This applies to both gifts between private persons and goods ordered from online stores.
Kaari Lainevool, Service Owner at the ETCB’s Customs Department, emphasises that the number of parcels arriving from outside the EU increases significantly during the Christmas season. “In order for gifts to reach the recipients without any problems, it is important to follow the declaration rules,” says Lainevool, adding that information about declaring packages and paying VAT can be found in the ETCB’s online article on the subject. “There is also a direct link to the parcel declaration environment in the article,” said Lainevool.
It is important to know that sending certain goods to Estonia may be prohibited or restricted, especially in connection with the sanctions imposed on Russia. “The movement of sanctioned goods is under close attention from the customs,” warns Lainevool. Common gifts such as cosmetics or CDs, which were previously common in parcels, may now be on the list of prohibited items.
Christmas is a time of giving and sharing, and to ensure your gifts arrive successfully, it's important to follow customs rules and be aware of potential restrictions. Plan your parcel shipments carefully and early to ensure happy holidays for both the sender and the recipient.
The ABC of declaring parcels
- Order international packages early. The holiday season is the busiest time of the year for postal workers, so some delays in the delivery of packages should be expected.
- VAT exemption for gifts worth up to 45 euros. A gift from outside the European Union, the value of which does not exceed 45 euros, is exempt from VAT, but only if the sender and recipient of the package are private persons. This VAT exemption does not apply to sales transactions between private persons when the customer plans to gift the ordered item to someone.
- VAT on parcels which cost up to 150 euros. In the case of a parcel purchased outside the European Union with a value of up to 150 euros, to receive the parcel, the recipient of the parcel must pay additional VAT calculated on the value of the goods and the shipping costs.
- If an online store or sales platform has joined the IOSS special scheme, you can pay VAT conveniently at the time of purchase. This means that VAT is added to the price of the goods and when the goods arrive in Estonia, it is not necessary to pay additional VAT.
- In addition to VAT, packages worth over 150 euros are subject to customs duties. For orders or packages arriving from outside the European Union, the value of which exceeds 150 euros, the recipient must pay customs duty in addition to VAT to receive the package.
- Use the customs duty calculator. The size of customs duty depends on the type of goods, customs value, country of origin and, in certain cases, the quantity of the goods. To calculate the indicative customs duty of the goods, use the ETCB’s customs duty calculator.
- Declare parcels yourself. You can complete the declaration yourself, free of charge, in e-MTA. For declaring, you need the notification of arrival of goods, reference number of previous document and number of transport document, as well as a document proving the value of goods. Even with gifts, you need to know the value of the items!
- Authorise the service provider. As an alternative, you can authorise a postal or courier service provider to complete the declaration. This is a paid service.
- Help is within reach or a phone call away. If you get stuck with the declaration process or don't have access to a computer, know that both ETCB’s and Omniva’s customer service will help you.
- More information on the dedicated ETCB’s website.
- Shipments from and to Russia. If you are expecting a parcel from Russia or want to send a package there, it is important to check the list of goods subject to sanctions. Sending gifts from one private person to another is not exempt from sanctions.
- When ordering goods from online stores, always check your data in the online store and in the Omniva’s self-service environment to avoid not receiving parcel notifications. The phone number and e-mail address are particularly important.
- To avoid scams, you can check whether the parcel number sent in a message or e-mail actually exists in the parcel carrier's self-service environment.
