Import duties/fees on item shipping from Poland
Considering buying eBay item, tail light gaskets for '99 Honda Civic. Available only from Poland.
At this site https://www.paidnice.com/calculators/us-tariff-calculator
Seeing that the duty amount is 15% $5.85, which I can deal with. However, the killer, listed as MPF &HMF (Harbor Maintenance Fee, Merchandise Processing Fee) adds an additional $28.03, bringing the total from $39 to almost $73.
Can anyone suggest how to know if the above MPF/HMF would apply to this situation?
In addition, at https://pages.ebay.com/tariffs/#section-5 for very rough estimate, Estimate any fees you may owe, seeing Add Processing Fees between $5 and $30 - a huge range for this item with initial cost $39.
23 comments
krazzykats
·10 months agoWhat was suggested. Buy some gasket material and make your own. ðŸ‘
á“šá˜á—¢
auggiemarch
OP10 months agoHatchback doesn't fit. Detroit Muscle already looked, no good. If you come up with something for
1999 Honda Civic 4 door sedan LX (for both body and trunk lid), or even just body, please let me know. I've done fairly exhaustive searching, but might have missed something.
krazzykats
·10 months agoHave you looked at the new pair of OEM 96-00 Honda Civic Hatchback Hatch EK Foam Tail Light Gaskets S03 on eBay?
New PAIR of OEM 96-00 Honda Civic Hatchback Hatch EK Foam Tail Light Gaskets S03 | eBay
A lot of sellers have them in the United States for less.
á“šá˜á—¢
P.S. Detroit Muscle technologies might help, do a search on Bing.
reallynicestamps
·10 months agoPrivate couriers like UPS and DHL charge "customs brokerage fees" which usually start around $25 for wrangling imported shipments through customs.
What may be missing from your bills so far are is the Trump Tariff on imports. These run around 10% on top of everything else for the European Union. A federal sales tax on imports.
auggiemarch
OP10 months agoThanks for that. Guessing that it probably ships with USPS, but still doesn't look good. Best alternative option is to open current gaskets which appear to be leaking and apply clear silicone.
Btw, think current tariff on EU imports is 15% - If it was only that, no problem.
roccotacodad54
·10 months agoIf you decide to use silicone use the black stuff for RV's. Way better than the clear stuff.
gone.c-33
·10 months agoUSPS isn’t currently accepting parcels from outside the USA unless they’re DDP (duties and tariffs prepaid) and when they do, they’ll probably take the $80 per package shortcut so I strongly advise against purchasing from another country for now.
marnotom!
·10 months agoAlso be aware that the tariffs would apply to the item’s country of manufacture, not to their country of origin, so you could be looking at more than 15% as the tariff charge, depending on where the gaskets were manufactured.
lacemaker3
·10 months ago@gone.c-33
It is the sending international postal carrier that would be collecting the duties, so that they can send the package DDP (Delivered Duty Paid). The whole point of this is so that USPS doesn't have to collect anything at all, they just have to deliver the package. DDP means that the duty is prepaid before the package reaches the USA.
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/08/05/2025-14897/suspending-duty-free-de-minimis-treatment-for-all-countries
So far, both of the two postal services (Royal Mail UK and Canada Post) that are currently shipping to the USA have chosen to collect the ad valorem IEEPA tariff rate, not the specific duty per package (the flat rate option). I expect that most postal services will do the same when they get their process in place, because the specific duty option is only available until Feb 28, 2026.
auggiemarch
OP10 months agoJust a quick note to thank everyone who helped out here. No way to select Best Answer, as they're all mostly useful.
msha3839
·10 months agoWhy would you want to buy it on eBay and from Poland? Just used Google and found multiple listings for required items…and in US…
auggiemarch
OP10 months agoWhy? Because I've already searched everywhere, not just on eBay, for
1999 Honda Civic 4 door sedan LX tail light gaskets (body/trunk lid) and this is the only one I've found. Lots of others for 2 door, coupe, hatchback, which don't fit the bill.
99-00 Honda Civic 4 Door Sedan tail lights gasket set
msha3839
·10 months agoTry again..prior to posting my first comment, I googled your car specs and found out at least 3 listings $39-59… and if you’re handy, buy gasket material and make ones by yourself..pencil and sharp scalpel..ðŸ¹
auggiemarch
OP10 months ago...found out at least 3 listings $39-59
Links please.
As far as making my own, need stencil/outline, which I don't have.
roccotacodad54
·10 months agoYour stencil/outline are the gaskets you already have unless you threw them out.
Most auto parts stores carry gasket material in different sizes/thickness. Sheets to make your own gaskets.
I've made them to replace hard to find gaskets before. Get the rubbery ones for something like tail lights.
On things like tail light gaskets the main thing is to get the edges (outer outline, if that makes sense) correct. They are also the easiest to cut accurately. I've used heavy scissors for the outline and an Xacto knife for the interior cuts that don't have to look so pretty.
auggiemarch
OP10 months agoThanks will have to consider doing that, if push comes to shove. Need the fastest option, since I'm working outside in the street, not in a garage.
msha3839
·10 months agoYou don’t need garage to make gaskets…
roccotacodad54
·10 months agoNo garage needed. I made my last set at the kitchen table.
msha3839
·10 months agoUse old gasket or find stencil on line..improvise, young men, improvise…ðŸ¹