Upcoming Change to FedEx Disbursement Fees (Effective July 20, 2026)

What is a disbursement fee?

When a shipment is imported, local customs may charge duties and taxes. FedEx often pays these upfront on behalf of the receiver to speed up clearance, then recovers the amount plus a service fee, known as the disbursement fee. This fee is separate from shipping charges and any duties or taxes themselves.

When will this take effect?

The new FedEx disbursement fees will apply to eligible shipments with a customs duty or tax component from July 20, 2026 onward.

How might this affect my costs?

Overall, you may see a modest increase in total landed cost on orders where FedEx advances duties and taxes. The impact is more noticeable on low-value or low-duty orders, where the minimum disbursement fee usually applies.

Examples of changes by region

• United States

  Current: USD 15.00 minimum, 2.0% of duty & tax.

  From July 20: USD 17.50 minimum, 2.5% of duty & tax.

   

• Canada

  Current: CAD 11.40 minimum, 3.10% of duty & tax.

  From July 20: CAD 12.00 minimum, 3.10% of duty & tax.

   

• Europe (all countries)

  Current: Tiered structure with lower fees on small duty amounts.

  From July 20: Flat €15.00 minimum, 2.5% of duty & tax for all countries.

   

• Latin America & Caribbean (examples)

  Many markets (e.g., Mexico, various Caribbean countries) move to a USD 17.50 minimum and 2.5% of duty & tax, up from lower minimums and 2.0% today.

   

• Asia-Pacific (examples)

  China: CNY 35.00 / 2.0% → CNY 42.00 / 2.5%.

  Japan: JPY 1600.00 / 2.0% → JPY 1920.00 / 2.5%.

  Australia: AUD 20.00 / 2.9% → AUD 24.00 / 2.9% (percentage unchanged).

   

• Middle East, India & Africa (examples)

  India: INR 800.00 / 2.0% → INR 960.00 / 2.5%.

  South Africa: ZAR 150.00 / 5.0% → ZAR 180.00 / 5.0% (percentage unchanged).

   

What this means for your business

• DDP / duties-paid shipments

If you offer “duties and taxes included” at checkout, a portion of your customs handling cost may rise for shipments handled by FedEx. 

• DAP / duties-unpaid shipments

For shipments where the customer pays duties and taxes on delivery, FedEx may charge the disbursement fee directly to your customer. This could slightly increase what your customer pays at delivery in some countries.

• No change to your negotiated shipping rates

This adjustment only concerns the disbursement service fee FedEx charges for advancing duties and taxes. Your contracted transport rates with us are not changing as part of this update.

Do I need to do anything?

You do not need to make any system changes; we will handle the FedEx update in our backend rating and billing. However, if you present delivered-duty-paid pricing to customers, you may want to review product margins on key lanes after July 20, 2026.

Questions?

If you have questions about how this change affects a specific lane or shipping setup, please contact your account manager or our support team and share the destination country and whether you ship DDP or DAP.

Last Updated On 23 Jun 2026