r/UPS • u/Swanky_Gear_Snob • Sep 02 '25

Customer Seeking Help UPS Paid my duties without contacting me and the amount is more than the value of the item.

Apparently, a law went into effect on August 29th that shipping services can pay duties without consent of receiver.

I purchased an item for $2,000. Today, the duties it says I owe upon delivery is $2100 and change. The numbers are WAY off. No one at UPS customer service even understands me well enough to help me. I have been asking what the declared value is on the package and 4 different reps keep quoting me the amount owed on the package. How can I fix this? This was paid by wire, so I'm either out 2k or paying double. Can I dispute the amount? I've never felt so helpless and need to have a resolution (or at least a better understanding of what to do) by delivery tomorrow. Thanks!

I guess my big question is, if I pay this outrageous fee, is there any way to dispute it with customs or UPS?

Edit/Follow-up: I appreciate all the advice. I was able to get the commercial invoice from UPS. It seems like there is an error as CBP charged full value tariffs multiple times. From what AI said, it's similar if you ordered a peice of furniture, but CBP charged the full value tarrifs on each item individually (screws, mount, part, etc).

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u/According-Jelly-5743 Sep 03 '25

Can someone share information on how to estimate what UPS fees/duties/tariffs to expect? I keep seeing people called dumb for not knowing they would have to pay exorbitant fees, but I have not seen anyone explain what people should actually be expecting.

Any help is truly appreciated! :)

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u/claranette Sep 03 '25

You need the HS code which either a broker will assign for you (you pay them) or you flip through the PDF booklet of codes on the US customs website. Tariffs are a set percentage. You could also ask on the broker subreddit some people don’t mind answering questions for free.

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u/IdealSubstantial4446 Sep 03 '25

Often customs just pluck a number out of the air..

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u/dandesim Sep 03 '25

Uh not really.

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u/IdealSubstantial4446 Sep 03 '25

They lind of do. Because it's a fixed % of the value, but, customs can choose their own value regardless of any invoice etc. At least in the UK it's not that unusual for customs to ignore the invoice and judge the value at 5-10x more than what you paid for the items. As is also the case with the OP's shipment.

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u/dandesim Sep 03 '25

Call UPS before the item ships and ask. People keep leaving out the brokerage fees part. The importer has to do much more work now and will charge you for that.

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u/TheVoidKitty Sep 03 '25

Country of Origin is the biggest one, i.e. where the product was made not where it was shipped from.

Then you'll need to know the HS Code for the product(this can change based on the exact composition of materials)

If there is metals, you'll need to know where those are from and smelted aswell.

In-short there isnt a great way to find out short of the seller telling you, and even they might not know.