Ukrposhta and the New US Rules: Shipping a Painting After 24 July 2026

On 24 July 2026 the United States changed the customs clearance procedure for international postal items. The flat 10% duty rate has been abolished — the amount payable now depends on the product category. Ukrposhta updated its systems in advance and continues to deliver to the US, while some European postal operators have suspended the route.

What changed

The main change is individual duty calculation. Instead of a single rate for all commercial shipments, US customs now determines the charge by product category. For an artist this means the amount payable depends directly on the accuracy of the code and the description.

Ukrposhta updated its software on 21 July 2026, three days before the new rules took effect. Charges are calculated automatically, but the underlying data is entered by the sender.

Commercial shipments must now be booked online

This is the most significant practical change. A commercial parcel to the US must be registered in advance through the Personal Account on the Ukrposhta website. Without an online booking, branches will only accept non-commercial items — gifts.

The booking requires an exact description of the contents and a ten-digit commodity code. The US customs analytics system reviews both the code and the text description at the same time, so a mismatch between them, or wording that is too generic, results in an inflated duty calculation or a delay.

Original paintings fall under codes in heading 9701; original prints and works on paper under 9702. It is worth confirming the exact classification of a specific work in advance.

Gifts: the threshold remains, with a new limit

The rules for gifts have not changed: the duty-free threshold is 100 dollars. But a quantity limit has been introduced — a single sender may send no more than five such parcels. Gifts valued above 100 dollars attract duty, payable by the sender.

It is worth repeating what we noted in our article on US customs tariffs: marking a paid commercial order as a "gift" does not work and leads to the shipment being held.

Who guarantees payment to US customs

During the transition period Ukrposhta handles customs clearance, resolves procedural issues and acts as financial guarantor before the US customs service. The operator works with the American customs broker Zonos, which specialises in the postal channel and serves more than 70 national postal operators, all members of the Universal Postal Union.

Shipments booked before the new rules took effect are being delivered unchanged.

What comes next

The second stage of the US customs changes is scheduled for 22 October 2026 and will affect specific product categories. Ukrposhta says it is adapting its services for that stage as well.

For Ukrainian artists and handmade producers, the American market remains a working destination: Ukrposhta handles around 350,000 export shipments a month for Ukrainian businesses. The only real requirement is completing the paperwork correctly the first time.

Checklist before shipping

— book commercial parcels through the Personal Account, not at the counter;
— select the ten-digit code and write the description so that the two match;
— do not understate the value: insurance compensation is based on the declared amount;
— for gifts, remember the 100-dollar threshold and the limit of five parcels per sender;
— plan your shipments with the October changes in mind.

Sources: Export School Ukrposhta, Ekonomichna Pravda.