask us to do it for them—swiftly and accurately—when your goods are on their way. This means you won’t have paid the duty or tariffs when you checked out and the shipper has not paid them in advance either. To get your goods you need to pay as they arrive in the US.
This is known as DDU.
Here’s everything you need to know about DDU (Delivered Duty Unpaid) shipments…
What is DDU?
DDU stands for Delivered Duty Unpaid.
No matter where in the world you are, it’s one of the ways we get your shipment to you.
In simple terms, this means that when you purchased your items from the seller, duties and taxes weren’t paid and instead, would be charged when your goods enter the US.
As part of the service we provide to our customers, we contact you, the recipient, to collect the duties and taxes and ensure your goodies can get to you as soon as possible.
Here’s How Your Order Gets to You and How DDU Works (Step-by-Step) 📦
You order. Easy!
Your item is packed & sent. The shipper gets it ready for you.
Heads-up from us. We’ll email to say it’s on the way and that a duty payment link is coming soon.*
We do the maths. When your shipment reaches us, we calculate the US duty & taxes due.
Quick pay, quick play. We email your total with a secure payment link.
Hold tight (briefly). Your parcel stays in the UK until duty is paid—paying promptly avoids delays.
We clear customs. We settle the duty and handle all the border paperwork.
On the move! Your parcel ships to you and is delivered a few days later. 🎉
Duty/tax amounts are set by the U.S. Government and depend on the item and its value.
Security tip: We’ll never ask for card details by phone. Only pay via our secure email link. If something looks off, contact our support team before paying.
What You’ll Get from Us:
A clear, upfront notification that duties are due (if any)
A simple, secure link or payment process
No delays. No surprises. No mystery paperwork (mysteries are for Netflix)
For more info, check out the frequently asked questions below…
Your DDU Questions, Answered
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DDU = Delivered Duty Unpaid.
It means we handle the journey—packing, paperwork, shipping to your country—then you handle any customs duties, tariffs, or local import fees when it gets there. -
In the first instance, you should speak to the retailer you purchased your order from and they should be able to answer any questions you have.
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As soon as we receive the parcel we will calculate the duty and tariff costs. We will send you a payment link for you to complete the payment. Once you have paid using this link the shipment will be sent to you.
A secure way to pay – we will only ever send you secure link via email to pay
And a fast track to delivery 🚚💨
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We use Stripe to manage our payments. Stripe will email you a receipt for your transaction.
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We will give you 5-days to make the payment and we will send you a reminder, ultimately if you don’t pay we will return your shipment to the sender. If you decide you don’t want to pay your duty you do not need to contact us, just don’t pay using the link and on the 6th day we will return the shipment to the sender.
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Absolutely! The shipper will have provided you with a tracking link for the carrier who is sending you your shipment.
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We work with a huge number of carriers in the US and around the world, the specific carrier that will deliver to you will be decided by the shipper. You should be able to track your shipment using the information sent to you by the shipper, your delivery courier will provide you with updates once the parcel has been passed to them. This is usually within a few days of you paying your duty bill.
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ItemWe have been around for more than 30 years, supporting small parcel and express deliveries in the US, UK and around the world. We have worked in the background, helping them manage airfreight and clearance and ensuring their shipments could depart and arrive in the right countries without any delays. For most of that time we’ve been able to clear shipments coming into the US without any duty being needed because of something called de minimis, that was a value limit of $800, under which no duty was payable if it was going to a private individual in the US.
The de miminis was removed on August 29th and now all commercial shipments coming into the US have a duty charge on them, regardless of their value. This means, where our customers ask us to, we now contact their customers directly to collect duty for their goods. So, now, we’re not quite as invisible as we used to be.