Customs Clearance of Parcels and Express Cargo

Q: Do you clear parcels for individuals?

No. Trans-Hope clears commercial parcels and express cargo for legal entities and sole traders. Small personal shipments for individuals within the allowance are declared by the postal operator or express carrier itself.

Q: Does the EUR 150 allowance apply to commercial cargo?

No. The EUR 150 duty-free threshold is a personal allowance for individuals. A legal entity’s commercial shipment is taxed as a regular import: duty at the UKT ZED code rate plus 20% VAT, and excise where applicable.

Q: Which declaration is needed for commercial express cargo?

A full customs declaration (MD) with a UKT ZED code. The CN22/CN23/M-16 forms apply to personal postal shipments, not to commercial imports.

Q: What is needed to start clearance?

It is enough to send the invoice and a description of the goods. We select the UKT ZED code, check whether permits are required, calculate the charges and prepare the declaration.

Customs Clearance of Commercial Parcels and Express Cargo

Customs clearance of parcels and express cargo is the declaration of an international shipment and the payment of customs charges on import into Ukraine. Trans-Hope clears commercial cargo for legal entities: goods for sale, samples, spare parts, equipment, e-commerce stock. We do not clear small personal parcels for individuals — within the allowance these are declared by the carrier itself.

For a business, an express shipment is cleared as a full import: with a UKT ZED (HS) code, a full customs declaration and payment of duty and VAT. We clear in Kyiv, including air express through Boryspil airport, as well as in Odesa, Kharkiv and Dnipro.

When an Express Shipment Is a Commercial Import

A shipment is cleared as commercial cargo if at least one condition applies:

The consignee is a legal entity or sole trader, and the goods are imported for business activity.
The goods are intended for resale or business use (a batch, not a personal item).
Samples, spare parts, equipment for a company — even single units.
Regular or split shipments to one consignee that customs treats as commercial.

The personal duty-free allowance of EUR 150 per shipment applies only to individuals and does not apply to commercial imports — cargo for a legal entity is taxed as a regular import.

Charges on Commercial Cargo: Duty, VAT, Excise

A commercial shipment is subject to customs charges at rates tied to the goods’ UKT ZED (HS) code.

Customs charges on commercial express cargo
Charge	How it is calculated
Import duty	At the UKT ZED code rate (depends on the goods; for many items 0–10%)
VAT	20% of the customs value including duty
Excise	For excisable goods (at separate rates)
Customs value	Invoice value of the goods + delivery cost

How duty, VAT and excise are calculated on import and what the base depends on is shown by the calculation of import customs payments.

Personal Parcel or Commercial Cargo

The status of the shipment determines who declares the cargo and on which form. Trans-Hope works with the commercial segment.

Personal parcel vs commercial cargo: the difference
Criterion	Personal parcel (individual)	Commercial cargo (legal entity)
Who declares	Postal operator / carrier	Importer through a customs broker
Declaration	CN22 / CN23 / M-16	Full customs declaration (MD)
Duty-free allowance	Up to EUR 150 per shipment	Not applicable — taxed as import
UKT ZED code	Usually not required	Mandatory
Documents	Invoice / description	Invoice, contract, UKT ZED code, permits

Documents for Clearing Commercial Cargo

Invoice with a description, quantity and value of the goods;
Foreign trade contract or invoice-contract;
Carrier’s shipping documents (waybill, M-16);
The goods’ UKT ZED code and technical description/specifications;
Permits by type of goods — certificates, sanitary-epidemiological conclusion (SEZ), veterinary, licences (if required).

Declaration Forms: When a Full Declaration Is Needed

International shipments are declared on various forms, but a legal entity’s commercial import requires a full customs declaration.

CN22 / CN23 — postal forms for individuals’ shipments (small packets and parcels with a declared value).
M-16 — an electronic declaration for international express and postal shipments.
Full customs declaration (MD) — for a legal entity’s commercial cargo: with a UKT ZED code, a charges calculation and permits.

Do you clear parcels for individuals?

Does the EUR 150 allowance apply to commercial cargo?

Which declaration is needed for commercial express cargo?

What is needed to start clearance?

How Clearance Works with Trans-Hope

We handle a commercial shipment from documents to release.

How to clear commercial express cargo or a parcel

The steps of clearing a commercial international shipment for a legal entity on import into Ukraine.

⏱ from a few hours · 💰 depends on the goods’ code and customs value

Send the documents

Invoice, goods description, shipment and consignee details.
We determine the UKT ZED code

We select the code and check whether permits are required.
We calculate the charges

Duty at the code rate, 20% VAT and, where applicable, excise.
We prepare the declaration

We file a full customs declaration for the commercial cargo.
We clear customs control

We submit the declaration and support the inspection at the post.
Release and delivery

After the charges are paid, the cargo is released to the consignee.

Common Problems and How We Solve Them

Undervaluation — customs adjusts the customs value; we help confirm the price and, if needed, appeal the adjustment.
Customs delay — the cargo is held for inspection; we prepare the documents and resolve the inspector’s questions.
No permits — we determine what is required by the goods’ code and help obtain it.
Wrong UKT ZED code — we clarify the classification and recalculate the charges.

Complex and stuck shipments are handled by a customs broker — with full support at the post.

Courier and Postal Services We Work With

In Kyiv and its suburbs, international shipments are delivered by the main express and postal carriers: DHL, FedEx, UPS, TNT, EMS and Ukrposhta, as well as TMM Express. A significant part of the cargo terminals and customs warehouses is located near Boryspil airport, where air express arrives. Addresses of offices and terminals in Kyiv and the region:

DHL Express — Kyiv, 9 Luhova St.;
FedEx — Kyiv region, Boryspil district, Hora village, 21Zh Tsentralna St.;
UPS — Kyiv, 20A Molodohvardiiska St.;
TNT — Kyiv region, Boryspil district, Hora village, 21Zh Tsentralna St. (FedEx group);
EMS — Ukrposhta’s international express service; shipments are processed through its network;
Ukrposhta — Kyiv, 22 Khreshchatyk St. (head office);
TMM Express — Kyiv region, Boryspil district, Prolisky village, 1 Brovarska St.

Each service has its own page with the address, delivery rates, advantages and disadvantages:

Commercial Cargo Clearance with Trans-Hope

Trans-Hope has operated in foreign trade since 2009 and clears commercial parcels and express cargo for legal entities in Kyiv, including air express through Boryspil airport, as well as in Odesa, Kharkiv and Dnipro. We select the UKT ZED code, calculate the charges, prepare the full declaration and carry the cargo through to release. To get a quote, send us the invoice and a description of the goods.