The inbound leg is not the outbound one reversed, and the most common mistake is to price it from a UK page. Every company in this record is a UK sender's supplier and prices a leg that starts in the UK, so none of them publishes a figure for a parcel starting in America. What can be stated precisely is the charging position on arrival, which is where the surprises happen: UK import VAT and any duty fall on the recipient here, with a carrier handling fee on top.
Why there is no published inbound price
Parcel2Go's USA page is an outbound page, pricing services that collect in the UK and deliver in America. Parcelforce's USA directory entry describes the service and customs position for goods leaving the UK. A parcel starting in the United States is sold by a US carrier or broker, priced in dollars against a US collection, and no conversion of the outbound figure produces it. Get the quote from the US side. If a UK broker offers an inbound product at all it is normally a separate service with its own terms rather than the reverse of the outbound one.
What is owed when it lands, and by whom
Import VAT is charged on the value of the goods plus the shipping cost, and customs duty applies above the relevant threshold at a rate set by the commodity code. Both fall on the UK recipient. The carrier pays them to clear the shipment, releases it and bills them back with a handling fee, which on a low value parcel can be a large share of the total. This applies to gifts above the gift allowance too, which is the single most common unpleasant surprise on this lane, and the sender is usually unaware it will happen.
Returned goods, and the relief people miss
If the item is genuinely going back to where it came from, for example a UK owned item returning after repair or a returned purchase, returned goods relief can remove the duty and VAT that would otherwise fall due. It is not automatic. It has to be claimed at import with evidence that the goods left the UK and are coming back unaltered, and the paperwork has to be right before the shipment is cleared. Once the carrier has cleared and billed it, recovering the charge is possible but slow, so tell whoever is sending to mark it clearly.
Practical advice for the US sender
Ask them to describe the contents specifically and to declare an accurate value, because an understated value that is questioned holds the parcel and an overstated one costs the recipient real money. Ask for the tracking reference and keep it. If the item is a gift, it should be marked as one, with the sender and recipient being private individuals, though the gift allowance is modest and is per consignment. Anything of animal or plant origin, any liquid and anything with a battery carries restrictions that apply to the inbound direction just as they do outbound.
Questions people ask about shipping usa to uk
How much does shipping from the USA to the UK cost?
No company in this record publishes a price for that direction. Every published figure here is for a leg starting in the UK, so an inbound quote must come from a US carrier or broker.
Who pays customs on a parcel from the USA to the UK?
The UK recipient. Import VAT applies on the goods plus shipping, duty applies above the threshold, and the carrier adds a handling fee for clearing it.
Are gifts from the USA exempt?
Only up to a modest per-consignment gift allowance, and only where both parties are private individuals. Above it, charges apply as normal.
Can I avoid paying twice on an item going back and forth?
Returned goods relief can apply where items are genuinely coming home unaltered, but it must be claimed at import with the right evidence rather than reclaimed comfortably afterwards.