What Australia ships to the United States
Of the 300 largest U.S. import headings (four-digit HTS product groups), Australia is one of the top 15 suppliers on 39. Those headings were worth $4.15 billion in March–July 2026, 56.5% of all U.S. imports from Australia in the period.
The table groups those headings by HS chapter. Goods outside the 300 largest headings, and headings where Australia is not among the top 15 origins, count toward the total above but are not in the table.
| HS chapter | Value (March–July 2026) | Share of covered value | Largest headings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 02 Meat and edible meat offal · shipping guide | $2.65 billion | 63.7% | 0202 Meat of bovine animals, frozen ($1.17 billion); 0201 Meat of bovine animals, fresh or chilled ($839 million); 0204 Meat of sheep or goats, fresh, chilled or frozen ($633 million) |
| 71 Pearls, precious stones, precious metals and jewelry · shipping guide | $391 million | 9.4% | 7118 Coin ($227 million); 7108 Gold unwrought or in semimanufactured forms, or in powder form ($134 million); 7115 Other articles of precious metal ($24.1 million); 7106 Silver, unwrought or in semimanufactured forms ($6.5 million) |
| 90 Optical, photographic, measuring and medical instruments · shipping guide | $346 million | 8.3% | 9019 Mechano-therapy appliances ($174 million); 9021 Orthopedic appliances, including crutches ($164 million); 9014 Direction finding compasses ($7.7 million) |
| 88 Aircraft, spacecraft and parts thereof · shipping guide | $218 million | 5.3% | 8807 Parts of goods of heading 8801, 8802 or 8806 ($217 million); 8802 Other aircraft ($1.2 million) |
| 76 Aluminum and articles of aluminum · shipping guide | $126 million | 3% | 7601 Unwrought aluminum ($112 million); 7602 Aluminum waste and scrap ($13.7 million) |
| 15 Animal and vegetable fats and oils · shipping guide | $108 million | 2.6% | 1518 Animal ($99.6 million); 1514 Rapeseed, colza or mustard oil, and fractions thereof ($5.6 million); 1509 Olive oil and its fractions ($2.6 million) |
| 22 Beverages, spirits and vinegar · shipping guide | $60.3 million | 1.5% | 2204 Wine of fresh grapes, including fortified wines ($60.3 million) |
| 89 Ships, boats and floating structures · shipping guide | $40.9 million | 1% | 8903 Yachts and other vessels for pleasure or sports ($40.9 million) |
Each heading code links to its U.S. import market page, showing every origin's share and effective duty rate. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, International Trade API, U.S. imports for consumption by HS10 and country of origin, public domain (work of the u.s. federal government); method as in our tariff-rates research.
Container ports in Australia
Which port your cargo leaves from depends on where the factory is and which carrier service it books on. Send us the pickup address and we'll route it. Each port below links to a page with its UN/LOCODE, function classifiers and the lanes that serve it.
Look up any seaport's UN/LOCODE in the port code finder, or an airport's IATA/ICAO code in the airport code finder.
U.S. import duties on goods from Australia
- Base rate (HTS Column 1). Your product's HTS classification sets it; the shipping route does not. Australia is a U.S. free-trade-agreement partner (U.S.–Australia FTA). Goods that meet the agreement's rules of origin, backed by a valid certification of origin, can claim the preferential rate instead. The preference does not remove Chapter 99 trade-remedy duties. How FTA claims work.
- Section 301 (forced labor). Australia is reported in the 12.5% tier of the Section 301 forced-labor action (in force from 2026-07-24), subject to its general and economy-specific exemption lists. Confirm the exempt tariff lines with your broker before pricing.
- Section 232 (applies whatever the origin). Steel, aluminum and copper pay duty on full customs value in annex tiers of 50%, 25% and 15% since 2026-04-06. Vehicles and parts, lumber and furniture, trucks, semiconductors and drones fall under their own proclamations. Dated entries are on the tariff updates tracker.
- IEEPA and Section 122: no longer in force. The IEEPA tariffs ended on 2026-02-24 after the Supreme Court decision of 2026-02-20, with refunds ordered; the Section 122 surcharge that replaced them expired on 2026-07-24. Neither applies to entries filed now.
- Fees on top of duty. The merchandise processing fee (MPF) and, for ocean cargo, the harbor maintenance fee (HMF).
Estimate the total for your HTS code with Australia as origin in the tariff simulator. No code yet? Find it in the HTS code finder. The tariff facts above carry the dates shown on the tracker; confirm with your broker before you price.
U.S. import duty pages for goods from Australia
Worked duty pages for the highest-value tariff lines imported from Australia: the Column 1 rate, every Chapter 99 line and a $10,000 example.
Rates are our tariff engine's total for a commercial entry today. Open a page for the duty lines behind a rate and how it changed by entry date, browse all import duty pages, or price your own shipment.
Transit time from Australia to the USA
Airlift has not published a planning range from Australia to the USA, so this page does not quote one. Ask for the current sailing when you request a quote, or search live sailings for any port pair.
Documents for shipping from Australia to the USA
In Australia, your forwarder or customs agent files an export declaration with the national customs authority. This page doesn't name the form for Australia, so ask us which one applies to your shipment. On the U.S. side, every ocean import needs the same documents, whatever the origin:
- Importer Security Filing (ISF, "10+2"). Required by CBP for cargo arriving by vessel, filed before the container is laden; Airlift files it in-house. Details · glossary · CBP — Importer Security Filing (10+2)
- Customs bond. A continuous or single-entry bond in the importer's name, arranged through the customs broker before the entry is filed. Details
- Commercial invoice. Seller, buyer, terms of sale, a full description and value per line, and the country of origin; the entry is built on it. Details
- Packing list. Marks, package count, weights and dimensions per package, matching the invoice and the bill of lading. · glossary
Airlift's customs clearance service covers document review, HTS classification support, ISF and entry coordination through our licensed broker network at the port of entry. Not enough cargo to fill a container? See LCL ocean freight.
Shipping from Australia to the USA: FAQs
In the Census sample for March–July 2026, U.S. imports for consumption from Australia totaled $7.36 billion. Among the 300 largest U.S. import headings, the biggest from Australia were meat and edible meat offal; pearls, precious stones, precious metals and; optical, photographic, measuring and medical. The table on this page lists the headings with their values.
Other origin countries
See every origin by region in shipping to the USA by country of origin, or browse Airlift's shipping route guides.
Trade figures: U.S. Census Bureau, International Trade API, U.S. imports for consumption by HS10 and country of origin (March–July 2026, data pulled 2026-09-03), public domain (work of the u.s. federal government). Port codes: UNECE UN/LOCODE 2024-2. Tariff facts: the dated entries on the tariff updates tracker and the sources linked above. Reviewed September 2026.
Request a quote: shipping from Australia to the USA
Include the pickup city or load port in Australia, the U.S. destination and the commodity, plus either the package count with weights and dimensions or the container size and count. Add the cargo-ready date and say whether you need pickup at origin, U.S. delivery or customs clearance. We reply with the freight rate, destination charges and the services included.