Home to popular sites like the Sistine chapel, Trevi Fountain, and the Uffizi Gallery, Italy welcomes a massive 64.8 million visitors on average each year.
Tourists love to explore the ancient ruins of the Colosseum or trek to the summit of Mount Etna, one of the nation's three volcanoes. Being the fifth most visited country in the world, Italy becomes home for many of its visitors who decide to stay for good.
Why send to Italy?
The UK and Italy have always been closely connected through trade, tourism and immigration. The UK imports around £24 billion every year in goods and services to Italy. Due to this a lot of parcels travel between both nations, requiring reliable and affordable shipping.
Italy also has one of the fastest growing eCommerce markets in Europe. In 2016, Italy's eCommerce industry was worth 19.6 billion euros, an increase of around 19% on the previous year.
Italian consumers are driven by a lack of availability in their domestic market, so frequently purchase goods from the UK. For this reason, selling and sending goods to Italy is a lucrative business and could be an excellent channel for businesses to develop through.
What you need to know when shipping to Italy
Due to our fantastic shipping links, parcels can easily be sent to Italy in no time! Even post-Brexit Italy is still a popular destination for senders of all kinds, because, at Interparcel, we make the shipping process simple. To make sure that everything is in order before you send a parcel to Italy, here are a few areas to think about:
Prohibited and restricted items
Not dissimilar to that of other European countries, Italy has specific requirements on items that can and cannot be imported. When you send a parcel to Italy with us at Interparcel, you can check what these items are through our Prohibited and Restricted items list.
This list can be narrowed down by country and courier, so make sure to toggle the results by 'Italy' to see what items are restricted for importing. As an example, some of the items that can't be send to Italy are:
- Animal skins/furs/meat
- Birth Certificates
- COVID 19 testing kits
- Active credit/debit cards
- And interestingly, Christmas crackers…
It is important to check what items you can and can't send before packaging your parcel to avoid custom delays or charges.
Brexit changes
In our post-Brexit UK, senders of all kinds may be apprehensive about the changes it has brought and how it will affect sending to Italy. Although the UK is no longer a member of the EU, delivery to Italy is just as easy as before. This is because we've done all the tricky work, figured out the customs process and made delivering simple.
When you send a parcel to Italy with us, all you will be required to do differently is fill out a customs form that is included during the booking process. This customs documentation is necessary for recipient countries to classify the goods, their value and the reason for their import. This information is then used to calculate how much tax should be applied.
Here's a quick rundown of the form you'll encounter when you book a delivery to the EU with us:
- Describe your items (type, quantity, value, manufacture location)
- State your tax status (non-commercial, non-VAT registered business, or VAT registered)
- Reason for sending
- EORI number (this is mandatory for all sales, whether it's a VAT business or adhoc eBay seller)
- HS code (this is used to classify your items - find out more about these here)
And what's more, it's now even cheaper for you to send to the EU from the UK as we do not charge VAT on shipping costs!
Make sure you check where each individual component of your goods originated from. If noted incorrectly, this could cause delays at customs.
Package for weather
When shipping to Italy from the UK, planning for bad weather is a must as, no matter the season, we typically can expect a downpour! Although, come rain or shine, our couriers will deliver your parcels safely but it is important to package your goods correctly to ensure they are protected from the elements.
When packaging goods to send to Italy you should ensure that your packaging material is suitable enough to withstand a little moisture and weight as parcels are handled and loaded off and on multiple vehicles while in transit.
Try to give some attention to these areas before sending:
- Tightly package: a good seal is the best way to keep out rain or snow, but tape made be compromised by low temperatures. If you're concerned about this, invest in packing tape that is designed to withstand the cold.
- Pad the inside: materials like bubble-wrap or even tissue paper can ensure your goods stay cosy inside their packaging. It also acts as a barrier between your items and the weather on the exterior so adding this extra layer can provide great protection against the elements.
- Strong cardboard box: The outer layer of the package must be cardboard otherwise additional handling charges can incur.
Make sure that address labels are visible after packaging safely so that couriers know where your goods need to go!
Why use Interparcel to send a parcel to Italy?
When you send a parcel with us at Interparcel you can rest assured it's in the best hands. We have over 16 years industry experience and have built excellent courier partnerships with some of the world's leading delivery brands. Together, we work hard to make sure every parcel sent is delivered on time and that customers have access to the cheapest delivery services to Italy.
Customers that send with us benefit from a wide range of delivery solutions and can choose a service that suits their needs in terms of speed and price when shipping to Italy from the UK. If you need a parcel sent to Rome, Venice or Florence our couriers can get it there in no time.
We know that customers of all kinds often need reliable shipping options to Italy and some of these senders also require shipping for their own businesses. For eCommerce sellers having a varied selection of discounted delivery solutions can put them ahead of the competition, so that shipping to anywhere in Italy is simple and attractive.
Sending to Italy for business is easy with Interparcel
Sending a parcel with Interparcel couldn't be easier! When you need to send a parcel, simply click on 'Get a Quote' to view our different delivery services available from our range of couriers. To get started, all you need to know is the parcel weight, dimensions, and the delivery address.
You can then choose from the big brand names like DPD, FedEx, Evri (formely Hermes) or ParcelForce and the range of drop-off and collection options available. Economy delivery can get your parcel to Italy within 2-5 working days after collection and Express services can be as quick as the next working day after collection! With prices from as little as £15.60, sending a parcel costs less than a takeaway pizza!
Are you an online or brick-and-mortar business looking to send to Italy? At Interparcel we've been optimising our services to aid businesses sending efforts. Our Shipping Manager enables businesses to connect their store with our shipping solutions and start benefiting from a range of features to streamline sending logistics:
- Simple customs forms: streamlined customs invoices to speed up the process
- Advanced shipping manager: collate orders from multiple eCommerce platforms into one place
- Multi-channel fulfilment: collates orders from multiple e-marketplaces into one place
- In-built address verification and correction, no more manual errors or unprofessional mistakes
- Parcel Presets to save parcel details for faster sending
- 'Send Again' and 'Return Parcel' actions to streamline repeat and return orders
- Cheap shipping to Italy!
We're confident you'll find a shipping service you'll love when you book with us. With just the click of a button you can have your parcels collected straight from your door.
If you're interested in sending a package to Italy and need a question or two answered, give our parcel experts a call, email or live chat message between 8 am - 8 pm Monday to Friday or 9 am - 1 pm on weekends.
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