Filling the shipment form

Filling the shipment form

The calculator shipment form on /calculator collects the minimum a duty and tax engine needs to compute a landed cost: origin, destination, HS code, commercial value, quantity, unit, freight, and insurance. Fill it in order and the form validates as you go, so you never submit an incomplete shipment.

Under the hood the form maps every input to a canonical shape that feeds the same engine as the API and the bulk CSV loader. Nothing about a manual calculation is second-class.

How to fill the shipment form

1. Choose an origin country from the origin dropdown. The list is searchable by name or ISO code.
2. Choose a destination country from the destination dropdown.
3. Enter an HS code in the HS field, or type a description and pick from the semantic lookup suggestions.
4. Enter a commercial value in the source currency. Pick the currency from the picker if it is not USD.
5. Enter quantity and unit. Kilograms, pieces, litres, cubic metres, and dozens are supported.
6. Enter freight and insurance. Leave zero to have the calculator estimate freight from the lane.
7. Optional: pick an Incoterm from the Incoterm selector. Defaults to CIF because most importers see CIF invoices.
8. Click Calculate. The CostLayer breakdown renders below the form.

Every field remembers its last value in local storage so repeat-lane calculations are three-click affairs.

Currency handling

Enter the commercial value in whatever currency the invoice is denominated in. The calculator converts to USD internally for duty base computation using the ECB reference rate for the transaction date. The output can be viewed in either the source currency or USD.

Incoterms

If your invoice is FOB, pick FOB from the Incoterm selector and enter the FOB value. The calculator lifts the value to a CIF equivalent for duty calculation in jurisdictions that use CIF value (most of the world outside the US). US CBP uses FOB for statutory value, so the same FOB input flows straight through.

Saving lane defaults

Once you find a lane you repeat weekly, save it as a lane default from the shipment-form dropdown. The next visit prefills origin, destination, HS, and Incoterm.

Frequently asked questions

Which currencies does the calculator support

All ISO 4217 codes with an ECB reference rate, which covers every major trade currency plus most emerging-market currencies used in commercial invoicing.

Does the calculator handle multi-line shipments

The single-shipment form handles one HS code at a time. For mixed shipments with three or more distinct HS codes, use the bulk CSV upload available on Pro and above.

Can I override the estimated freight

Yes. Enter your own freight quote in the freight field. The engine uses your number over any estimate.

What if my HS code is only six digits

Six-digit HS is the international minimum. The calculator extends to the destination country's national breakout automatically for duty rate lookup. Enter the six digits, click Calculate, and the CostLayer will show which national breakout it resolved to.