UPS brokerage fees are what UPS charges the importer for clearing a package through customs: preparing the customs entry, paying duties and taxes to the government on the importer’s behalf, and handling any extra paperwork. Many UPS Worldwide air services include routine clearance in the shipping charge. UPS Standard ground service to and from Canada bills clearance separately, which is where most surprise brokerage invoices come from.
By default, the person receiving the package pays these charges, not the sender. Whether a bill shows up depends on three things: the UPS service you choose, the value and type of the goods, and who you name as the payer of duties and taxes when you create the label.
Table of Contents
- What Are UPS Brokerage Fees?
- Which UPS Services Include Routine Customs Clearance?
- Why Are More Shipments Getting UPS Brokerage Fees?
- Who Pays UPS Brokerage Fees?
- How Can You Avoid or Reduce UPS Brokerage Fees?
- What Happens If UPS Brokerage Fees Aren’t Paid?
- How Does ParcelPath Lower the Cost of a UPS International Shipment?
- Frequently Asked Questions
What Are UPS Brokerage Fees?
Every commercial import has to be “entered” with the customs authority of the destination country. UPS does this for you through its customs brokerage arm, UPS Supply Chain Solutions, unless the importer names a different broker. The UPS rate and service guide says plainly that the importer is responsible for all brokerage fees, including duties and taxes.
A brokerage bill is not one fee. It is a set of separate line items, and only some of them apply to a given package. The government’s own charges, such as duty, are billed in addition to UPS’s service fees.
| Charge | What it covers | When it usually applies |
|---|---|---|
| Entry preparation | Preparing and filing the customs entry | Services without built-in clearance (such as UPS Standard to or from Canada), or entries beyond routine |
| Disbursement fee | UPS advancing duties and taxes to customs for you | Whenever UPS pays duty or tax on the importer’s behalf |
| Duty and tax forwarding | Billing duties and taxes to a payer outside the destination country | When the shipper or a third party abroad pays the duties |
| Additional consignee or invoice | Extra paperwork on one entry | More than one consignee or commercial invoice in a shipment |
| Complex entry | Formal or live entries, licensed goods, antidumping duty cases | Goods that need extra documentation from customs |
| Bonds | Single entry or continuous import bonds | Required under special circumstances; UPS contacts the importer first |
| Duties and taxes | Government charges set by the destination country | Depends on the goods, their value and their origin |
UPS publishes the amount of each service fee in its rate guide, and they change from time to time, so check the current guide for the figures. The structure above is what matters for avoiding them: each line has its own trigger.
Which UPS Services Include Routine Customs Clearance?
For shipments into the United States, UPS includes routine customs clearance (for entries of up to three entry lines) in the rates for UPS Worldwide Express Plus, Worldwide Express, Worldwide Saver, Worldwide Expedited, UPS 3 Day Select from Canada and UPS Standard from Mexico. That only holds when UPS’s designated brokerage offices do the clearance. Additional charges apply if another broker clears the package.
UPS Standard from Canada is the exception. UPS charges an entry preparation fee on UPS Standard imports from Canada valued above the de minimis level, and on lower-value Standard shipments that still need a formal entry. Going the other way, the guide says clearance is not included in UPS Standard to Canada rates: UPS acts as the broker and bills the Canadian importer unless the shipper says otherwise.
| UPS service | Routine clearance included? | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| UPS Worldwide Express Plus / Worldwide Express | Yes, when UPS clears it | Time-critical international parcels |
| UPS Worldwide Saver | Yes, when UPS clears it | End-of-day international delivery |
| UPS Worldwide Expedited | Yes, when UPS clears it | Less urgent international parcels |
| UPS Standard to/from Mexico | Yes, when UPS clears it | Ground shipments to Mexico |
| UPS Standard to Canada | No, billed to the importer | Ground shipments to Canada (2 to 7 business days) |
| UPS Standard from Canada | No, above de minimis or when an entry is required | Ground imports from Canada |
“Routine” is the key word. A disbursement fee can still apply when UPS pays duty for you, even on an air service. If you’re choosing between these services for speed as well as fees, our guide to the international services UPS offers compares them, and our breakdown of how long UPS takes to deliver covers transit times. For a closer look at one air option, see UPS Worldwide Saver.
Why Are More Shipments Getting UPS Brokerage Fees?
The biggest change is on the U.S. import side. As of 12:01 a.m. on August 29, 2025, U.S. Customs and Border Protection stopped granting duty-free de minimis treatment to goods from every country. Before that, most packages valued at $800 or less entered with little paperwork.
Low-value packages coming into the U.S. now generally owe duty and need an entry. More entries mean more chances for entry preparation and disbursement charges. UPS’s guide already ties its entry tiers to “$800.00 or current de minimis requirements set forth by law,” so the fee schedule follows the legal threshold.
Shipments into Canada still have low-value thresholds. The Canada Border Services Agency exempts some courier shipments from duty and taxes when their value for duty is under set limits, and goods from the U.S. and Mexico get higher limits under CUSMA, with conditions. Below those limits a Canadian recipient may owe no duty or tax at all, but a UPS Standard shipment that needs clearance can still be billed for it.
Who Pays UPS Brokerage Fees?
The importer, which is usually the recipient, pays by default. A shipper can take over the bill by choosing to pay duties and taxes when creating the label. In trade terms that is DDP (Delivered Duty Paid). The usual alternative, DAP (Delivered at Place), leaves the import charges with the buyer. The U.S. International Trade Administration’s Incoterms guide explains these terms, and our DDP shipping guide shows how sellers use it.
Paying DDP doesn’t make the fees go away. It moves them to the sender, and if the sender is billed outside the destination country, UPS adds a duty and tax forwarding charge. U.S. businesses that ship often to Canada can open a UPS Non-Resident Importer (NRI) account. The shipper then becomes the importer of record, and UPS charges all Canadian duties, taxes and brokerage to that account, so the recipient never deals with customs.
How Can You Avoid or Reduce UPS Brokerage Fees?
You can’t eliminate duties a country imposes. The service fees around them are another matter, and these are the steps that actually move the number:
- Pick a service with routine clearance built in. For U.S. imports and most exports, the UPS Worldwide air services include routine clearance when UPS clears the shipment. For Canada, compare that against UPS Standard plus a separate brokerage bill.
- Write a complete commercial invoice. A clear description, the correct value, the country of origin and an HS code keep an entry “routine.” Missing or vague details can push it into a complex entry or a customs hold.
- Keep one consignee and one invoice per shipment. UPS charges extra for each added consignee or invoice on an entry.
- Decide who pays before you ship. Surprise invoices cause refused deliveries. If you’re selling, quote DDP or tell the buyer up front that import charges are theirs.
- Use your own broker where it pays off. UPS Broker of Choice lets an importer use a different customs broker. It is a contracted, fee-based service, it isn’t available on UPS Standard, and the outside broker charges its own fees.
- Compare a postal option. USPS international mail is cleared through the destination country’s postal service, so there is no UPS brokerage bill. Duties and taxes still apply, and the destination post may add its own handling charge. Our comparison of the differences between UPS and USPS covers what you give up in speed and tracking.
Don’t split one order into several packages just to stay under a threshold. It adds labels and handling, and customs authorities look at the whole transaction.
Clean data also helps with tracking. A shipment held for missing information shows a customs exception in tracking, and our explainer on how UPS scans packages walks through what each scan means.
What Happens If UPS Brokerage Fees Aren’t Paid?
If the importer owes charges on delivery and won’t pay them, UPS won’t release the package. It stays with UPS, and if nobody settles the charges it can be returned to the sender. The return trip and any unpaid charges are typically billed to the shipper, so a refused international package often costs more than the original label.
Because the recipient has to pay before release, a COD-style delivery can also run into UPS’s attempt limits. Our guide to how many times UPS attempts delivery explains what happens after a missed attempt. To keep an eye on a held shipment, use the steps in our UPS tracking and delivery guide.
How Does ParcelPath Lower the Cost of a UPS International Shipment?
ParcelPath can’t remove UPS brokerage fees or duties. UPS and the destination government set those no matter where you buy the label. What ParcelPath lowers is the transportation charge: up to 85% off UPS and up to 89% off USPS rates. It is free to use, with no subscription, no per-label fee and no minimums.
That gives you a fair way to decide. Compare a UPS Worldwide service, where clearance is included, against UPS Standard plus a brokerage bill, and against a USPS international service, all in the ParcelPath rate calculator. If you don’t have a printer, UPS labels can be shown as a mobile barcode at a UPS Store. For Canada-specific planning, see how much it costs to ship to Canada.
Brokerage is one line in a larger UPS bill. Our roundup of delivery services compares service levels across carriers, and our list of the best shipping services and solutions helps you match a service to a lane.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did I get a UPS brokerage fee bill after delivery?
UPS acted as the customs broker for your import and billed you, the importer, for clearing it. This happens most often on UPS Standard shipments from Canada, where clearance isn’t built into the rate, and whenever UPS pays duties or taxes for you. In that case a disbursement fee is added to the government charges it advanced.
Are UPS brokerage fees included in Worldwide Express?
Routine customs clearance is included in UPS Worldwide Express, Worldwide Express Plus, Worldwide Saver and Worldwide Expedited rates when UPS’s designated brokerage offices clear the shipment. That covers entries of up to three entry lines. Duties and taxes are still owed, and a disbursement fee can apply if UPS pays them for you.
Can the sender pay UPS brokerage fees instead of the recipient?
Yes. The shipper can choose to pay duties and taxes when creating the label, which is the DDP model. The fees are then billed to the shipper instead of the recipient. If the payer is outside the destination country, UPS adds a duty and tax forwarding charge, and frequent Canada shippers can use a UPS Non-Resident Importer account.
Does USPS charge brokerage fees like UPS?
No. USPS international mail is cleared by the destination country’s postal service, so there is no UPS-style brokerage invoice. The recipient may still owe duties and taxes, and some postal services add their own handling charge for collecting them. USPS is often the simpler choice for low-value parcels, while UPS is faster and has more detailed tracking.
Sources
- UPS Rate and Service Guide: Customs Brokerage, Entry Preparation Charges, Duty and Tax Forwarding, Non-Resident Importer
- UPS: International Shipping Services
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection: Suspension of Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment fact sheet
- International Trade Administration: Know Your Incoterms
- Canada Border Services Agency: Importing casual goods by courier (cbsa-asfc.gc.ca)
- USPS: International Shipping
Part of our UPS Shipping Cost Breakdown guide. Related: UPS Discounts, UPS Shipping Rates on ParcelPath, UPS Shipping Rates by Weight.
