If you return goods you paid customs charges on, HMRC will usually give the duty and VAT back. It is not automatic, and the form you need depends on who delivered the parcel.
Customs duty and import VAT are refundable if you send goods back and no longer have them. The courier's handling fee is not. That fee was payment for a service the courier already carried out, clearing your parcel through customs, so returning the goods afterwards does not undo the work.
HMRC uses two different routes depending on who delivered the parcel:
Businesses that are VAT registered generally cannot use the C285 route for import VAT and instead handle it through the Customs Declaration Service or their normal VAT return. If that is your situation, the guidance is different from what follows here, which is written for a private buyer reclaiming charges on a personal parcel.
VAT-registered business? If the goods are for your business, you can normally recover import VAT on your VAT return rather than with these forms: through postponed VAT accounting, or as input tax using your C79 certificate. See the questions further down this page.
Both routes ask for broadly the same evidence:
A packing list or transport document such as an air waybill helps but is not always required. Keep the original box, customs label and any paperwork that came with the parcel until the claim is settled, since HMRC can ask for more detail before deciding.
The C285 route is accessed through gov.uk and needs either a Government Gateway sign-in or an email address to receive a confirmation code. There is no paper alternative for most private claims now that the online service is the standard route.
HMRC aims to make a decision within 30 days of receiving a complete claim. That target assumes nothing is missing; if HMRC needs more information, the clock effectively resets while they wait for you to provide it, which is the most common cause of a claim taking longer than expected.
Time limit. You have 3 years from the date you paid the charges to make a claim. There is no need to rush a claim in on the day you return an item, but do not let it drift for years either, since the deadline is firm.
Say you paid £45 in import VAT and £8 in Royal Mail's handling fee on a jacket that turned out to be the wrong size, and you sent it back to the seller. You can claim the £45 back from HMRC using form BOR286, since Royal Mail delivered it. You cannot claim the £8 back from anyone, because Royal Mail already did the job that fee paid for. Whether the seller separately refunds you for the jacket itself is a matter between you and the seller, and has nothing to do with HMRC.
Yes, if your business is registered for VAT in the UK and the goods are for use in your business. With postponed VAT accounting you declare and recover the import VAT on the same VAT return. Otherwise you pay it when the goods arrive and recover it later as input tax on your VAT return.
A C79 certificate shows the import VAT a business paid through a duty deferment account. It is available online each month, usually by the 10th working day, and you can use it to help recover the VAT as input tax on your VAT return.
Sources: Check when you can account for import VAT on your VAT Return and Get your import VAT certificate (C79) on GOV.UK.
Knowing the charges in advance makes it easier to judge whether an order is worth the risk of a return. Our calculator estimates duty and VAT before you commit.
Related guides: Buying from the USA · Buying from China · Buying from the EU · Courier fees compared · Returning goods to the UK · Postponed VAT accounting · IOSS or reclaiming import VAT