Cayman Islands Import Duty: Rates and Calculator
There is no income, sales, or VAT tax in the Cayman Islands. Import duty is the main tax you pay, and it lands on almost everything you bring in. Use the calculator to estimate the duty on your goods or vehicle, then see the full rate tables below.
The short answer
- Most goods pay 22% import duty on their CIF value (the cost of the item plus insurance plus shipping), not on the item price alone.
- Vehicles pay far more: 29.5% for a car up to CI$20,000, rising to 42% above CI$30,000, plus a CI$1,000 or CI$2,000 environmental tax and a CI$250 impact fee on top.
- A few things are genuinely duty-free: books, basic unprocessed foodstuffs, mobility aids, and farm equipment. Medicines are reduced to 12%. But most everyday items, including laptops and phones, pay the full 22%.
- Alcohol, tobacco, and fuel are charged by the unit, not by value: for example CI$11.85 per litre of spirits and CI$210 per 1,000 cigarettes.
Duty calculator
Pick what you are importing and enter the value. For goods, add the shipping cost, since duty is charged on the two together. Figures are estimates in Cayman dollars; confirm the exact rate with Customs for anything high-value.
Enter a value to estimate the duty.
How duty is calculated
Cayman charges duty on the CIF value: the Cost of the item, plus Insurance, plus the Freight (shipping) to bring it here. So a US$500 item with US$60 shipping is dutied on US$560, not US$500. There is no published formula for imputing freight and insurance when an invoice is silent, so treat those as your own estimate.
On top of duty, Customs charges a Package Tax of CI$5 per package (or per 100 lb), and forwarders add their own clearance or brokerage fee. The returning-resident duty-free allowance (CI$800 from September 2026) applies only to goods you carry in yourself as accompanied baggage; it does not apply to freight, mail, or a vehicle. Our shipping guide covers the freight side in full.
Standard rate and what is not 22%
The general rate on ordinary goods is 22%, and it covers the vast majority of what people import: clothing, footwear, furniture, appliances, phones, and yes, laptops and computers. A minority of luxury lines sit at 27%. Vehicles run much higher. A short list of goods pays less or nothing.
| Category | Duty |
|---|---|
| General goods (electronics, clothing, furniture, phones, laptops) | 22% |
| Medicines and medicaments | 12% (reduced, not free) |
| Books, newspapers, printed matter | 0% |
| Basic unprocessed foodstuffs (rice, flour, grains) | 0% |
| Processed foods (bread, biscuits, pastry) | 22% |
| Mobility aids, wheelchairs, orthopaedic appliances | 0% (conditional) |
| Farm equipment and agricultural inputs | 0% (needs a farmer's ID) |
| Building materials (general) | 22% (no blanket exemption) |
Why Cayman feels duty-free but is not. Cayman has a duty-free reputation, and it comes from two real things: the tourist duty-free shops in George Town, and the absence of any income or sales tax. Neither means your imports arrive free. Aside from the short list above, ordinary goods are dutiable from the first dollar at 22%, so budget for it on anything you ship in or bring back.
Vehicle duty
Cars are dutied on a rising scale by CIF value, and 29.5% is the lowest whole-vehicle rate, not a flat one. Pick-up trucks are a flat 29.5% at any value. Two separate levies stack on top of the duty for every vehicle.
| Petrol or diesel car, by CIF value | Duty |
|---|---|
| Up to CI$20,000 | 29.5% |
| CI$20,001 to CI$25,000 | 32% |
| CI$25,001 to CI$30,000 | 37% |
| Over CI$30,000 | 42% |
| Pick-up truck (any value) | 29.5% |
On top of the duty, every vehicle also pays an environmental tax of CI$1,000 (CIF up to CI$79,999) or CI$2,000 (CIF CI$80,000 and over), plus a CI$250 environmental impact fee. These are flat charges and apply whether the vehicle is petrol, diesel, electric, or hybrid. The returning-resident allowance does not cover a vehicle.
Electric and hybrid vehicles get a break at the entry level: a pure EV up to CI$29,999 is 0% duty and a hybrid up to CI$29,999 is 10%. Above that the rates step up (and rose again under an October 2025 order). Electric motorcycles, e-bikes, electric golf carts, and cars over 100 years old are 0%.
| EV / hybrid, by CIF value | EV | Hybrid |
|---|---|---|
| Up to CI$29,999 | 0% | 10% |
| CI$30,000 to CI$60,999 | 5%* | 12%* |
| CI$61,000 to CI$79,999 | 10% | 15% |
| CI$80,000 to CI$99,999 | 20% | 30% |
| CI$100,000 and over | 30% | 34% |
These are personal-use rates. The entry rates and every band from CI$61,000 up are confirmed from the October 2025 tariff order (SL 36 of 2025); commercial-use rates run higher, to 40%. * The CI$30,000 to CI$60,999 rate is from the earlier schedule and is still being confirmed.
Alcohol, tobacco, and fuel
These are charged by the unit, not as a percentage of value, so they are shown separately rather than in the calculator. Alcohol duty is per litre:
| Alcohol | Duty (CI$ per litre) |
|---|---|
| Beer and cider | CI$1.95 |
| Table wine | CI$3.60 |
| Dessert wine and vermouth | CI$5.25 |
| Sparkling wine | CI$7.80 |
| Champagne | CI$10.80 |
| Spirits (rum, whisky, gin, vodka, brandy) | CI$11.85 |
| Liqueurs and cordials | CI$13.50 |
| Overproof spirits | CI$15.98 |
| Tobacco | Duty |
|---|---|
| Cigarettes | CI$210 per 1,000 (about CI$4.20 a pack) |
| Cigars | 102% of value |
| Smoking tobacco | 87% of value |
Fuel is normally CI$0.75 per Imperial gallon of petrol and CI$0.85 for diesel, but a government relief programme has waived all import duty on petrol and diesel from 1 June to 30 September 2026, after which the rates resume. Personal amounts of alcohol and tobacco carried in by travellers fall under the duty-free traveller allowance, covered in our customs guide.
Frequently Asked Questions: Cayman Islands
How much is import duty in the Cayman Islands?
Most goods pay 22% import duty, charged on the CIF value (the item price plus insurance plus shipping), not the item price alone. There is no income, sales, or VAT tax in Cayman, so import duty is the main tax. Vehicles pay far more, from 29.5% up to 42% by value plus flat environmental levies. A few categories pay less: medicines are 12%, and books, basic unprocessed foodstuffs, mobility aids, and farm equipment are duty-free. Laptops, phones, and most everyday goods pay the full 22%.
How is Cayman import duty calculated?
Duty is a percentage of the CIF value: the cost of the item, plus insurance, plus the freight to ship it to Cayman. So a US$500 item with US$60 shipping is dutied on US$560. On top of duty, Customs charges a CI$5 package tax and forwarders add a clearance fee. The returning-resident allowance applies only to accompanied baggage, not to freight, mail, or vehicles.
How much is the import duty on a car in the Cayman Islands?
Cars are dutied on a rising scale by CIF value: 29.5% up to CI$20,000, 32% to CI$25,000, 37% to CI$30,000, and 42% above CI$30,000. Pick-up trucks are a flat 29.5%. Every vehicle also pays an environmental tax of CI$1,000 (or CI$2,000 for a CIF of CI$80,000 or more) plus a CI$250 environmental impact fee. Electric vehicles up to CI$29,999 are 0% duty and hybrids up to CI$29,999 are 10%, with higher bands above that.
Is anything duty-free in the Cayman Islands?
A limited list. Books and printed matter, basic unprocessed foodstuffs like rice and flour, mobility aids and wheelchairs, and farm equipment (with a farmer's ID) are 0%. Medicines are reduced to 12%. But most everyday imports, including laptops, phones, processed foods, and building materials, pay the full 22%, dutiable from the first dollar. Cayman's duty-free reputation refers to its tourist duty-free shops and the lack of income tax, not to what you ship in.
How much is duty on alcohol in the Cayman Islands?
Alcohol is charged per litre, not as a percentage: about CI$1.95 a litre for beer, CI$3.60 for table wine, CI$10.80 for champagne, CI$11.85 for spirits like rum, whisky, gin, and vodka, and CI$15.98 for overproof spirits. Cigarettes are CI$210 per 1,000 (about CI$4.20 a pack). Personal amounts carried in by travellers fall under the duty-free traveller allowance instead.
Methodology and sources
Rates are taken from the Customs Tariff Act First Schedule (the Cayman Islands tariff), with vehicle duty and the environmental tax from the Ministry of Border Control's Auto Industry Booklet 2024 and the Customs Tariff (Amendment of Schedules) Order 2025 (SL 36 of 2025, effective 1 October 2025), and the CI$250 environmental impact fee from the Public Health Act (section 57) as published on gov.ky. The CIF basis is from Customs guidance. Fuel duty and the June-to-September 2026 waiver are confirmed against government fuel-relief coverage. The higher electric and hybrid vehicle bands are being re-confirmed against the 2025 order and are marked provisional. Duty is an estimate, freight and insurance are user-entered, and Customs assesses the final figure on the declared CIF value; confirm anything high-value directly with Customs and Border Control. This is general guidance, not customs advice. Full methodology and corrections policy: /about. Last updated: 28 July 2026.