Before buying wedding invitations that ship from another country, confirm who pays import charges and what the checkout total includes. Free shipping does not establish that customs duties, taxes, or carrier clearance fees are covered. Compare the complete delivery arrangement, keep the seller’s written answer, and leave room for customs processing before your guest-mailing date.
Which shipment are you budgeting for?
There are two separate journeys: the seller sends your bulk invitation order to you, and you later send individual invitations to guests. This guide concerns the first journey. Your postage budget for guests will not answer questions about importing the finished order.
Start by confirming where your selected order will actually ship from and where it will be delivered. A store’s website language, displayed currency, or customer-service location does not establish the dispatch country. Ask about the selected product and quantity rather than assuming every item follows the same route.
Keep the delivery destination specific. An order going to your home and an order going directly to a planner in another country need separate answers. For the later guest-mailing step, use our international invitation mailing guide.
Separate shipping, import charges, and service fees
A useful comparison has distinct lines for the invitations, transportation, government charges, and any carrier or broker service fees. “Shipping included” answers only part of that comparison unless the seller explicitly describes a broader commitment.
FedEx’s duties and taxes guide describes landed cost as the overall international shipment cost, including relevant clearance charges. It also distinguishes government duties and taxes from shipping fees and explains that a disbursement fee can apply when FedEx advances charges. Those are examples of categories to clarify, not a prediction that your order will incur every category.
Ask whether a quoted amount is fixed, estimated, or excluded. If checkout shows a tax line, request confirmation of what that tax covers rather than treating the label as proof that all import-related charges are settled. Save the explanation beside the order summary.
Who will the carrier ask to pay?
Two orders with similar checkout totals can have different payment arrangements at delivery. UPS’s customs guidance explains that either the shipper or receiver can be responsible for duties, taxes, and fees. It describes shipper-paid arrangements as DDP and receiver-paid arrangements as DDU.
You may also see DAP, meaning Delivered at Place. DHL eCommerce UK’s international shipping FAQ explains its DDP and DAP options: under its DDP service, the shipper is billed for duties or taxes; under DAP, the recipient pays in the destination country. Terminology should lead to a plain-language answer about your actual order.
Ask: “Which charges will I pay to you, which could be billed to me separately, and who will handle any import-clearance questions?” Request confirmation of the carrier billing arrangement too. A familiar abbreviation alone is less useful than a written answer tied to your delivery address and selected shipping service.
Why an old duty-free shopping tip is not enough
Do not build your invitation budget around an old online claim that small overseas purchases automatically arrive without import charges. CBP’s July 2026 international-mail guidance describes the suspension of the low-value de minimis exemption for postal imports and a changed entry process. That is sufficient reason to verify current requirements rather than reuse an older shopping rule.
This article does not assign a tariff classification, calculate a duty rate, or determine an exemption for your invitations. Material, contents, origin, destination, and shipment details need to be assessed for the actual order. A paper card, an acrylic suite, and a package containing additional decorative items should not be treated as interchangeable descriptions.
Request an accurate item description from the seller and ask the carrier or customs authority what information is needed for a useful estimate. Avoid selecting a classification yourself from a vaguely similar product. If a question remains unresolved, record it as unknown rather than entering zero in your budget.
A landed-cost quote checklist for invitation buyers
Use one short worksheet for each seller. The purpose is to compare equivalent orders and identify unanswered questions, not to produce a customs calculation.
| Record this | Question to settle before payment |
|---|---|
| Finished order | How many complete sets, and which cards, envelopes, and accessories are included? |
| Dispatch and destination | Where will this order ship from, and which delivery address does the quote cover? |
| Checkout amount | What currency and total are due, and what does each tax or shipping line cover? |
| Import charges | Are these included, estimated separately, or payable by the recipient? |
| Carrier services | Could clearance, brokerage, or advancement fees be billed separately, and to whom? |
| Estimate conditions | Which order details support the estimate, and what changes require a new one? |
| Delivery planning | Does the timing describe production, transit, or total delivery, and how are customs delays handled? |
Keep unconfirmed items visibly marked. A lower checkout total is not a complete comparison when one quotation excludes charges that the other includes. Equally, an estimate should not be described as a guaranteed final bill.
Three fictional comparisons that reveal different gaps
One quote includes transportation, but says nothing about import charges
A couple compares two quotes for 80 identical sets. The first says “free delivery”; the second lists transportation and a recipient-paid import arrangement separately. They cannot yet conclude that the first is cheaper overall. Their next step is to ask the first seller who pays the import charges and whether any carrier fees are excluded.
The delivery address changes after the quote
The couple originally planned delivery to their home, then considers sending the order directly to their destination-wedding planner. They request a new delivery and charges confirmation before changing the address. The original estimate belongs to the original arrangement; it should not silently follow the parcel to a different country.
A replacement shipment becomes necessary
Some invitations arrive damaged, and the seller discusses sending replacements. The couple asks who will arrange the shipment, what paperwork is needed, and how any additional delivery or import charges will be handled. They do not assume that a no-charge replacement automatically resolves every customs question. For the inspection itself, see our delivery-day checklist.
A short message to send before ordering
Here is an original inquiry you can adapt:
“We are considering [design and quantity] for delivery to [country and postal code]. Please confirm the dispatch country, carrier, and shipping service. Does the quoted total cover import duties, taxes, and carrier clearance or brokerage fees, or could these be billed to us separately? Please identify any estimate or exclusion and explain who handles clearance questions. Our planned guest-mailing date is [date].”
Keep the reply with the selected listing and checkout summary. If you change the quantity, materials, delivery destination, or service, ask whether the earlier answer still applies. For the separate question of seller identity and payment-request verification, use our online invitation buying checklist.
What LunaInvites’ current shipping policy says
The LunaInvites shipping policy, checked October 21, 2026, says physical orders ship from Istanbul, Türkiye, primarily through UPS Express. It lists free shipping to the United States, but separately states that international customs duties, import taxes, brokerage fees, and other destination charges may apply. These are not collected at checkout and are the customer’s responsibility under the policy.
For a concrete product comparison, the gold-foil wedding invitation with date-design envelope lists a beige classic paper invitation with a gold-foil border, a matching beige inner card, and a beige envelope with the printed date. Compare other classic paper invitations by their own listed contents. Use those actual components when describing the order; a product photograph is not a customs classification.
The digital proof is the design-approval stage of this physical purchase. The current U.S. total-delivery estimate is approximately 7–8 days after final proof approval, including 2 days of production. The policy identifies customs clearance among possible causes of delay and does not guarantee delivery dates.
Before paying, make sure you can explain three things: what the checkout total covers, who could bill you later, and which delivery estimate your mailing plan depends on. Clear answers make the invitation comparison more useful than a free-shipping label alone.
Educational buyer checklist; not a tariff assessment or individualized customs advice. Carrier guidance and store policy reviewed October 21, 2026. Verify current requirements for your actual shipment.
Cover: AI-assisted editorial layout based on a real LunaInvites product photograph. The added text panel is a presentation graphic; surrounding photo props are not included accessories.