DDP Shipping for CNC Parts to Europe and the UK
Incoterms 2020 · landed cost · EU / UK duty · VAT & importer of record · door-to-door transit
DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) means the seller delivers to the buyer's door with export clearance, freight, import duty and import VAT already paid, so the buyer receives one invoice and no customs paperwork. For machined parts from China the duty is set by HS code — typically 2.7 % for miscellaneous steel articles, 3 % for aluminium articles, 3.7 % for screws and bolts — and import VAT is recoverable by a VAT-registered business. CHX Metal quotes FOB, DAP and DDP so the comparison is on landed cost, not on unit price.
Most price arguments in this industry are not about machining. They are about who pays the freight, who clears customs, and what the part costs when it is on the buyer's dock rather than on a pallet in Shenzhen. Two quotes that differ by 30 % on unit price can be identical at the door — and one of them carries a customs surprise nobody priced.
Incoterms 2020, without the jargon
| Term | Seller pays to | Buyer pays | When it makes sense |
|---|---|---|---|
| EXW (Ex Works) | Nothing — goods available at our door | Everything, including China export clearance | Buyer has a Chinese forwarder and a consolidated container |
| FOB (Free On Board) | Delivery to the named Chinese port, export cleared | Ocean freight, insurance, EU duty, VAT, delivery | Buyer has a freight contract and volume to negotiate |
| CIF | Freight and insurance to the EU port | Unloading, duty, VAT, onward delivery | Rarely — insurance cover under CIF is minimum, not adequate |
| DAP (Delivered At Place) | Everything to the buyer's address except duty and VAT | Import duty and import VAT, cleared in own name | Buyer wants to be importer of record for VAT recovery |
| DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) | Everything, including duty and import VAT, to the door | Nothing at the border | Buyer wants one number and no customs file |
Incoterms 2020, ICC. The critical line in any quote is not the three-letter term but the named place after it: “DDP Hamburg” and “DDP, buyer's premises, 80339 Munich” are different prices.
Duty is set by HS code, not by the invoice
Customs classifies the part, not the service. The same turned bushing can attract 2.7 % or 3.7 % depending on whether the broker declares it as a miscellaneous steel article or as a fastener. Getting this wrong is the most common source of a post-clearance duty bill arriving six months later.
| Part type | Indicative EU HS code | Indicative MFN duty | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Machined steel parts, not elsewhere specified | 7326 90 98 | 2.7 % | The default for brackets, spacers, pins, bushings in steel |
| Machined aluminium parts | 7616 99 90 | 3 % | Aluminium articles; anodised parts stay here |
| Screws, bolts, nuts | 7318 15 / 7318 16 | 3.7 % | Higher rate — do not declare a screw as “steel article” |
| Transmission shafts, cranks, gear blanks | 8483 10 / 8483 90 | 2.5 % | Machined but functioning parts of machinery |
| Electrical apparatus ≤ 1000 V | 8536 90 85 | 2.7 % | Connector contacts and terminals can fall here |
| Parts of machinery, general | 8487 90 | 1.7 % | Only where the part is solely for a machine of a specific heading |
| Measuring instruments and parts | 9031 90 | 1.7 % | Precision assemblies that function as instrument parts |
Rates are EU MFN (erga omnes) indicative values. The binding answer comes from an advance tariff ruling (BTI) in the importing country, and a broker will confirm classification from the drawing. CHX Metal states a code on the commercial invoice and will change it if the broker provides a ruling.
VAT, importer of record, and the thing DDP hides
Under DDP the seller is the importer of record, which means the seller must have a VAT registration or a fiscal representative in the destination country, or must use a forwarder's IOR service. That has three consequences a buyer should understand before choosing DDP:
- The import VAT is not recoverable by the buyer. If the seller pays it, the buyer has no VAT return line for it. For a VAT-registered business buying significant volume, DAP is usually cheaper overall because the VAT is reclaimed.
- The buyer cannot claim the duty as their own. DDP removes the customs entry from the buyer's records, which matters for transfer pricing, origin audits and any product-safety traceability obligation.
- Serial numbers and lot traceability get thinner. When a forwarder clears a consolidated shipment under DDP, the entry may not list the buyer's part numbers individually.
Practical rule: DAP for VAT-registered companies with volume; DDP for samples, small orders, R&D buys and buyers without an EU VAT number. We quote whichever the customer asks for and will point out when the request costs them money.
Transit time and mode, door to door
| Mode | Door-to-door to DE / NL / UK | Best for | Cost index |
|---|---|---|---|
| Express air (courier) | 3–5 working days | Samples, prototypes, urgent production recovery | High per kg, lowest per shipment |
| Air freight (consolidated) | 6–9 working days | 50–500 kg production, when line-stop risk matters | Mid |
| Rail (China–EU) | 18–24 days | 500–3,000 kg, cost between air and sea | Low-mid |
| Sea LCL | 32–42 days | 1–15 CBM, non-urgent replenishment | Low |
| Sea FCL | 30–38 days port to port, plus inland | Pallet quantities, dense steel parts | Lowest per kg |
Transit excludes production lead time and excludes customs inspection holds, which add 1–5 days without warning. Figures are typical 2025–2026 experience to Hamburg, Rotterdam and Felixstowe; the UK adds customs formalities that rail cannot avoid.
What a landed-cost quote actually has to contain
A unit price is not a landed cost and a landed cost is not a decision. The comparison only closes when eight lines are on the table:
- Unit price at the named Incoterm, with the place named.
- Tooling and setup, stated once and separately, so it can be amortised over a real volume.
- Freight per shipment at the actual shipment weight and volume, not a per-kg average.
- Duty at the declared HS code, with the code written down.
- VAT treatment and who is importer of record.
- Packaging, including any feeder-ready or VCI requirement.
- Payment terms and their cost — a 30/70 T/T against documents ties up cash that a 60-day account does not.
- Quality cost: incoming inspection the buyer must still perform, and who pays for a rejected lot including return freight.
This is where most “your price is three times the last one” conversations resolve. A target price of €0.19 per piece delivered is a statement about landed cost and annual volume, and it can often be met by changing the process route, the blank, or the packaging — but only if the eight lines are visible. We ask for the target and the volume, and answer with the routing rather than with a discount.
Documents that travel with the goods
| Document | Purpose | Issued by |
|---|---|---|
| Commercial invoice | Value, HS code, Incoterm, origin, buyer VAT number | CHX Metal |
| Packing list | Carton count, weights, dimensions, part numbers per carton | CHX Metal |
| Bill of lading / airway bill | Title and transport contract | Carrier or forwarder |
| Certificate of origin | Non-preferential origin declaration | CCPIT or the forwarder |
| Material certificate EN 10204 3.1 | Mill chemistry and mechanicals | The steel or aluminium mill |
| Inspection report | Measured dimensions against the ballooned drawing | CHX Metal QC |
| RoHS / REACH declaration | Substance compliance for the finished part | CHX Metal |
| EUR.1 / Form A | Preferential origin — not applicable to China–EU | — |
There is no preferential tariff between China and the EU, so no certificate of origin will reduce the duty. Anyone offering “duty-free via Form A” is either misclassifying or misdeclaring.
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Frequently asked questions
Is DDP cheaper than DAP?
Usually not for a VAT-registered EU business. Under DDP the seller pays import VAT and cannot pass a reclaimable line to the buyer, so the VAT cost is embedded in the price. Under DAP the buyer reclaims it. DDP wins on simplicity, not on total cost.
Who pays if customs holds the shipment?
Whoever is importer of record pays the storage and any examination fee. Under DDP that is us, which is why we build a small allowance into DDP pricing for inspection risk. Under DAP it is the buyer.
Can you ship to the UK separately from the EU?
Yes, and it must be separate. Post-Brexit the UK requires its own customs entry, its own VAT treatment and, for goods moving on from the EU, a transit document. We quote UK DDP with a UK fiscal representative and UK duty rates.
What HS code do you put on the invoice?
The one that matches the part, chosen with the broker. For most turned and milled parts it is 7326 90 98 (steel) or 7616 99 90 (aluminium), at 2.7 % and 3 % respectively. If the buyer's broker obtains a different binding ruling we will invoice to that instead.
Do you ship samples by courier?
Yes, DDP by express courier, 3–5 working days to most of Europe. Sample freight is charged at cost and credited against the first production order where the order follows within 60 days.
How are parts protected in transit?
Double-bagged with desiccant, VCI where the destination is humid, cartons rated for the stacked load, and pallets fumigated or heat-treated to ISPM 15 where wood is used. Precision surfaces get individual protection rather than bulk packing.
Can you hold stock and ship against a schedule?
Yes, for repeat programmes. We can hold finished goods and release monthly or weekly against a call-off, which converts a large order into a freight schedule and reduces the buyer's inventory while keeping the unit price at the volume tier.
Send your drawing, get a price in 24 hours
Name, email and what you need. Attach a drawing if you have one — STEP, PDF, DXF or a photo of the print. We reply with unit price, MOQ and lead time, usually within one working day.
Prefer email? Send drawings to mc@chxmetal.com.