Sourcing comparison · Pet Products
Tariff & fee savings only, assuming equal product cost — your actual landed cost also depends on price and freight, which vary by supplier.
| Annual import value | Estimated duty & fee savings / year |
|---|---|
| $50,000 | $1,319 |
| $250,000 | $6,594 |
| $1,000,000 | $26,375 |
Savings scale linearly with volume. Enter your exact figure to model it precisely.
Calculate your exact volume →A pet products importer's margin increasingly turns on a single field on the entry: country of origin. At 16.5%, New Zealand sits well above United Kingdom's 14%; on $100,000 of annual buying that difference is around $2,638. Two suppliers can quote the same factory price and still land at very different costs once Customs is done. The breakdown below itemises both duty stacks so the figure is auditable, not asserted.
Start with the two duty stacks side by side. Shipped out of New Zealand, the product is hit with a 4% Most-Favoured-Nation base duty and a 12.5% forced-labor Section 301 duty on its pet products, an effective 16.5% once the $49.74 in processing fees are added. United Kingdom-made goods carry a 4% Most-Favoured-Nation base duty and a 10% forced-labor Section 301 duty on its pet products, an effective 14% once the $49.74 in processing fees are added. The Merchandise Processing Fee and Harbor Maintenance Fee are charged on customs value, not origin, so they sit at $49.74 on either stack and never contribute to the gap. Subtract one stack from the other and $263.75 per $10,000 shipment separates the two origins. Scaled up, expect near $659 per $25,000 order and around $2,638 once annual buying reaches $100,000. Scaled to a single $25,000 PO, the gap is near $659, repeated on every reorder.
Pet Products (HTS 2309, 6601, 9401) covers items such as Dry pet food, Cat litter, Pet toys, Pet beds, Aquarium equipment, Pet carriers, and Dog collars. The US imports pet products at scale, so the origin mix for this category is unusually sensitive to tariff policy. Pet product tariffs raise costs for US pet owners; the pet industry is one of the fastest-growing consumer segments and is significantly exposed to Chinese supply chains. New Zealand's trade profile leans toward fresh produce, seafood, and dairy, and it sits in Oceania. Absent a trade deal, New Zealand's pet products is assessed standard duties and whatever surcharges apply. United Kingdom (Europe) sends the United States largely pharmaceuticals, passenger vehicles, and industrial machinery. United Kingdom trades without a special US agreement, so column-1 rates and every surcharge apply to its pet products in full. Moving between Oceania and Europe changes more than duty, so treat the tariff saving as one input among several. United Kingdom is surfaced as a credible alternative, not just the cheapest line — it is among the origins a US buyer of pet products could realistically qualify. US tariff policy in 2026 is unusually fluid, with effective rates on many categories changing several times a year — a reason to treat any origin comparison as a live calculation rather than a fixed sheet.
Where United Kingdom is a viable supplier, expect roughly $2,638 at $100,000, rising to about $6,594 at $250,000 and $26,375 at $1,000,000 as volume grows. Every figure is produced by the same tariff engine behind the site's calculators, holding FOB value, freight and insurance constant so only the duty effect of origin shows through. These figures reflect tariff and fee savings only, assuming equal product cost — your actual landed cost also depends on price and freight, which vary by supplier. If any price premium from United Kingdom is smaller than the duty saving, the switch still wins on net landed cost. Before acting, confirm the United Kingdom supplier classifies under the same HTS heading, can meet your volume and certifications, and faces no product-specific exclusion or quota that shifts the duty. Time the switch with the policy calendar in mind — the post-Section-122 picture can favour a different origin entirely. Open the Tariff Savings Finder to rank every feasible origin for your specific volume.
At $100,000 of annual import value, switching from New Zealand to United Kingdom saves an estimated $2,638 in duties and fees, because the effective tariff rate falls from 16.5% to 14%. The saving scales linearly with volume. These figures reflect tariff and fee savings only, assuming equal product cost — your actual landed cost also depends on price and freight, which vary by supplier.
United Kingdom-origin pet products is assessed a 4% Most-Favoured-Nation base duty and a 10% forced-labor Section 301 duty, for an effective 14% duty rate before the Merchandise Processing Fee ($36.55) and Harbor Maintenance Fee ($13.19).
New Zealand carries an effective 16.5% rate versus 14% for United Kingdom. The gap comes from differences in the base, Section 232 and bilateral rates that apply to each origin.
Tariff rates from Tax Foundation, USITC, and Penn Wharton Budget Model; retaliatory and industry data from the ITA Foreign Retaliations Database and U.S. Census Bureau (NAICS). Last verified .
