International shipping and import charges

We are based in the UK and ship to customers worldwide.

Shipping import and customs can vary significantly from country to country so please be aware of the various shipping terms before completing your order for delivery outside the UK. Obviously we do our best to advise and help but shipping internationally is not quite the same as within the UK.

Available Shipping Rates

▶️ Flat rate cost of £15 on orders under £300 (Most EU countries)
▶️ Flat rate cost of £25 on orders under £350 (Non-EU countries and selected EU destinations)
▶️ Free International Shipping rate available on orders starting from £300 

For a small selection of countries where they are either remote or have additional charges levied by couriers, we cannot offer free shipping and a flat rate charge is shown during checkout.

Taxes and Import Charges

All orders shipped outside the UK are sent DDU (Delivery Duties Unpaid) and:

1. By default, all prices on the site are shown in GBP/£ with UK VAT applied as standard, if you select a delivery address outside mainland UK this will be removed at checkout and the final price of your order will have no UK VAT included.
   If the website is showing prices in your local currency instead of GBP/£, we have been able to detect you are viewing it from outside the UK and in this instance, prices are then shown excluding UK VAT already.
2. International postage is displayed at checkout based on your location and items in your order and is either a flat rate fee or free depending on the total value of your order
3. Your items will be processed by the customs of the delivery country where they will charge the tax rate of that particular country and most likely also an import  and/or processing fee
   
4. The customer is fully responsible for any and all customs fees, tax and/or tariff charges and will need to pay the customs department before they release your order for delivery.

Please note that we have no control over the speed of local customs processing and it can vary significantly from country to country so please be patient when chasing your order if its status shows as being assessed by customs.

How much are the fees on my order going to be?

We can't give you an exact figure, but as a general guide, typically you will be expected to pay the VAT rate of your country along with an import and potentially a customs processing fee if your order is over a certain value.

To get an estimate of your total charges, we suggest using an AI tool such as Gemini, ChatGPT etc to ask it for a "landed cost" and give it the items you wish to order along with the prices and shipping cost and it will give you a reasonable estimation. Please note that this would only be an estimate and we cannot confirm that the figure provided is 100% accurate. 

Valuation and Documentation

All our shipments will be clearly labelled as items sold for retail and the value on the relevant customs documentaion will be accurately declared. We will not label an item as a gift or under-declare the retail value on any shipment as this impacts on our ability to correctly insure your order against loss or damage.

Tariffs applied to your order

Most of our products are made in Japan and the country of origin is accurately listed on customs documentation but please be aware that a selection of our products are made in other countries which depending on your location may be subject to import tariff charges applied by your country's government and are a charge that you are also responsible for paying to release your shipment for delivery.

If you would like clarification on the country of origin of any product on the website before you place your order please contact us and we will be happy to confirm for you.

EU Shipping - De minimis charges

Please note that for all orders shipped from the UK to the European Union from 1st July 2026, the EU has removed the historical 'de minimis' tax exemption for low-value goods. As a result, all shipments sent to EU consumers with a value of up to €150 are now subject to a flat customs duty of €3.00 per line item in your order, alongside standard local import VAT. This fee is applied directly by customs authorities to process the shipment across the border.

As per documentation published on 21 September 2026, the EU has announced a proposed customs handling fee of €2, which will be charged per customs import declaration line item, and applies to all B2C shipments entering the EU from 1 November 2026.

As the fee is applied at a customs import declaration line item level, rather than at a shipment level, shipments containing multiple item lines will incur multiple charges.

This new fee is in addition to the €3 duty per item line, which has been in place for B2C shipments below €150 since July 2026.

USA Shipping

All orders shipped to the USA may be subject to an ever changing selection of tariffs imposed by the US Government and changes to the de-minimus tax free limit may also impact on the final total for your order import cost. These are all charges that will be sent to you from US Customs and will require payment by the customer before the order is delivered. 

Rejected orders returned to us

When you place your order you are accepting the above terms for shipping outside the UK. If you decide to reject an order that has been shipped under the terms above because the import fees or charges are not acceptable to you, we will refund your order when the items are returned minus the original shipping fee charged to us and the cost of return shipping charges for which the courier company also charge us as we do not get this back.

If your order was shipped free and is returned due to your refusal to pay duties, we will deduct the cost to us of the original shipping along with the return charges for which  confirmation receipts can be provided on request. 

Will you ship to my country?

We ship worldwide with a range of services but some countries may be excluded at checkout as their shipping service is not always available. If you don't see your country listed, please contact us and if it's possible to ship to your country we will endeavour to help organise it.

Armed Forces and PO Boxes

It is not currently possible to ship to APO or any other PO box service internationally, all international shipments must be to the exact final address location and not a forwarding service.

If your order is returned due to this, we will deduct the cost to us of the shipping and any return fees for which a confirmation receipt can be provided on request.

Channel Islands and Northern Ireland

Whilst the Channel Islands are part of the UK, we send all our orders by courier and couriers classify the Channel Islands as an international destination because customs clearance documentation is required. Therefore, the UK delivery options are not eligible for orders being sent to the Channel Islands and we quote approximately 3-4 working days for delivery, subject to customs delays and duties.

Deliveries are fulfilled by courier and a variety of shipping options are available for selection during checkout based on the value and destination of your order.

Please note that you need to ensure that the country selected is Guernsey or Jersey (the Channel Islands) and NOT United Kingdom. If United Kingdom is selected as the country, you will be charged VAT, and your delivery may be delayed.

For orders being dispatched to Northern Ireland, under the Windor Framework from March 2025, due to the additional administration and documentation processing required we are unable to offer free shipping but a flat rate can be selected. We apologise for the unavoidable additional cost and inconvenience that we know this causes.

Enquiries

If you have any questions about an international shipment, please email hello@cuttingedgeknives.co.uk and we will do our best to help.