Wearing apparel and personal effects

View the Prohibited and restricted items page and the Ministry for Primary Industries website for biosecurity regulations before you consider shipping your goods to NZ.

List of personal effects

Personal effects can include, but are not limited to:

• Wearing apparel (for example, clothing, shoes, glasses)
• Articles of personal adornment (for example, jewellery, watches)
• Personal grooming devices and items (for example, shavers, hair dryers/straighteners)
• Mobility devices (for example, pushchair, baby car seat, wheelchair)
• Medical devices and supplies (for example, sleep apnoea machine, blood pressure monitor, diabetic devices and needles, hearing aids)
• Personally owned medications, including prescription medicines (up to three months’ supply) as allowed under Ministry of Health guidelines. Controlled drugs must travel with you and cannot be sent as unaccompanied baggage. Find out more about medications.
• Toiletries (for example, skin care products, perfumes, make up etc)
• Handbags, suitcase, backpacks
• Protective equipment (for example, helmets, ski boots, goggles, wetsuit etc)
• Personal electronic mobile devices (for example, mobile phone, laptop)

Note: You do not have to be in New Zealand when your shipment arrives.

Household effects are different from personal effects. If you have household effects or need to know what these are, view information on household effects.

Criteria for personal effects

You and your personal effects must meet the following criteria. Personal effects:

• must be personally owned by you while you were overseas
• must be for your own use
• must not be intended for any other person, or for gift, sale or exchange
• can be new, except for personal electronic devices such as mobile phones and laptops.

If the effects are declared at a value over NZ$1000, an Import Entry Transaction Fee will apply.  Visit the Goods Clearance Fees webpage for more information.

If you do not meet all of the above requirements, duty and GST will apply.

Steps for importing personal effects

Step 1

The shipping company that has transported your personal effects should contact you when your effects arrive or are due to arrive in New Zealand.

• The shipping company may complete your Customs clearance on your behalf.
• You can contact a Customs broker of your choice to manage the Customs clearance.
• You can also obtain clearance through New Zealand Customs directly.

No matter who you choose to complete your clearance, you will be required to provide the documents in Step 2.

Step 2

For a Customs clearance to be completed, you will need to provide the following documents:

• NZCS 218: Bring Personal Household Items into NZ (PDF, 393 KB)
• A copy of your passport (photo ID)
• Packing list (a list of all the personal effects you are shipping to New Zealand)
• Purchase invoices or receipts
• Shipping document which states your personal effects have arrived in New Zealand
  • Airway bill (air freight)
  • Bill of lading (sea freight)
  • Arrival notice (from your shipping company)
  • Consignment note (from a courier company)
  • Notice or letter from NZ Post
• Any permits that may be required for Prohibited and restricted items
• Any other relevant supporting documents
• MPI Supplementary Biosecurity Declaration

Email these documents to service.delivery@customs.govt.nz.

Note: Customs will not prepare or complete a clearance without all documents being received by our clearance team.

Step 3

Customs will prepare your clearance, provided the above documents have been emailed to us.

Customs may examine your shipment to verify any of the details you have provided. This may delay your clearance.

Customs will send you an email once clearance has been finalised advising you of the next step.

If there is an amount payable

You will receive an email from Customs with an invoice/statement attached. You will be required to pay this amount online prior to the release of your shipment. Visit the Paying Customs webpage for information on making a payment.

Once you have made payment, your shipping company will receive automatic notification from Customs that your personal effects can be released to you.

If there is nothing to pay

If there are no Customs charges, you will receive an email from Customs confirming your shipment is cleared.

Contact your shipping company to arrange delivery of your personal effects.