Sales tax on international purchases usually isn’t collected by the foreign seller at checkout, but that doesn’t mean the purchase is tax-free. Your state almost certainly expects you to pay an equivalent use tax on the item, and as of August 2025 the federal government also charges customs duties on every shipment coming into the country, regardless of value. The total you owe can land well above the sticker price on the overseas site.
When a Foreign Seller Collects Sales Tax at Checkout
U.S. sales tax is a state charge, not a federal one, and a foreign seller only has to collect it if the seller has “nexus” in your state. Nexus is the legal connection that gives a state authority to require tax collection. It used to require a physical presence like a warehouse or employees, but the Supreme Court’s 2018 decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. ruled that states can also require collection based on economic activity alone.1Supreme Court of the United States. South Dakota v. Wayfair Inc.
Every state with a sales tax now uses some version of this economic nexus standard. Thresholds vary, but a common benchmark is $100,000 in annual sales into the state, and some states also count transaction volume. Most small overseas sellers never cross those lines in any single state, so direct orders from foreign websites usually arrive without sales tax added.
The picture flips when you buy through a large platform. Every sales-tax state has enacted marketplace facilitator laws that put the collection duty on the platform rather than the individual seller. If you order from an overseas seller through Amazon, eBay, or Etsy, the platform calculates the rate for your delivery address, adds the tax at checkout, and remits it to your state. The foreign seller’s own nexus is irrelevant. The practical rule: purchases through major marketplaces almost always include sales tax, while purchases direct from foreign websites usually don’t.
Rates follow your address, not the seller’s. A combined state and local rate of 9% at your home means 9% applies whether the item ships from across town or across an ocean. Five states skip the question entirely because they have no general sales tax: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon.
Use Tax: What You Owe When Nothing Was Collected
When no sales tax gets charged at checkout, the obligation doesn’t vanish. It shifts to you as “use tax,” which every sales-tax state imposes at the same rate as its sales tax. Use tax applies to goods you bought untaxed and then use, store, or consume in the state. An international purchase from a seller with no U.S. nexus is the textbook example.
Reporting is usually simple. Most states include a line on the annual income tax return for untaxed purchases, and many offer a lookup table tied to your income so you can pay a small flat amount instead of itemizing. Those tables are built for minor purchases without receipts. If you bought an expensive piece of electronics or furniture overseas, you should report the actual amount rather than relying on the table.
Individual compliance with use tax is low, and states rarely audit consumers over small sums. The legal obligation stands anyway. States can assess penalties and interest, and the statute of limitations on an unfiled return is often open-ended, meaning the state never loses the right to collect. For significant international spending, filing the use tax line is worth the minor effort.
Federal Customs Duties Now Apply to Every Shipment
For years, imports valued at $800 or less entered duty-free under the Section 321 de minimis exemption.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 U.S. Code 1321 – Administrative Exemptions That is no longer the case. Effective August 29, 2025, an executive order suspended the exemption for shipments from all countries.3The White House. Suspending Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment for All Countries A February 2026 order continued the suspension.4The White House. Continuing the Suspension of Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment for All Countries Every international shipment is now subject to duties and entry requirements.
How the duty gets calculated depends on how the package travels:5U.S. Customs and Border Protection. E-Commerce Frequently Asked Questions
- Packages shipped by private courier such as FedEx, UPS, or DHL must go through formal or informal entry in the government’s Automated Commercial Environment system. All applicable duties, taxes, and fees are assessed, and the carrier passes the charges to you.
- Packages sent through international postal services are subject to duties based on the tariff rate for the country of origin. CBP applies either an ad valorem duty (a percentage of the item’s value) or a flat per-package duty ranging from $80 to $200, depending on the applicable tariff rate.
The only carve-outs are humanitarian donations like food, clothing, and medicine, plus informational materials such as books, films, and news feeds.6Federal Register. Notice of Implementation of the Presidents Executive Order 14324 Suspending Duty-Free De Minimis For ordinary consumer orders, the small-package duty-free window is closed. A $30 accessory from abroad can now trigger federal charges that exceed the item’s price.
Customs duties are entirely separate from state sales tax. They are a federal charge collected by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at the border, and the rate varies by product type and country of origin.7International Trade Administration. Import Tariffs and Fees Overview and Resources A wool sweater from Italy faces a different rate than a ceramic mug from Japan. Sales tax, by contrast, is the same rate whether the goods are domestic or imported.
A common misunderstanding: a checkout total that includes shipping does not include customs duties. The seller can’t predict the exact duty amount, and brokerage fees for clearing the package are a separate charge the buyer pays.8U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Internet Purchases The real total on an international order can bundle the item price, shipping, customs duties, carrier brokerage fees, and state sales or use tax, each charged by a different party.
Carrier Brokerage and Processing Fees
Beyond taxes and duties, private shipping carriers charge their own fees for handling customs clearance. These are not government charges. They are service fees for doing the paperwork and advancing duty payments on your behalf, and they surprise many first-time international buyers.
Typical charges include a disbursement or customs clearance fee (covering the carrier advancing your duties and taxes to CBP before billing you), entry preparation charges for filing the customs paperwork, additional fees when goods require review by agencies like the FDA or EPA, a single-entry bond fee, and warehouse storage if a shipment sits beyond the free period. The total can add $10 to $50 or more per shipment.9UPS – United States. Understanding Import Fees Some sellers offer a “Delivered Duty Paid” option that prepays duties and brokerage so your checkout total is the real total.
Purchases You Carry Back in Your Luggage
If you travel abroad and bring purchases home personally, a different rule applies. Each returning U.S. resident can bring back up to $800 worth of goods acquired abroad duty-free, as long as the items accompany you and are for personal or household use.10eCFR. 19 CFR Part 148 – Personal Declarations and Exemptions The limit rises to $1,600 if you’re returning from U.S. insular possessions such as the U.S. Virgin Islands or Guam, with no more than $800 of that from goods acquired elsewhere.
This traveler exemption is distinct from the suspended de minimis rule for shipped goods. Walk through customs at the airport with items in your bag, and the $800 personal allowance still applies. Anything above it is dutiable, and you have to declare every item regardless of value. The exemption covers customs duty only. Your state can still expect use tax on items you bought abroad if no sales tax was collected.
Gifts Shipped from Overseas
Gifts sent to you from someone in another country have their own threshold. A bona fide gift valued at up to $100 can enter duty-free, provided one person doesn’t receive more than $100 in gifts on a single day.11U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Gifts The ceiling rises to $200 for gifts shipped from U.S. insular possessions. If any single item in the package is worth more than $100, the whole package becomes dutiable.
The gift allowance only applies to genuine gifts sent by individuals. Ordering something for yourself from an overseas retailer and labeling it a “gift” to dodge duties is customs fraud. State use tax on the value of a gift can still apply even when the package clears customs duty-free.