Gift definition
A gift is defined as an item sent between two private people, is of an occasional nature, such as a birthday or Christmas gift and where no monetary consideration has been made.
Customs declaration forms
If you are using our standard service and sending a gift under £270.00, a CN22 customs form must be completed. You will need to ensure that all of the relevant sections are completed. For gifts over £270.00 a CN23 form is required; this form asks for additional information. If you are using our parcel service a CN23 form is always required.
Paying VAT
VAT must be paid on most items sent from Jersey to the UK. Any gifts you are sending that exceed a retail value of £39.00 may need to have VAT paid on them. It is advisable to prepay VAT at the time of sending to minimise transit times and ensure quick customer clearance. In addition, Royal Mail add an £8 handling fee for non-prepaid VAT items, which the recipient may be asked to pay on receipt of the item.
Packages containing more than one gift
When a package contains gifts that are clearly intended for several people, for example, members of the same family, the £39.00 VAT relief applies to each individual person provided the gifts are:
Return address
It is essential that you include a return address on the outside of the packaging. Without a return address, Jersey Post will not be able to pre-customs clear gifts sent using our standard or tracked and signed service, which will result in a longer transit time.
VAT on postage
You do not have to pay VAT on standard postal services, but if you use our premium services, the cost of the service will be included in the calculation of VAT.
If your parcel has been detained by Jersey Customs, it will be because a customs declaration is required. In this instance, you will receive a letter or email from Customs advising the quickest way to release your goods.
Your item will be allocated a reference/CLC number. To release your goods please visit the Customs website at www.customs.gst.gov.je and enter the reference/CLC number into the relevant field.
After checking the details and making any corrections where necessary, you must make a payment of any Customs duties identified, your goods will then be released for onward delivery.
Please note, it may be that you have already paid GST at the time you purchased your goods from the online retailer, but the Customs system has not recognised this. If this is the case, please go to the Customs declaration portal www.customs.gst.gov.je. Choose ‘declare online shopping’, click continue and enter the reference number (CLC) – click continue and then tick the box stating, ‘I have already paid the GST’. You will be asked to choose the seller on a dropdown list, after which you can click submit, and your goods will be immediately released.
Should you have any questions regarding your declaration, further information can be found on the Customs website Paying GST for online shopping (gov.je)
GST will need to be paid on any item that is imported into Jersey, the value of which exceeds £60. GST will need to be paid on it before you can collect it or have it delivered to your premises. For further information on GST, when it applies and how to pay it, please visit www.gov.je.
If an item has arrived damaged, you will need to contact the sender. Claim for damaged items have to be initiated in the country where the item was originally posted.
Jersey Post endeavours to deliver items as soon as they are received on-island, subject to Customs clearance if applicable. In order to receive these items at Postal Headquarters for local delivery, we are reliant on a number of factors such as weather, transport and often several postal authorities in different countries. If the delivery timescales you were provided with has been exceeded, we would recommend that you get in contact with either the retailer from which you purchased the item, or the postal authority in the country where the item was posted.
To arrange a redelivery online, please click here. Alternatively, contact the Customer Care Team on 616616. Redeliveries cost £2.
It is very difficult to provide exact delivery timescales to off-island addresses as there are so many factors* outside of Jersey Post's control e.g. weather, transport delays, processing in the destination country etc. However, as a rough guide we say: UK, other Channel Islands and Isle of Man - 3-5 working days. European addresses - 7-10 working days and Rest of World destinations up to 10-12 working days. Please note - these timescales are for letters and documents. Due to Customs restrictions and controls in other countries it is impossible to provide delivery estimates for goods or merchandise.
*Please note that there will be a handful of occasions throughout the year, due to earlier tide times, when we must bring our post office cut off times forward to ensure same day despatch on the ferry service. On these occasions we will provide notice on our service updates page.
The parcel collection counter at Postal Headquarters, Rue des Pres Trading Estate is open Monday to Friday 08:00 - 18:00 and Saturday 08:30 - 13:00. We are closed on all Public Holidays. For further information on our opening times, please click here.
You can set up SecureDrop in a number of ways. You can sign up online via our self-service section which can be reached by clicking here. Alternatively, you can obtain a form from any post office. The service is free and takes around 7 working days to set up.
Yes, provided that the service used to send the item was a trackable service. We have a Track and Trace facility on this website which can be accessed by clicking here. You will need to have the tracking reference to hand in order to use this service.
