Importing alpaca toys from Peru into the US

Alpaca stuffed animals imported from Peru are classified under HTS heading 9503.00.00 (dolls and other toys), and the general rate of duty on that heading is free. The tariff schedule adds a statistical suffix for the age group: 9503.00.0073 for children's products for ages 3 to 12, and 9503.00.0071 for children's products for children under 3.

The suffix follows the age grade on the label Tubi puts on each alpaca, so the entry, the certificate and the packaging agree. Your customs broker confirms the final classification when the goods are entered.

Extra US tariffs on goods from Peru can apply on top of the free base rate, and they have changed several times since 2025, so the total import cost of alpaca toys can differ from one month to the next.

Before you order, ask your customs broker for the rate that applies on the day your goods will enter the United States, and ask again before each shipment. Your broker can also tell you which other fees, such as processing fees, apply to the entry.

For a full landed cost, ask your broker to add up the duty, any extra tariff, the customs processing fees and the broker's own fee, on top of the freight. With that figure in hand before you confirm the quotation, you know the real cost of each alpaca toy on your shelf.

The guide to importing alpaca toys from Peru covers the steps that stay the same whatever the tariffs are: the quotation, payment, documents and freight.

The United States-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement, which took effect on 1 February 2009, covers alpaca toys made in Peru, but it brings no saving on the base duty, because heading 9503.00.00 is already free for every country.

When your broker does file a claim under the agreement, it is made by putting "PE" in front of the HTS number on the entry summary. The claim can rest on a certification from the importer, the exporter or the producer, in no fixed format, or on the importer's own knowledge of where the goods were made. The supporting records are kept for five years, in case CBP asks for them.

Every order from Tubi comes with a certificate of origin showing the toys were made by hand in Peru, so the origin of the goods is documented whichever way your broker files the entry.

US customs asks every buyer who imports alpaca toys from Peru for an importer of record, a customs bond for formal entries, the right entry papers and, for ocean freight, an Importer Security Filing. Whether you order one box or a pallet, these six points come up with each shipment.

• An importer of record. The company that enters the goods, pays any duty and answers to CBP. Most buyers have a licensed customs broker file the entry on their behalf.
• A customs bond. A shipment worth more than $2,500 needs a formal entry, and a formal entry is covered by a customs bond: a single entry bond for one shipment, or a continuous bond if you import regularly.
• No de minimis. Duty free entry under the $800 de minimis rule stopped for every country on 29 August 2025; a CBP rule of 24 June 2026 made that indefinite, and the law repeals the exemption from 1 July 2027. A sample box is entered like a large order.
• The entry papers. The broker files the commercial invoice, the packing list and the bill of lading or air waybill, gives an HTS number for each item, and adds the electronic toy certificate data described below.
• An Importer Security Filing, by sea only. The ISF, also called 10+2, applies to cargo arriving by vessel and is due at least 24 hours before the boxes are loaded at the port in Peru. Air freight and courier shipments do not need one.
• Origin marking. Every imported article must show its country of origin in English, legibly and permanently, so each alpaca toy is marked Peru.

Under the CPSIA, an alpaca stuffed animal sold for children 12 and under must pass ASTM F963 at a CPSC-accepted laboratory, be covered by a Children's Product Certificate and carry a tracking label, and it must stay within the federal limits for lead and phthalates. ASTM F963-23 is the edition made mandatory by 16 CFR part 1250 for toys manufactured from 20 April 2024; for a plush toy it tests the strength of seams, eyes and noses, small parts and flammability.

• Third-party testing. The tests are done by an independent laboratory on the CPSC's list of accepted labs for that standard.
• Children's Product Certificate. A written certificate in English, based on those test results, naming the product, each rule it meets, where and when it was made, when and where it was tested, and the laboratory. Since 8 July 2026 the certificate data is filed electronically with CBP when the goods are entered.
• Tracking label. A permanent mark on the toy and on its packaging with the manufacturer or importer, the place and date of production and a batch number, so a toy can be traced back to its production run.
• Lead. No more than 100 ppm in any accessible part, and paint or other surface coatings below 0.009 percent, which is 90 ppm.
• Phthalates. Eight phthalates, among them DEHP, DBP and DINP, are limited to 0.1 percent in accessible plasticized parts of children's toys, such as plastic eyes or a plastic nose.

The age grade matters as much as the tests. A toy meant for children under 3 may not have any part that fits in the small parts cylinder of 16 CFR part 1501, so eyes, noses and seams are judged more strictly. Every Tubi alpaca passes these tests, and Tubi puts the age label on each alpaca itself, so the report, the certificate and the label on the shelf say the same thing. How each test works is explained in are alpaca stuffed animals safe and on our compliance page.

To import alpaca toys wholesale from Tubi into the US, you place your order naming the United States as your market, ask for the CPSIA certificate and ASTM F963 results if you want to see them, and choose DAP delivery to your door or ex works collection by your own forwarder. Tubi already ships to buyers in the United States.

1. Quotation. Name the US as your market on the order form. Within 24 hours you receive the price, the ready date, the freight options and the HS code for your broker.
2. Safety papers. Every alpaca is tested to ASTM F963-23 and passes. The test results and the CPSIA Children's Product Certificate can always be shown, and sent on request to confirm.
3. Labels. Every piece carries the age label and the tracking label the CPSIA asks for before it leaves the workshop.
4. Export documents. The commercial invoice, the packing list box by box with weights, and a certificate of origin showing the toys were made in Peru.
5. Freight. DAP, delivered at place: the boxes travel to your address, and import clearance and any duty are handled at your end. Or ex works: your own forwarder collects at the workshop and, for sea freight, files the ISF.

Payment is 50% to start, 50% before shipping. The order is ready in 2 to 8 weeks, and a first order starts at $350.00, mixed across the whole collection. Volume prices and terms are in the wholesale buyer's guide, on how ordering works and on our page for importers.