When you order from Shein, you will more than likely have to pay certain customs taxes and duties to have your shipment released to your courier service.
Overview
The South African customs offices inspect all goods that come into and go out of the country.
This includes shipments from online websites like Shein, that are sent to South Africa from another country. These shipments may incur various customs, duties, and taxes that need to be paid before the shipment can be released.
About customs
If you have ever imported items from a different country or even exported items out of the country, you have most likely been in contact with the South African customs offices.
The South African Customs Administration is responsible for inspecting and clearing all people and goods entering and exiting the borders of the country.
This includes the various sea, land, and airports, as well as four centralised processing centres that work to ensure the stability and health of the country.
The main priorities of any customs office is to oversee and manage the South African borders, to ensure that communities and industries in the country can thrive.
They also administer new trade policies and industry standards, and collect revenue through various tariffs.
Do you pay customs for Shein in South Africa?
When you order goods for personal use from an online retailer like Shein, your package will need to be cleared by the South African Customs Administration before it can be delivered to you.
Due to the strictness of these customs inspections, you may have to pay certain taxes and duties when your package arrives at the South African border.
Shein will not be able to inform you of what exactly these duties and taxes will amount to, as the final amounts are determined by customs after they have inspected your order.
However, Shein makes use of either Buffalo or Aramex as their logistics services in South Africa, and the company that was assigned to your order will let you know what the total amount is that you have to pay to have your package released and which payment methods you can use.
Which customs charges should you expect for a Shein order?
Any goods that are shipped into South Africa via a courier service should be accompanied by an original commercial invoice. The total of this commercial invoice will then be used to calculate the amounts for various customs taxes and duties.
Some of the charges that you can expect to be levied before your Shein order are released to the local logistics company, so that they can be delivered to your address are as follows:
- Clearance
- Disbursement fee
- Customs VAT
- Duties
The total of these fees is usually about 30 percent of your total order amount, which you can pay within three months, to have the shipment released from customs.
Tips for lower customs charges
Many people feel that they are blindsided by additional customs taxes and duties, when they have already paid for their order and maybe even for shipping costs.
As such, there are several tips and tricks that are believed to ensure that these customs fees remain as low as possible.
Accessories usually weigh less than clothing items. This means that if you order more accessories than clothing, for example 70 percent of accessories and only 30 percent of clothing, you could pay lower customs fees.
You can also contact Shein with your customs invoice and they may refund you a portion of your customs charges.
It is best to keep your total order amount between R1500 and R2000. This is because you will pay more customs on higher value shipments.
Using this method ensures that you still qualify for free standard shipping when you order from the Shein website, but keep your customs as low as possible.
How to track the progress of your order
Although the shipping and customs process does seem complicated, it is unavoidable. There are certain features that can help you to understand exactly where your package is in this process, like the order tracking feature on the Shein website and mobile app.
If you simply go to your orders page and click on the “Track” option, all of the details regarding where your order is and what the next steps are, will be displayed.
Final thoughts
Before goods and people can enter or exit South African borders, they will need to be inspected by customs.
Goods ordered online from Shein will likely be subject to various duties, taxes, and fees that differ on an order-to-order basis. You can also track and monitor this process on Shein’s website.
