International shipping from the Philippines: Costs, process and tips

Sending a parcel from Makati to Melbourne shouldn't require a maths degree. Yet once you add courier zones, volumetric weight, and customs paperwork, international shipping prices get confusing quickly.

This guide breaks down what you'll actually pay, which couriers Filipino businesses reach for the most, and how to keep costs down without your shipment getting stuck at customs.

What is international shipping?

International shipping is the process of moving goods across a country's border, usually by air or sea, through a courier or freight forwarder. For a business, that process starts when an order leaves your warehouse in the Philippines and ends when the shipment reaches its destination once customs clears it.

How does international shipping work in the Philippines?

In the Philippines, most small businesses start with a courier like LBC or DHL, or a local freight forwarder, rather than shipping cargo themselves. You pack the item, weigh it, fill out a customs form, and hand it over for pickup or drop off at a service center.

Take a small seller in Cebu making handwoven bags. A customer in Sydney places an order, so the seller packs the bag, records its weight and dimensions, declares the value, and books the shipment. The courier handles the export side and transports the parcel to Australia, where it may need to clear customs before final delivery.

The same process applies whether you're sending one parcel a week or shipping several pallets.

How much does international shipping cost from the Philippines?

There's no single international shipping rate. A light document might cost a few hundred pesos, while a large business shipment can run into tens of thousands.

The final bill usually combines several fees:

• Base freight: The main charge for moving the shipment.
• Fuel or currency surcharges: Additional charges that can change with operating costs or exchange rates.
• Customs clearance or brokerage: Fees associated with clearing the shipment at its destination.
• Duties and taxes: Charges imposed by the destination country rather than the courier.
• Optional services: This can include insurance, specialist packaging, or signature-on-delivery.

Two boxes weighing the same can still cost very different amounts to ship because couriers also consider the destination, service level, and the amount of space a shipment occupies.

Consider a box measuring 40 × 30 × 20 cm and weighing 2 kg. Multiply the dimensions and divide by 5,000, a common volumetric divisor, and you get 4.8 kg. You'd be billed for 4.8 kg, not 2 kg, because the box takes up more space on the plane than its actual weight would suggest.

That's why packaging deserves attention before you book the shipment. An oversized box can push up the charge even when the product inside is relatively light.

Example of shipping cost

Service level matters too. Express delivery costs more than economy shipping, while the destination, declared value, product type, and pickup location all affect the quote. Business accounts may qualify for negotiated rates, although surcharges can still apply.

To help you budget, here's what two major couriers, DHL Express¹ and FedEx², charge for Metro Manila shipments under their published 2026 rate guides.

These are base rates only, before fuel surcharges, customs duties, taxes, and VAT, so treat them as a floor rather than a final quote, and expect other couriers and your own account discounts to price differently.

To Singapore

To Australia

To the United States

To the United Kingdom

*DHL's document rate is a distinct pricing tier. Meanwhile, FedEx provides a designated FedEx Envelope for shipping documents, with a maximum weight of 0.5 kg. FedEx rates may also vary depending on the shipping service: International Priority Express (IPE), International Priority (IP), or International Economy (IE). The FedEx rates shown in the table are based on IP.

Types of goods that can be shipped internationally

From the Philippines

As of October 2026, electronic products make up the lion's share of everything the Philippines ships abroad, accounting for well over half of the total export value in recent monthly figures.³

Other manufactured goods and other mineral products follow at a distance, each holding a single-digit share of the total.

Into the Philippines

Imports lean the same way. Electronic products top the list again, driven by the same supply chains that make the Philippines a major electronics exporter. Mineral fuels and lubricants come next, since the country imports most of its oil, followed by cereals and cereal preparations, animal feeding stuff, and telecommunication and electrical machinery.

Restricted items in the Philippines

Some goods can't cross the border at all, or only with special permission. The Bureau of Customs treats these as either prohibited (banned outright) or restricted (allowed only with the right authorization):⁴

• Firearms, ammunition, and explosives
• Illegal drugs, including marijuana, opium, and heroin
• Gambling equipment, lottery tickets, and rigged gaming devices
• Counterfeit or pirated goods
• Obscene or immoral materials
• Adulterated or mislabelled food and consumer goods

Regulated products such as food, pharmaceuticals, plants, and live animals may also need approval from an agency such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), or the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) before they can be shipped.⁶

How to ship internationally between the Philippines and foreign countries

1. Check the import and export rules
   Start with the product itself. Make sure it's permitted to leave the Philippines and check whether the destination country has additional restrictions.

2. Identify the HS code
   The Harmonized System (HS) code identifies your product for customs purposes. The classification helps determine how the shipment is treated and what duty rate applies. The BOC's Philippine Tariff Finder lets you look up the correct code and tariff rate for free.⁵

3. Decide who pays the shipping and import costs

   Agree on the Incoterm with your buyer before the order ships. This determines who is responsible for costs such as freight, insurance, import clearance, and duties.

4. Weigh and measure the packed shipment
   Measure the box after it's packed, not before. Packaging can add both weight and volume, and either one can affect the final shipping charge.

5. Compare like-for-like quotes
   Match service speed and insurance level across couriers, or you're not really comparing anything.

6. Prepare the documents
   The exact paperwork depends on the goods and shipment, but common documents include a waybill, commercial invoice, and packing list.

7. Book and pay
   Once the details and documents are ready, book the shipment and arrange pickup or drop-off.

8. Track clearance
   Watch for a customs hold, and be ready to answer questions if one comes up.

9. Keep proof of delivery
   Save the tracking record and delivery confirmation. If a customer disputes delivery later, you'll need evidence that the shipment reached its destination.

Documents required for international shipping

Top international shipping companies in the Philippines

The right shipping provider depends on what you're sending and how often you send it. A business shipping a few e-commerce parcels each week has different needs from a company moving pallets or regular commercial freight.

Price matters, but it shouldn't be the only factor. Consider delivery coverage, tracking, customs support, pickup arrangements, and the types of shipments the provider handles.

For a growing business, it's also worth asking whether the provider can support you as your volumes increase. A courier that works well for individual parcels may not be the best fit once you need freight forwarding, warehousing, or more formal logistics support.

Some of the most established international shipping companies operating in the Philippines include:

• LBC Express
• FedEx Philippines
• DHL
• JRS Express
• 2GO Group
• Haulx
• Nippon Express
• All Transport Network (ATN)
• CargoBoss Philippines
• F2 Logistics Philippines

For a closer look at what each one specializes in, read a full rundown of the top international shipping companies in the Philippines.

International shipping tips to reduce costs

International shipping gets cheaper when you improve the process, not just the individual shipment. A few changes can add up over dozens or hundreds of orders.

• Use packaging that fits the product. An oversized box increases the chargeable weight without adding anything useful to the shipment.
• Check the chargeable weight before booking. Don't wait for the invoice to find out that the courier used volumetric rather than actual weight. Calculate it before you compare quotes.
• Consolidate shipments where you can. If several orders are going to the same destination around the same time, compare the cost of combining them.
• Use the economy service for anything that isn't urgent. Express shipping has its place, especially when a customer pays for urgent delivery. If a shipment doesn't need to arrive quickly, economy service can reduce costs substantially.
• Negotiate business rates. Once your shipping volume becomes consistent, ask couriers about business accounts and negotiated rates.
• Batch your pickups. If your business sends several parcels every week, scheduled collections may be more efficient than repeatedly arranging individual pickups.
• Automate shipping labels. Automation can make addresses easier to manage and reduce mistakes that lead to returned shipments.
• Check remote-area charges. Know the destination postcode when comparing quotes rather than assuming the same rate applies everywhere.
• Get the address right the first time. A returned shipment will cost you twice: once to send it, once to bring it back.
• Don't overlook currency conversion. If you're paying an overseas logistics provider or courier account in USD, GBP, or AUD, the bank's exchange rate can add a hidden markup.

That last point catches a lot of businesses out. A courier's freight rate is only half the cost of shipping internationally if you're also paying that courier, or an overseas supplier, in a foreign currency.

Wise Business: Simplify cross-border freight payments

Managing international shipping expenses goes beyond freight charges, volumetric weight calculations, and fuel surcharges. When paying overseas logistics providers or global couriers in foreign currencies, exchange rate markups and hidden bank conversion fees can quietly push up your total landed cost per shipment.

Wise Business helps streamline your international supply chain expenses by allowing you to pay overseas suppliers and shipping partners in foreign currencies.

With a Wise Business multi-currency account, you can access over 8+ local account details — far more currency options than the handful most banks offer. Plus, Wise makes it easy to hold, send, receive, and exchange 40+ currencies from a single account.

With the freedom to send and receive payments in more currencies globally, you can focus on what matters most: growing a local business that knows no borders. Here's what you get with a Wise Business account:

• Obtain account details to receive payments in USD, EUR, GBP, SGD, HKD and more for a one-time fee of 1,400 PHP.
• Zero fees when you get paid via ACH, FAST, InstaPay/PESONet, & other local transfers.
• Send money to pay invoices, suppliers & contractors fast, with less fees
• Always get the mid-market rate with transparent conversion fees starting from 0.57%.
• Pay your bills and ad-hoc overseas expenses using the Wise Business card without hefty foreign transaction fees.
• Seamless integrations with popular accounting software.

➡️Get started with Wise Business today

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Wise Pilipinas Inc. is regulated by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. You may visit the BSP website for more information about its regulatory framework and consumer protection policies. To reach Wise, visit help center here.

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Frequently asked questions

1. Who pays customs duties and taxes on an international shipment?
It depends on the Incoterm you agree with your buyer. Under some arrangements, the sender pays duties and other import costs before the shipment reaches its destination. In others, the recipient pays when the parcel arrives, sometimes before the courier releases it.

2. How long does international shipping from the Philippines take?
Express services to major hubs like Singapore or Australia typically take two to four business days. Economy or postal services to the US or the UK can take one to three weeks or longer if the shipment gets held for customs inspection.

3. Can Philippine businesses use Wise Business to pay overseas logistics providers?
Yes. A Wise Business account lets you hold multiple currencies and pay international suppliers, including shipping and logistics providers, at Wise's real exchange rate. This makes it easier to see your actual landed cost per shipment instead of absorbing whatever rate your bank quotes on the day.

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Sources

1. DHL Express Philippines – 2026 Service and Rate Guide
2. FedEx Philippines – 2026 Export Rate Guide
3. Highlights of the Philippine Export and Import Statistics – Philippine Statistics Authority
4. Republic Act No. 10863 (CMTA), Sections 118–119 – Supreme Court E-Library
5. Philippine Tariff Finder – Tariff Commission
6. Bureau of Customs – Regulated, Restricted, and Prohibited Importations and Exportations