Carry It or Ship It: Taking Tailor-Made Suits Home From Bangkok

How much can a traveller bring home duty free after buying suits in Bangkok?

A returning traveller can bring home USD 800 of goods duty free in the USA, GBP 390 in the UK, EUR 430 in the EU by air, AUD 900 in Australia and CAD 800 in Canada after 48 hours away. Each covers only goods carried in person.

The USA condition is written into the first line of the rule:

"You may bring back $800 worth of items duty free, as long as you bring them with you."

Source: Types of exemptions, U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

The UK and Australia say the same thing from the other side. HM Revenue and Customs requires travellers to "transport them yourself", and the Australian Border Force puts the parcel case in writing:

"Unaccompanied baggage does not receive the same duty/tax concessions as goods you bring with you. These goods may be subject to duty/tax unless you have both owned and used them for 12 months or more. This also applies to articles posted to Australia."

Source: Duty free, Australian Border Force.

A new suit from Bangkok does not pass the 12 month test, and it is not personal clothing already owned before the trip. It counts against the AUD 900 like any other purchase.

What happens when the suits are worth more than the allowance?

Above the allowance, the rules split. The USA and Canada tax only the part above the line at first, while the UK and Australia tax everything once the line is crossed. For someone carrying three suits, that difference decides whether the suitcase was a saving or a cost.

In the USA the next USD 1,000 above the exemption is charged at a flat rate. The regulation sets it:

"The rate of duty on articles accompanying any person, including a crewmember, arriving in the United States (exclusive of duty-free articles and articles acquired in American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands of the United States) shall be 4 percent, effective January 1, 2001, and 3 percent, effective January 1, 2002, of the fair retail value in the country of acquisition."

Source: 19 CFR 148.102, Electronic Code of Federal Regulations.

Beyond that the suit takes its ordinary tariff line. A men's suit of wool falls under heading 6203.11, where the lines for an ordinary worsted suit carry a general rate of 17.5 percent in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule published by the U.S. International Trade Commission.

In the UK the rule is harsher, and GOV.UK states it plainly:

"If you go over your allowance you pay tax and duty on the total value of the goods, not just the value above the allowance."

Source: Bringing goods into the UK for personal use, GOV.UK.

The allowance cannot be shared either. "You cannot combine your personal allowance with anyone else's", the same page adds, so two travellers with one heavy suitcase of suits cannot pool GBP 780. Australia is the exception on pooling: families on the same flight may combine their limits if they go through customs together, but the Australian Border Force is clear that once the limit is exceeded, duty and tax apply "on all items of that type".

In the EU, goods above the allowance but within EUR 700 per traveller can be charged a flat 2.5 percent customs duty, set by Commission Regulation (EC) No 275/2008 for goods "contained in travellers' personal luggage", with VAT on top at the national rate.

Does it matter whether the suit is carried or shipped?

Yes. A carried suit is taxed under traveller rules, and a shipped suit is taxed under parcel rules. The two sets of rules share nothing: a parcel never uses the allowance, and a suitcase never benefits from a price that already includes the duty.

Canada is the one market with a middle path. After more than 7 days away, the Canada Border Services Agency lets goods other than alcohol and tobacco follow the traveller:

"other goods may follow you by other means (such as courier or by post). However, all of the goods you are bringing back must be reported to the CBSA when you arrive."

Source: I Declare, Canada Border Services Agency.

That exception needs the goods declared at the airport before the parcel arrives. After a shorter trip, the CAD 200 and CAD 800 exemptions both require goods to be "in your possession".

The parcel side has its own rules, and they no longer favour cheap parcels. The USA suspended its USD 800 exemption for imported parcels from every country in August 2025, the UK charges VAT on every parcel and duty above GBP 135, and the EU has removed its VAT exemption on small consignments. The details for each market are in the guide on reordering from a Bangkok tailor. This is where duty inclusive shipping changes the sum: the receiver pays nothing on arrival because the duty and tax are already inside the price paid in Bangkok.

Does a tailor-made suit have to be declared at customs?

Yes. Everything bought abroad is declared on arrival, including goods inside the allowance. The allowance decides whether duty is paid, not whether the suit is declared, and an undeclared suit can be lost:

"Merchandise is declared to CBP. If you do not declare something that should have been declared, you risk forfeiting the item."

Source: What to expect when you return, U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Wearing the new suit through the airport does not change this. It is still a purchase made abroad, and in the USA it is valued at its fair retail value in the country where it was bought. A shipped suit is declared too, on the commercial invoice that travels with the parcel, and on a duty inclusive shipment the courier settles the charge.

What does it cost to ship the suits home instead?

Shipping a two piece suit, about 2 kg, from a Bangkok tailor with Dragon Courier costs 1,474 THB to the USA and 2,196 THB to the UK, duty and tax included. The tailor books the shipment and Dragon Courier collects free from the shop in Bangkok, Pattaya and Chiang Mai.

Thai Baht, duty and tax included, tailor price list of 3 August 2026.

The price is the whole cost. Nothing is collected at the door, and the suit does not take space or weight in the suitcase. The trade-off is time: the suit arrives after the traveller, and the tailor needs the final fitting done before the box is packed.

When is carrying the better choice?

Carrying is the better choice for one suit, finished before the flight, that fits inside the traveller allowance together with everything else bought on the trip, because a suit inside the allowance pays no duty at all.

Shipping is the better choice for several suits, a suit that will not be ready before departure, or a trip home to the UK or Australia, where one pound or dollar over the line puts tax on everything.

A typical case, in Dragon Courier's own telling: a customer from the USA walks into a tailor shop, wants a suit, and flies home in two days. The tailor takes the measurements, makes the suit and sends it with Dragon Courier to the customer's home, duty and tax included. The customer never meets the allowance question at all.

About Dragon Courier

Dragon Courier is a Bangkok courier that has served the Thai tailoring community for 30 years, and tailors use it mainly because the service is duty inclusive. It ships more than 20,000 parcels a month to over 200 destinations. On the USA route Dragon Courier runs its own service and clears customs itself before a US carrier delivers the last leg. The full service for shops is on the tailoring shipping page, and the process for a first suit is in the guide on shipping a tailored suit home from Bangkok.

Contacts and drop-off

A tailor can book a collection or ask for a quote on +66 2656 9019, Justin is on LINE and WhatsApp at +66 6-5937-0812, or info@dragoncourier.com. Drop-off runs until 17:00, Monday to Saturday, at the Bangkok office on Sukhumvit Soi 4 (217/3 Crystal Garden Building, 3rd floor, Klongtoey 10110) or the Chiang Mai office on Viangbua Road. Is the suit ready before the flight, or is it following the customer home?