UPS will increase the minimum charge on its Disbursement Fee effective May 11, 2026. The fee—applied when UPS pays or processes Duty/Taxes on behalf of the customer for international shipments—remains at 2% of Duty/Tax, but the minimum fee rises from $14.00 to $17.00. The percentage rate itself is unchanged. This applies to all UPS international package and UPS Worldwide Express Freight services for U.S. 48 and Alaska/Hawaii customs brokerage.
This is a minimum-fee increase, not a rate change. The 2% calculation remains identical, so any shipment where 2% of Duty/Taxes already exceeds $17.00 will see no cost change whatsoever. The increase targets the low end of the duty spectrum: shipments where 2% of Duty/Taxes falls between $14.00 and $17.00 will now be billed $17.00 instead of the calculated amount, and shipments where 2% of Duty/Taxes falls below $14.00—previously billed at the $14.00 floor—will now be billed at the $17.00 floor instead. The breakeven point shifts from $700 in Duty/Taxes (where 2% = $14.00) to $850 (where 2% = $17.00), meaning any shipment with less than $850 in Duty/Taxes paid will be affected.
The increase is a flat $3.00 per affected shipment, representing a 21.4% jump in the minimum fee. High-volume importers with many lower-duty shipments—particularly those consistently under the $850 duty threshold—will feel this most acutely across their portfolio. Shipments with higher duty amounts that already exceed the $17.00 minimum will be unaffected.
💡 The Disbursement Fee rate stays at 2%—only the minimum increases, from $14.00 to $17.00.
💡 Shipments with Duty/Taxes under $850 will pay the new $17.00 minimum instead of the calculated 2%.
💡 Shipments with Duty/Taxes at or above $850 are unaffected since 2% already exceeds $17.00.
💡 The $3.00 per-shipment increase is most material for high-volume importers with many low-duty entries.
💡 No changes were made to any other UPS Customs Brokerage fees in this update.
