Home / Declared value
The declared value: start from your receipts, not from a guess
Oopbuy's rule for the amount is short: it must be reasonable, and there is no need for it to exceed the actual value. This page turns that into a method you can repeat for every parcel.
Declare what the goods are actually worth
The declared value should match the actual value of the goods in the box. For most buyers that is simple: the price you paid for each item, added up. Oopbuy's third unreasonable example, a parcel worth about $200 declared at $1,000, ends with the plain line that there is no need for the declared value to exceed the actual value.
The other two examples show the opposite failure. A low amount that does not match the items is the first case Oopbuy lists. So the method is neither high nor low: it is accurate.
Building the number from receipts, with the exchange rate
Open each order and note the item price you paid. Oopbuy prices goods in CNY; your declaration form may show USD. On the public shipping estimator on 10 October 2026, every US price equalled the CNY price divided by 5.9756, the same divisor across the whole table. That is the operator's display rate on that day, not a market exchange rate.
Keep the original receipt currency. Follow the current declaration form and destination rules for conversion; an estimator display rate is not automatically the customs rate.
Does shipping count in the declared value?
This depends on the destination country, not on Oopbuy. Some customs services value goods with transport to the border included, others value the goods alone. Oopbuy's own pages talk about the value of the goods and do not give a single answer, so neither do we. If the difference matters for your parcel, the customs service of your country is the source; Oopbuy's threshold table calls itself reference only.
What you should not do is shave the goods value to make room for shipping. The item lines describe the items.
The IOSS floor and the lock
An operator help note read 10 October 2026 describes a 30% input floor and a restriction on editing after submission. This is a historical description of an operator form, not a customs valuation rule, an acceptable discount or a target.
Check the current route form and correct any errors before submitting. The actual declaration must follow the applicable valuation and currency requirements; our worksheet does not enforce or recommend the historical floor.
Why the 30% floor is not a suggestion
A form accepting a number does not make that number accurate. Retain the receipt and any valuation adjustments required by the destination, and ask the agent or carrier how the fields are to be completed.
For EU import VAT, the taxable base can include duties and qualifying incidental costs beyond the item price. The required currency conversion also follows customs rules. European Commission guidance, checked 19 October 2026.
A shipping-estimator display ratio cannot establish that legal calculation. Keep the goods receipt, freight and insurance amounts separately so the required components can be identified.
Fees that sit next to the declaration
Oopbuy's Service & Fees page puts the total cost of an agent purchase as product cost plus international shipping plus a customs declaration fee, and describes optional value-added services; funding, currency conversion and destination charges still need separate checking. No separate buying-service fee is listed there; funding, currency conversion and selected extras may still cost money.
The customs declaration fee is generally ¥8.00 per package, depending on the shipping method. It is a handling charge for preparing the declaration. It is not a tax and it does not change with the amount you declare.
Cost breakdown for one parcel
| Part | What it is | Where you see it |
|---|---|---|
| Goods | Item price plus domestic freight to the Xiamen warehouse | First payment, at order |
| International shipping | By weight, route and destination; larger of actual or volume weight | Second payment, at Submit Parcel |
| Declaration fee | Generally ¥8.00 per package, varies by route | Second payment |
| Optional services | Rehearsal ¥20, parcel photo ¥5, extra photos ¥1 each | Warehouse, when you choose them |
| Duties and VAT | Set by the destination; prepaid only on routes that say so | Route label, or on delivery |
Route protection, value limits or service conditions may also depend on value. Read the selected service rather than assuming the goods value affects only tax.
What insurance pays on
Oopbuy's compensation standards say that for a lost, damaged, delayed or customs-detained parcel with insurance, it compensates based on the actual shipping cost plus the actual value of the goods, up to the insured amount.
Note the phrase actual value. The text does not tie payouts to the declared amount. It does exclude customs detention caused by the recipient not cooperating with clearance or tax payment, so an argument with customs over a bad declaration is your own to settle.
Next: the three declarations Oopbuy calls unreasonable.
See the three cases