Short answer: an Oopbuy parcel to Germany pays German import VAT (19% on most goods, 7% on a few like books) and, since 1 July 2026, customs duty: a flat €3 per item type on online orders worth up to €150. German customs expects to add a €2 handling fee per item type from 1 November 2026. If the delivery company has to collect these charges, it usually adds its own fee on top: Deutsche Post charges €7.50.

Germany's customs office (the Zoll) explains the new rules more clearly than most, so this page leans on what it says directly. The EU-wide background is in my EU customs and VAT guide; here's what matters when your Oopbuy parcel is headed to a German address.

What you pay on a parcel to Germany

  • Import VAT (Einfuhrumsatzsteuer): 19%, or 7% for some goods like books and food. It's calculated on the customs value plus the duty, and the customs value includes the postage you paid.
  • Customs duty: €3 per item type on online orders worth up to €150. For other parcels up to €150, and for anything above €150, the normal duty rate for the product applies.
  • The handling fee (Abfertigungspauschale), expected from 1 November 2026: €2 per item type, whatever the parcel is worth.
  • The delivery company's service fee, if it pays customs for you. Deutsche Post charges €7.50. Other carriers list theirs in their terms.

German customs' own example

The Zoll uses socks to explain it. Four pairs of socks in one parcel are one item type: €3 duty, plus €2 handling fee once that starts. Four pairs of socks, a plush toy and a phone charging cable are three item types: €9 duty, plus €6 handling fee. Same parcel, three times the fixed charges.

A worked example with VAT

Example numbers, not a quote. Say your parcel holds a jacket (€60) and a cap (€15), with €25 shipping, nothing paid upfront, and the parcel falls under the €3 rate:

  • Customs duty: two item types × €3 = €6
  • Import VAT: 19% of €106 (€75 goods + €25 shipping + €6 duty) = €20.14
  • Deutsche Post fee, if it delivers and collects: €7.50

That's €33.64 at the door, and from November the expected €2-per-item-type handling fee comes on top. If Oopbuy already collected the VAT when you submitted the parcel, that part drops off.

How paying works in Germany

In most cases the delivery company files the customs declaration for you, pays the charges to customs upfront and collects them from you on delivery. With Deutsche Post you pay in cash at the door or at the branch when you pick the parcel up. Its €7.50 fee doesn't apply when you have no import charges to pay, or when you clear the parcel yourself at an inland customs office.

German customs also tells shoppers to check, before ordering, whether the flat duty is already in the price or whether you'll be handling customs yourself. With an agent, that check happens at the shipping step.

What Oopbuy handles

Oopbuy's customs page says that for parcels worth up to €150 its system generally collects the VAT when you submit the parcel. If that runs through the EU's import scheme for online sellers (IOSS), German customs says no extra import VAT is charged at customs on goods up to €150, though a carrier can still charge a service fee.

When I checked on October 21, 2026, Oopbuy's page didn't mention the €3 duty or the coming handling fee. So look at your line before you pay for shipping. If it doesn't say duties are included, plan on paying them at the door.

My take: the fixed charges hurt most on small, mixed parcels. One parcel with a few item types, kept at €150 or less, is usually the cheapest way through customs now. Splitting into lots of small parcels can mean paying the €3 again for the same item type, plus a carrier fee per parcel.

Build one good parcel

Pick your finds from the free Oopbuy spreadsheet, then sign up to Oopbuy with code BEVERLY.

Sign up to Oopbuy · Code BEVERLY

How long shipping to Germany takes

Oopbuy doesn't list a delivery time for Germany, and its help pages give two different general ranges: 5 to 12 days from the warehouse to your address on one page, about 15 to 30 days depending on the destination on another. I won't add a third guess. Check the estimate for the line you pick in Oopbuy's shipping calculator, choose a line with tracking, and leave a few days for customs. How lines and weight pricing work is in Oopbuy shipping explained.

Sources

All checked on October 21, 2026.

  1. Zoll: Internetbestellungen (German): €3 duty, handling fee, VAT rates and base, postage, carrier fees, IOSS.
  2. Zoll press release, 29 June 2026: end of the €150 duty-free limit (German): socks example, checking the price before ordering.
  3. Zoll: Wegfall der 150-Euro-Zollfreigrenze (German): handling fee from 1 November 2026, current status.
  4. DHL / Deutsche Post: help with import duties: the €7.50 disbursement fee and how to pay.
  5. Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382 (EUR-Lex): the €3 duty from 1 July 2026.
  6. Your Europe: VAT rules and rates: 19% standard rate in Germany.
  7. Oopbuy: Customs and Taxation, Delivery Notice and Delivery Time.