2026-2027 rates from the Tariff Act schedule, amended to 1 July 2026

What will Bahamas Customsactually charge?

You found the deal. Now for the part nobody tells you: duty is only the first of four charges. Name the item, type what you paid, and watch the real bill build line by line, exactly the way the officer adds it up.

The item

10%

What you paid the seller

Freight and insurance

Freight was paid to

Most looked up

Your estimateCell phoneCourier parcel (C18A), filed by your courier

Heading 8517

DutyVATProcessing feeLevy

Dutiable value$200.00

Duty at 10%$20.00

Processing fee, 1%$10.00

Environmental levy$5.00

Freight and insurance$20.00

Landed cost$255.00

VAT, 10% of landed cost$25.50

Paid to Customs30% of what you paid for it$60.50

Freight paid to your courier is not dutiable, but it joins the landed cost that VAT is charged on.

One more thing: your courier adds its own handling fee on top of this. Customs values goods on the price you actually paid, so keep that invoice.

All 247 rates

247 items with current rates · 285 licensed couriers and brokers

Got your number? Here is what people do next.

Every name in the directory comes straight from the Customs Department’s own licensed listings. If a company is here, Customs has cleared it to handle your shipment. If it is not here, ask it why before you hand over your goods.

Find a licensed courier82 couriers and forwarders for online orders and parcels, each with a phone number and island. Your courier files the C18A parcel list and collects what you owe, so you never stand in a Customs line.Browse couriers Find a customs broker236 brokers for cars, boats, containers and commercial stock, filtered by island. Your broker files the C13 entry in Click2Clear and speaks to Customs on your behalf.Browse brokers Coming home with luggageKnow your allowance, what counts against it, and how to file the C17 in the Exempt app before you land, so you walk through instead of waiting.Check your allowance

Where the money goes

Duty is only part of the bill. Duty free is not tax free.

Here is what catches most people out. Customs charges four things on almost every parcel: the duty rate for the item, a 1% processing fee with a $10 minimum, any environmental levy, and 10% VAT on the landed cost. And the landed cost includes your freight, even when the freight itself was not dutiable.

A $1,200 laptop, rated free, with $110 freightDuty: nothing. You still pay a $12 fee, a $5 levy and $132.70 in VAT. That is $149.70 to Customs on a “duty free” laptop.

The Customs booklet works a $400 television the same way, though its printed total leaves out the $10 fee it lists. Every figure here follows the booklet’s stated method, fee included.

An $800 cell phone, by courierFreight $40, paid to the courier

$80

$93.50

Duty, 10%: $80The tariff rate on the item’s value.

VAT, 10%: $93.50Charged on the landed cost of $935, freight included. Notice it is bigger than the duty.

Processing fee: $101% of $800 is $8, so the $10 minimum applies.

Environmental levy: $5A flat $5 on every cell phone.

Paid to Customs24% of the phone’s price, on top of the $800 you paid the store$188.50

Frequently imported items

The Customs booklet, turned into a live table. Pick any row and it drops straight into the full estimate. Rates are banded by colour and always written out, so nothing depends on colour alone.

ItemCategoryHeadingDutyEnvironmental levy

TelevisionElectronics852835%$5 eaDetails Cell phoneElectronics851710%$5 eaDetails Laptop or desktop computerElectronics8471Free$5 eaDetails Video game consoleElectronics950445%NoneDetails RefrigeratorAppliances8418Free$15 eaDetails Washing machineAppliances84505%$15 eaDetails SneakersClothing and accessories640420%NoneDetails MattressHome940460%NoneDetails

Showing 8 of 247 itemsAll 247 items

Reading the bandsFreeduty free, VAT and fee still apply10%up to 10%35%15 to 35%60%40% and above$ per unitcharged per unit

Who can bring it in

Both lists come from the Customs Department’s licensed listings, searchable by island. Licences and bonds renew by 31 March each year, so a name here is current, not a leftover.

285 licensed companies, listings dated 25 Aug and 2 Sep 2026

Couriers and forwarders82 on the listing

View all 82

Mr. Ship ItCourierNassau, New Providence242-603-5555

ZipX Bahamas LimitedCourierNassau, New Providence242-702-0213 FFedExCourierNassau, New Providence242-359-0560

Freeport Ship ServicesFreight forwarderFreeport, Grand Bahama242-727-5807

Customs brokers236 on the listing

View all 236

DSDarville's Brokers LimitedCustoms brokerNassau, New Providence242-393-5876 NBNational Brokerage Co. Ltd.Customs brokerNassau, New Providence242-357-4424

Pinder's Customs BrokerageFreight forwarderNassau, New Providence242-396-9050 AAArawak AgencyCustoms brokerMarsh Harbour, Abaco242-577-0028

Quick answers

The questions the Customs counter hears most, answered straight from the Department’s own booklet and website. Every answer links to its source, so you can check us.

Duty free means I pay nothing, right?

No. A free-rated item still pays the 1% processing fee (at least $10), any environmental levy and 10% VAT on the landed cost, freight included. Customs booklet

Is the shipping I paid taxed too?

Freight you paid to a separate courier is not dutiable, but it joins the landed cost that VAT is charged on. Shipping charged on the seller’s own invoice is part of the value Customs taxes. The estimate above has a switch for this. Customs booklet, valuation

Who files the paperwork for an online order?

Your courier does. It files the C18A parcel list, pays Customs and collects the duty, fee, levy and VAT from you with its own handling charge on top. Licensed couriers

When do I need a broker?

For vehicles, boats, containers, commercial stock and concession claims. The broker files the C13 entry in Click2Clear and deals with Customs for you. Cars also carry a $250 levy and a $10 security fee. Licensed brokers

What can I bring home without paying?

Residents get $500 of dutiable goods twice a calendar year, visitors $100 per trip. You must travel with the goods; a $600 phone pays duty on the $100 over. Declare on the C17 in the Exempt app. Customs, Arriving

How does Customs decide what my item is worth?

The price you actually paid comes first, so keep the invoice. Without one, Customs falls back to the value of identical, then similar, goods. Customs booklet, valuation

Travellers

Coming home with luggage? Duty is on the excess only.

Bring back more than your allowance and Customs charges only the amount over it, with no processing fee on accompanied baggage. File your C17 declaration in the Exempt app before you land and pay there too, and the counter becomes a formality.

Open the Exempt app Estimate my luggage duty

$500ResidentsTwice a calendar year. A $600 phone pays duty on $100.

$100VisitorsEach trip. Personal effects for the stay are not counted.

$10kReturning residentsHousehold effects, plus one vehicle to $30,000, once every five years.

Guides

Step-by-step walkthroughs of the questions people ask Customs most, written so you get it right the first time.

All guides

ShoppingOrdering from Amazon to The Bahamas: direct delivery, forwarders and what Customs chargesAmazon delivers to The Bahamas by DHL, free over $49 of eligible items, and collects an estimate of the Customs bill at checkout. Here is what that estimate covers, when a forwarder is the better route, and the real figures on a $200 order.6 min readRead the guide VehiclesClearing a car you bought in JapanWhat to budget before you bid, which papers must arrive before the ship does, and what your broker files so the car leaves the dock.6 min readRead the guide The billDuty free does not mean tax freeWhy a free-rated laptop still costs you $149.70 at the border, and how to work out the real number for anything you order.4 min readRead the guide ValuationHow Customs values your goodsThe price you paid comes first. Here is what happens when the invoice is missing, and the values Customs will refuse.4 min readRead the guide ImportingImporting into The Bahamas: duty, VAT, fees and who files whatThe whole picture in one read: the four Customs charges, the three ways goods arrive, the forms, the allowances, and the costs that are not Customs at all.8 min readRead the guide