What landed cost includes
Landed unit cost is the cost of getting one truck accessory from the supplier invoice into your received inventory. It includes the product purchase price, international freight, transport insurance, duty, import taxes and other shipment-attributable charges, such as customs clearance, port, terminal, documentation and broker charges incurred to bring the goods into New Zealand.
Keep components visible on separate lines: duty, GST and other border charges may have different accounting or recovery treatment. New Zealand GST is charged at 15%, according to Inland Revenue (Te Tari Taake). Whether GST belongs in inventory cost depends on your tax treatment; do not bury it in product cost (Source: Inland Revenue (Te Tari Taake)).
Duty and classification basics
Use evidence to describe the accessory’s function, materials, construction, vehicle application and whether complete or part of an assembly. These details can change classification and the duty treatment to test; a supplier description or title alone is insufficient.
Origin is separate from purchase location and may affect preferential treatment or the standard rate. Customs value may require valuation-rule adjustments, so may not equal the invoice total. Keep the invoice, specifications, origin evidence and any broker or Customs ruling together.
This research sets inputs, not profitability: confirm classification, origin and customs value before using duty treatment in a margin model. Test arithmetic with product pricing calculator, and use New Zealand truck accessories guides for context. If uncertain, obtain broker advice or a formal Customs determination rather than present an assumed code as definitive.
Worked example with sample numbers
This example is illustrative. It uses sample numbers for a truck accessories store selling in New Zealand. They are made up to show the method, they are not a benchmark, and your own figures will differ.
Formula: Landed unit cost = (supplier cost + freight + duty + fees) / units.
| Line | Shipment | Per unit |
|---|---|---|
| Supplier cost | NZ$11696.82 | NZ$46.79 |
| Freight | NZ$1191.78 | NZ$4.77 |
| Duty | NZ$373.03 | NZ$1.49 |
| Broker and handling | NZ$152.00 | NZ$0.61 |
| Landed cost | NZ$13413.63 | NZ$53.65 |
Run the same sum with your own numbers in the free calculator, or browse guides for sellers in New Zealand and more truck accessories guides.
General information only: tax, duty and import rules change and depend on your situation, so check with an accountant or the official source before acting.
Eligible Shopify stores can see these numbers for their own store through the Founding 10,000 offer.
Allocating freight to units
Allocate inbound freight using the factor that best explains the carrier’s cost. Use units when products are similarly sized and handled; use weight for dense items such as winches; use volume for bulky canopies; and use invoice value when the shipment charge broadly follows the value at risk. Record the basis and the source data with the shipment so the result can be reproduced.
For illustration only, if freight is NZ$600 and one product represents 100 kg of a 300 kg shipment, allocate NZ$200 to that product. Divide its allocated freight by the quantity received to add the per-unit amount. Do not use one basis automatically for every shipment: compare the result with the carrier invoice and investigate allocations that produce implausible margins. Keep domestic fulfilment, storage and last-mile delivery outside this inbound allocation.
| Basis | Use it when | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Units | Items have similar size and handling | Each unit consumes a similar share of freight |
| Weight | Carrier pricing is weight-driven | Use shipment or product weights consistently |
| Volume | Bulky items drive vehicle or container space | Use packed dimensions, not product dimensions alone |
| Value | Risk, insurance or value drives the charge | Do not use it merely because prices differ |
Keep tax and border charges on separate lines
Keep import GST, duty, brokerage, port fees, terminal handling and other border charges on separate lines: combining them as freight obscures shipment costs and complicates reconciliation and product-level margin analysis. GST in New Zealand is charged at a rate of 15% (Inland Revenue). For a GST-registered business, eligible import GST is generally recoverable tax, not inventory cost, but still requires cash at clearance; duty and non-recoverable charges normally remain in inventory cost (Source: Inland Revenue (Te Tari Taake)).
- Product cost, allocated freight, duty, port and handling: normally inventory cost, flowing to cost of goods when sold.
- Import GST: record separately; include it in cash planning, but generally treat it as recoverable if eligible and required records are held.
- Brokerage and clearance: separate the service charge from GST; treatment depends on purpose and accounting policy.
- Cash paid at the border: include every line in funding plans, even recoverable tax.
| Measure | Use it to answer |
|---|---|
| Inventory cost | What the accessory really costs before sale |
| Cash required | How much must be paid to release the shipment |
| Tax recovery | Which GST amount may be claimed rather than absorbed |
Rules to confirm before importing to New Zealand
Before ordering, confirm with New Zealand Customs the classification using the accessory’s description, materials, function and vehicle application; check the Working Tariff for duty treatment, and verify supplier evidence for origin and any preferential rules. Keep classification, origin and valuation separate: a correct origin claim does not fix an incorrect tariff code.
Confirm the border process and paperwork with Customs: importer details, declarations, invoices, packing lists, transport documents, permits or certificates, and evidence supporting entries. Check product-specific rules with the relevant authority, including MPI where biosecurity may be relevant; do not assume an accessory is unrestricted.
- Inland Revenue (Te Tari Taake) states: GST in New Zealand is charged at a rate of 15%. A business must register for GST if its turnover was at least $60,000 in the last 12 months or is expected to reach $60,000 in the next 12 months. A low-value good is a physical good valued at NZ$1,000 or less, excluding GST; overseas merchants, online marketplaces and redeliverers selling these goods to New Zealand consumers may need to register and collect GST (Source: Inland Revenue (Te Tari Taake)).
How to read the worked landed-cost example
Read the calculation from left to right. Multiply the supplier price by the units ordered, then add each shipment-level charge on its own line before allocating those charges across the units. For example: 100 accessories at $40 equals $4,000; adding $600 freight, $200 duty, $100 brokerage and $100 port charges gives $5,000, or a landed cost of $50 per unit. The final division should reconcile to the shipment total, not just to the product invoice.
Test the assumptions before using the result: confirm the ordered and received quantities, exchange rate, carrier invoice, duty treatment, allocation basis and whether any tax is recoverable or a true cost to the business. Use landed cost for purchasing, pricing and inventory decisions. Use cash cost when deciding whether you can fund the order now, including deposits and charges paid at import. Use fully loaded margin when judging profitability: add payment fees, fulfilment, returns and advertising to the product economics. A product pricing calculator can help test scenarios without changing the underlying shipment records.
A useful landed-cost model makes every imported-cost assumption visible: product, freight, duty, tax and border charges should be checked separately before they are used to price stock or assess margin. Reconcile the calculation to supplier and shipping documents, confirm the New Zealand rules that apply to the specific product, and update the model when shipment terms, classification or allocation assumptions change.
Sources
- GST (goods and services tax) (Inland Revenue (Te Tari Taake), checked 26 October 2026).
- Registering for GST (Inland Revenue (Te Tari Taake), checked 26 October 2026).
- GST on low-value imported goods (Inland Revenue (Te Tari Taake), checked 26 October 2026).
How this page was made: drafted with AI from a brief, then checked by automated rules for arithmetic, sources and duplication. The sample numbers were calculated, not reported.