Education
Sending Jewellery to Someone in Another Country
The recipient becomes the importer β which is the part that causes every unpleasant surprise.
Written by the Mapple Gems workshop, Surat Β· Updated 25 September 2026
Short answer
Whoever receives it is treated as the importer, so any duty and tax is charged to them β often at the door, before the parcel is handed over. The fix is to buy on a landed or duties-prepaid basis so nothing is owed on arrival. Marking a parcel as a gift does not exempt it in most places; gift allowances where they exist are small and conditional. And never under-declare the value β it voids the shipment insurance, which is a far larger risk than the duty.
Sending jewellery abroad β to a partner, a family member, a wedding party β is straightforward when it is set up correctly and unpleasant when it is not. The problems are all administrative rather than logistical.
Under-declaring the value to reduce duty is the one shortcut that turns a small cost into a total loss, and it is offered surprisingly often. A shipmentβs insurance is written against its declared value. If a parcel is declared at a fraction of what is inside it and then goes missing or is damaged, the cover pays out against the declared figure β so the difference is simply gone, and there is no argument to be had, because the paperwork you signed says what it says. On top of that, under-declaration is a customs offence in essentially every jurisdiction, with penalties falling on the recipient as importer of record: seizure, fines, and a flag on future shipments to that address. The duty on a piece of jewellery is a modest, known, one-off cost. The downside of misdeclaring it is the entire value of the piece plus a legal problem for the person you are sending a gift to. Declare it accurately, and if the cost is the issue, solve it by choosing a landed price rather than by changing a number.
Set it up so nothing is owed at the door
| Decision | What to choose |
|---|---|
| Duty terms | Landed / prepaid, not payable on delivery |
| Declared value | Accurate β it is what insurance pays |
| Delivery | Signature required; recipient present |
| Recipient details | Their phone number, not yours |
| Packaging | Plain outer, and confirm the sender name |
| Paperwork | Keep the invoice and customs copy |
The fourth row causes more failed deliveries than anything else. Carriers frequently need to contact the recipient about clearance or delivery, and if the number on the waybill is the senderβs in another time zone, the parcel sits at a depot.
βMark it as a giftβ
Widely suggested and largely ineffective. Some countries have a low-value gift allowance between private individuals, but the thresholds are typically small β well below the value of most fine jewellery β and the conditions are specific: genuinely person to person, no commercial invoice, not a purchase shipped by a retailer.
A ring bought from a business and shipped to a recipient is a commercial import regardless of the occasion, and ticking a gift box on the waybill does not change that. It can, however, complicate a claim if the parcel is lost, since the paperwork no longer matches the transaction.
Rules and thresholds vary by country and change β check the destinationβs official customs guidance rather than a forum post.
What differs by destination
Enough to be worth a five-minute check before ordering. Duty may be charged as a percentage of value in most markets, but by weight in Switzerland, and not at all on jewellery in Singapore. New Zealandβs threshold is based on total revenue owed rather than the goods value. Canada adds a brokerage fee that surprises people more than the duty itself.
Hallmarking obligations also differ β mandatory in the UK, France, the Netherlands, Ireland and Switzerland, voluntary or absent elsewhere β which matters if the piece may later be resold or valued locally.
And note who bears what: the recipient is the importer of record even when you paid. If they would find a customs interaction awkward or inconvenient, a landed price removes it entirely.
Insurance, which ends sooner than people think
Shipment cover ends at the signature. That is the point of delivery and the sellerβs risk stops there β so a βleave in a safe placeβ instruction, which some carriers apply automatically from account settings, both increases the risk and voids the cover.
Two consequences for a gift. Tell the recipient to be present and sign. And be aware there is usually a gap afterwards: the sellerβs cover has ended and the recipientβs own policy has not started, because they do not yet know about the piece. If it will sit unworn for weeks before an occasion, that gap is real.
If it needs to be resized
The practical trap on international gifts. A resize means the piece travels back, is worked on, and travels out again β a second customs clearance in each direction and typically three to four weeks door to door.
So on a gift for a fixed date, either establish the size properly beforehand β the inner diameter of an existing ring in millimetres, never a converted size β or accept that adjustment happens afterwards. And if the size is uncertain, err slightly loose: a loose ring can be worn carefully; a tight one cannot be worn at all.
For genuinely uncertain sizes, the more forgiving categories are worth considering: studs, a pendant, a bracelet with adjustment, or a plain band chosen together later.
Keep reading
Frequently asked questions
Who pays customs duty on jewellery sent as a gift?
The recipient, as importer of record β often at the door before the parcel is released. Buying on a landed or duties-prepaid basis moves that cost to the sender so nothing is owed on arrival, which also removes an awkward interaction from what is meant to be a gift.
Does marking a parcel as a gift avoid duty?
Usually not. Some countries have a low-value gift allowance between private individuals, but the thresholds are typically well below the value of fine jewellery and the conditions are specific. A piece bought from a business and shipped to a recipient is a commercial import regardless of the occasion.
Can I declare a lower value to reduce the duty?
No. Insurance pays against the declared value, so a lost or damaged parcel pays out at the lower figure and the difference is gone. Under-declaration is also a customs offence in essentially every jurisdiction, with penalties falling on the recipient as importer of record.
Whose phone number should be on the shipment?
The recipientβs. Carriers frequently need to contact them about clearance or delivery, and a senderβs number in another time zone is the commonest reason a parcel sits at a depot. Also arrange for them to be present, since jewellery requires a signature and cover ends at that signature.
Tell us it is going to someone else, at the order stage.
Landed pricing, the right phone number and plain packaging are all easy to arrange early and awkward to fix once it has shipped.
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