Does Amazon UK ship to Ireland?

Unless you’re new to the world of online shopping, you’re likely to have heard of Amazon UK.

It’s the UK website of the world’s largest online marketplace, selling everything from electronics and books to clothing and home/garden accessories. With such a huge product range, quick shipping and easy ordering process, it’s easy to see why the online retailer is so popular.

But as it doesn’t have an Amazon.ie website, the crucial question is - can you shop at Amazon UK if you’re in Ireland? And what has changed in the process, now that the UK has left the European Union?

In this guide, you’ll find everything you need to know about shopping at Amazon UK from Ireland.

We’ll also look at a clever way to save money on currency conversion fees when shopping at Amazon UK - the Wise multi-currency debit card. It’s an international card which automatically converts EUR to GBP at the mid-market exchange rate, for only a tiny fee. This could be much cheaper than letting Amazon or your bank handle the transaction.

Learn more about
the Wise Account 🔎

📝 Here’s what we’ll cover:
Which products ship to Ireland? What are the fees for ordering a product from Amazon UK? Can I get free delivery on Amazon? How do I return an item to Amazon?

Which products ship to Ireland?

The majority of products at Amazon UK can be delivered to Ireland, but not absolutely all of them. Some sellers may have delivery restrictions, while some items sold and dispatched by Amazon may not be eligible for delivery to Ireland.

The easiest way to check whether an Amazon product can be delivered to your Irish address is simply to add it to your basket. If you’re signed into your account, you’ll be able to see on the checkout page whether or not a product can be shipped to you.

If you’re buying from an Amazon Marketplace seller, you can always check on their delivery policies page to see if they ship to Ireland.

What are the fees for ordering a product from Amazon UK?

If you live in Ireland, shopping at Amazon UK isn’t necessarily as simple as checking and paying the listed price of an item. There may also be additional fees to pay, especially with the complications surrounding the UK’s exit from the European Union.

Let’s take a look at the main fees you need to know about when ordering from Amazon UK from Ireland, including how Brexit has affected things.

VAT

UK VAT doesn’t apply for orders to Ireland from Amazon UK. But unfortunately, Irish import VAT does.

How does this affect Irish customers shopping at Amazon UK? For smaller and low-value purchases, you won’t need to worry about it at all.

However, if your order is over €22, you’ll need to pay Irish VAT. This will be 23% from 1st March 2021¹.

Import duty fee²

The import duty fee, or customs duty, is calculated based on the value of goods coming to Ireland from outside the EU. As the UK is no longer in the EU, this means that customs duty now applies to certain orders being shipped to Ireland.

If the product you’re buying is made in the UK and delivered to Ireland (or any other EU country), no customs duty should be due.

However, import duty fees may be charged on some categories of goods. It all depends on where they originally come from and the value of the order. If an item is sold from the UK but has a ‘country of origin’ elsewhere, and its value is over €150, customs duty will apply.

For example, if you order a designer handbag costing €200 from Amazon that is made in Italy but sold by a UK retailer, and want it delivered to Ireland, you’ll need to pay customs duty. This is in addition to import VAT.

But the good news is that Amazon orders with a value below €150 (before postage charges) will not be liable to Irish/EU customs duty, regardless of the product’s country of origin.

Import duty deposit²

So, you may be wondering how these customs duty and other import fees are paid when ordering from Amazon. The answer is through an import duty deposit.

This is an estimate of the total import fees due for your order, which Amazon adds to the total price at checkout.

The aim is to make it simpler for customers to check and pay import duties, at the same time as ordering. You don’t need to do anything extra, you can simply shop as normal. Once you’ve added what you want to your basket, head to the checkout. This is where you’ll find the deposit. Then, you can just checkout and pay for your Amazon order as normal.

These import duty fees are used to pay the required import costs to the appropriate authorities when your shipment arrives in Ireland. Amazon, its sellers and delivery partners sort all that out on the customer’s behalf.

Can I get free delivery on Amazon?³

With potentially a few extra fees to pay when ordering from Amazon, you’ll want to find ways to claw some money back.

One way to do it is through free delivery. If you spend at least £20 or more on eligible items at Amazon UK, you will get free delivery to Ireland.

To count as eligible, products need to be either:

• Sold and dispatched by Amazon UK
• Sold by Amazon Marketplace sellers and dispatched by Amazon (excluding some electrical items)

There are a few exceptions, including gift cards and items that are over a certain size or weight. Plus, you won’t automatically get free delivery to Ireland if the item is sold and dispatched by a Marketplace seller - unless the seller offers it.

How long does it take to get an item delivered to Ireland?

The standard delivery time for Amazon UK to Ireland is 3-5 days, although you can also pay for priority delivery to receive your order in just 2 days.⁴

However, there’s also the impact of Brexit to consider. Amazon UK is advising that delivery times to Ireland may be a little longer now that the UK has left the European Union. This is because of extra requirements by local customs authorities².

So, you may have to be a little patient when waiting for your Amazon UK order to arrive in Ireland. But you can always check on progress in the ‘Your Orders’ section of your Amazon account.

How do I return an item to Amazon?

If you’re not happy with your order, you can return most products to Amazon within 30 days of receiving it. Whether or not you’ll receive a refund for your return postage costs depends on the reason for the return (for example, you’ve received a defective or damaged product).

You’ll have a choice of different return methods, including the following⁵:

• Drop-off services at locations in your area
• Heavy-Bulky return services by a specialty carrier team
• Amazon Hub Counter and Locker locations for small packages.

The place to find all the information you need to make a return is the Amazon Returns Support Centre. Here, you can create a returns label and choose the most appropriate and cost-effective return method for you.

The excellent news is that Brexit has not affected the returns process or policy for Amazon UK customers in the Republic of Ireland. You can still send eligible goods back to Amazon the same as always.

Save on conversion fees with Wise!

The only thing we haven’t covered so far is how best to pay Amazon UK for orders to Ireland.

You’ll be paying in EUR, Amazon is likely to use an unfavourable exchange rate when converting this to GBP. Plus, your bank may even charge international payment fees. This makes your purchase more expensive overall.

Luckily, there is a rather clever way round this, which could save you money whenever you shop at Amazon UK or other UK-based online retailers.

Open a free Wise multi-currency account and you can get a linked Wise debit card to cover all your online spending.

This powerful international card automatically converts currency at the real, mid-market exchange rate - this is the fairest rate you can get. There are no transaction fees to worry about, only a tiny fee to convert the currency.

This puts you back in control of the conversion, and could save you a bundle if you’re a keen online shopper.

You can use your Wise debit card in the real world too. You can spend and withdraw cash at ATMs in 150+ countries and territories, and use the Wise app to send and receive money internationally for low fees and the mid-market exchange rate.

Open a Wise Account for free 🎉

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So, if you were worried about how Brexit would affect online shopping deliveries between the UK and Ireland, you now have all the essential info at your fingertips.

We’ve covered the main import duty and VAT fees you need to know about, along with standard delivery times and the returns process. This should all mean you can now shop at Amazon UK from Ireland in confidence.

Just don’t forget to pay with your handy Wise debit card at checkout, so you can swerve those international payment fees and terrible exchange rates.

🔎 Read more: Does Amazon US deliver to Ireland?

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Sources used for this article:

1. Revenue.ie - current VAT rates
2. Amazon.co.uk - Brexit and deliveries to Republic of Ireland
3. Amazon.co.uk - free shipping
4. Amazon.co.uk - international delivery rates and times
5. Amazon.co.uk - return policy

Sources checked on 5 March 2021