DDP and DDU decide who pays import duty and taxes on an international order. Under DDP, you pay before the parcel leaves, so your customer has nothing to pay on delivery. Under DDU, your customer pays when it arrives.
Most brands don’t want one answer for every market. DDP protects the delivery experience where a surprise charge would put a customer off. DDU keeps your upfront costs lower where it won’t. The risk comes when that choice is made by hand at dispatch. An order meant for DDP goes out on a standard service, and your customer is asked to pay before they can have their parcel.
The stakes rose for EU orders on 1 July 2026. A €3 customs duty now applies to each item category in parcels worth €150 or less, calculated by tariff code. The HS codes on your products now affect what gets charged.
Zenstores removes the decision from dispatch. You set your Shipping Rules once, and Zenstores Automations applies them to every order as it arrives. Customs documentation is generated from your product data before you print.
- Set your customs defaults once in Zenstores
Start by creating a Customs Profile in your Zenstores customs settings. It holds your default export type, sender name, EORI number and VAT number, plus a default country of origin, tariff code and goods description. These details prefill the customs form on every international shipment, so your team isn’t re-entering them order by order. With the account-wide details in place, the next job is the product-level data.
- Add HS codes and country of origin to each product
Zenstores stores the customs description, HS code and country of origin against each product. You can import these from Shopify or fill them in manually. When you book an international shipment, Zenstores pulls this data into the customs declaration for every item, and takes the declared value from the item price. Accurate product data means every order is ready to declare, whichever duty method it ends up using.
- Decide which destinations get DDP and which stay DDU
Choose your duty method market by market. DDP suits destinations where a charge on the doorstep risks a refused parcel or a complaint. DDU suits markets where keeping upfront costs down matters more. For EU orders worth €150 or less, add your IOSS number to your Zenstores settings once. Zenstores then applies your own IOSS number, or the correct marketplace IOSS number for Amazon, eBay and Etsy orders, automatically. Once you know which markets get which method, you can turn that decision into rules.
- Let Zenstores Automations assign the DDP or DDU service by destination
Build a Shipping Rule for each DDP market using destination country as the condition. For example, US orders can be assigned to Royal Mail International Business Parcels Tracked DDP, while other destinations go to a standard international service with DHL Express, FedEx or Royal Mail. Zenstores Automations applies these rules to every order as it comes in. Each order reaches your dispatch queue with the right service already assigned.
- Check the assigned service and customs data, then print
Zenstores shows each order’s assigned carrier and service before you print. It checks HS codes, IOSS and EORI details before dispatch, so any gaps get fixed at your desk rather than at the border. Your shipping labels print with the customs documentation already generated from your product data. Your team packs and dispatches without making a single duty decision by hand.
We've been using Zenstores for over a year now. The system is very easy to use and integrates very well with Royal Mail, shipping rules that can be set have saved us a lot of time manually entering shipping information. Zenstores has also enabled us to reopen EU and US shipping. The support is excellent always available to answer any questions or talk through what the app can do.
Chloe's Creative Cards
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between DDP and DDU?
DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) means you pay import duties and taxes before the parcel leaves, so your customer pays nothing on delivery. DDU (Delivered Duty Unpaid) means your customer pays those charges when the parcel arrives. Zenstores supports both, so you can choose the right method for each market.
Can I ship DDP and DDU from the same Zenstores account?
Yes. Zenstores applies the right customs and duty setup per order, so some shipments go DDP and others go DDU from one account. Shipping Rules assign the service by destination, and the customs documentation for each order is generated automatically.
Does Zenstores apply my IOSS number to eligible EU orders automatically?
Yes. You add your IOSS number to your Zenstores settings once, and Zenstores applies it with the correct customs data to qualifying EU orders worth €150 or less. For Amazon, eBay and Etsy orders, Zenstores applies the marketplace’s IOSS number instead, with no manual input on each shipment.
How does the €3 EU customs duty affect orders worth €150 or less?
Since 1 July 2026, the EU has applied a €3 customs duty to each item category in parcels worth €150 or less, based on tariff code. Zenstores declares each item using the HS code stored on the product, so every item category in a parcel is declared under the right classification.
Do I need to fill in a customs form for every international order?
No. Zenstores prefills the customs form on every international shipment from your Customs Profile, which holds your export type, EORI and VAT details. Each item’s HS code, description and country of origin come from your product data. Once both are set up, your team books an international shipment without typing customs details order by order.
