International Shipping from / to Belize

Customs in Belize

The major airports and posts of entry in Belize will all have a Customs department to go over your shipment to make sure it complies with their guidelines.  This includes having the correct documentation with you, paying any duties or taxes levied on your items, and not having anything in your packages that are restricted by the law.  For help with Customs in Belize, you should talk to your shipping company before you ship there.  They will be able to give you a heads up on what to expect and what to have ready, such as documentation for your shipment, before it gets held up in Belize.  As a general rule of thumb, items are taxed at 9% of the assessed value upon entering Belize and failure to pay this duty will cause the Customs department to seize your package. 

Required documents when shipping to Belize

You will typically need a bill of lading, certificate of origin and an invoice to ship large items into Belize.  You may be assessed a fee, called a duty, which will require a bit of paperwork.  Additionally, there are certain items, such as live animals and plants, that will require a special permit to ship into Belize so make sure to check with your shipping company beforehand to see if you should acquire this. 

Shipping limitations to Belize

Before you send your package off to Belize, you are going to want to check their most recent list of prohibited and restricted items.  This list changes every so often, but typically carries the names of over two dozen items that their Customs department will not allow into the county.  These include radioactive materials, dry ice, acids and oxidizers.  You are also not allowed to ship any wood products such as timber into Belize from Liberia as of late.