What makes up the landed cost
- Goods and freight: price, main carriage (sea, air or lorry and ferry) and insurance.
- Origin and destination charges: loading, unloading, port or airport handling and storage if the goods wait.
- Customs duty: only from outside the EU. It is charged on the customs value, which includes transport and insurance up to entry into the EU customs territory.
- IGIC: charged on the customs value plus duty, other taxes (except IGIC itself and AIEM) and costs up to the first destination in the Canaries. Standard rate 7%, with other rates depending on the product.
- AIEM: only for goods in its annex, wherever they come from, at rates set by heading.
- Clearance and delivery: customs handling, final delivery and, where needed, transfer to another island.
What changes the result in the Canaries
- Classification: the tariff code decides duty, AIEM and the IGIC rate (see tariff classification).
- Origin: with proof of preferential origin, for example from the UK under the EU–UK agreement, duty can be 0%.
- Suspensions: Regulation (EU) 2021/2048 suspends duty until 2031 on certain capital goods, raw materials and components imported into the Canaries, under end-use control.
- Route and mode: direct container, groupage, lorry and ferry from Huelva or Cádiz, or air – and which island the goods enter through.
- Recoverable taxes: if your business is in the standard IGIC scheme, import IGIC is, in principle, deductible. AIEM is a single-stage tax and remains a cost.
- Timing: incomplete paperwork is paid for in storage days and container demurrage.
We do not promise savings blind: we look at your numbers first and tell you what can be improved and what cannot.
How the review works
- Send us a few recent shipments: invoices, DUAs and freight invoices.
- We break down the cost of each one by item.
- We review classification, origin, declared value, route and Incoterm.
- We explain what we would change and what impact it could have, before anything is applied.
- We apply it to your next imports.
What we need from you
- Your suppliers' commercial invoices
- Previous DUAs or import declarations
- Invoices for transport, insurance and port or airport charges
- Incoterm and purchase terms
- Approximate volume and frequency of your imports
Questions about import costs
How much can I save?
It depends on each case, and we do not give figures without seeing the shipments. Sometimes the conclusion is that everything is being done right, which is also worth knowing.
I buy from mainland Spain: why pay IGIC if I already paid VAT?
For VAT purposes, shipments from mainland Spain to the Canaries are treated as exports, so the supplier can invoice without VAT once the goods are shown to have left. IGIC is then charged in the Canaries. If you are being charged VAT, check it with your supplier.
Do you review transport as well?
Yes: route, mode, consolidation of shipments and island of entry, together with our transport partners.