Check the exact destination and product
Import charges depend on the destination, tariff classification, customs value and applicable exemptions. Do not use one clothing percentage for an order that mixes apparel, footwear, bags and accessories. Ask your customs broker to classify the goods and prepare an itemized estimate before ordering.
Taxes at import, island by island
| Destination | Official starting point | What to confirm |
|---|
| Aruba | Tax or customs authority | BBO/BAVP/BAZV combined: 7% at import. Confirm product-specific customs duty and exemptions. |
| Curaçao | Tax or customs authority | Confirm import OB, customs duty and exemptions. A domestic turnover-tax rate is not a product-specific import estimate. |
| Sint Maarten | Tax or customs authority | Check the declaration requirements and non-customs charges. Free-port status does not remove all business or handling costs. |
| Cayman Islands | Tax or customs authority | Use the product heading in the current Customs Tariff Act; confirm valuation and other charges. |
| Turks and Caicos | Tax or customs authority | Check the official tariff finder for the product code, then confirm all applicable import charges. |
| British Virgin Islands | Tax or customs authority | Confirm the current duty rate and valuation basis with Customs, including how freight and insurance are treated. |
| The Bahamas | Tax or customs authority | Standard VAT: 10%. Confirm product duty, applicable VAT treatment, processing and other fees. |
| Jamaica | Tax or customs authority | Confirm customs duty, GCT and applicable compliance, environmental and administrative charges. |
| Barbados | Tax or customs authority | Standard VAT: 17.5%. Confirm the product tariff, exemptions and other applicable charges. |
| St Lucia | Tax or customs authority | Standard VAT in the cited Act: 12.5%. Confirm current product treatment, duties and additional levies or fees. |
| Antigua and Barbuda | Tax or customs authority | Standard ABST: 17%. Confirm import duty, Revenue Recovery Charge and other applicable charges. |
Official sources checked November 1, 2026. General tax rates shown here are not the full amount payable for every product or transaction. Confirm the current tariff, tax base, exemptions and fees for your order with the destination authority or your broker.
How to budget your landed cost
- Start with the supplier invoice and confirm which freight or insurance charges it already includes.
- Add any separately quoted freight and insurance once.
- Use your broker's product classifications and customs values to calculate duties and taxes under the destination rules.
- Add applicable clearance, port and handling fees.
- Compare the itemized total with your merchandise quantities before setting retail prices.
Does buying from Panama change your duty?
Routing goods through Panama does not remove your destination's import requirements. Free-zone treatment depends on the transaction and applicable procedures. Ask our team and your broker to confirm the paperwork and charges for your order. See Colón Free Zone Law 8 of 2016, articles 53–54.
