4202.11
Outer surface of leather or composition leather. The smaller share of modern luggage, mostly briefcases and older trunks.
International
How to ship luggage internationally
Sending a bag ahead of a flight works differently once the flight crosses an ocean. Nobody prices that leg from two ZIP codes, the customs code on the box is not “suitcase,” and the country on the label decides more of the outcome than the carrier does. Sources below were read 2026-08-18.
Domestic leg priced liveRules cited by countryFreight review for the rest
Two legs, one of them ours
A run to a US forwarder prices like any other parcel. The border crossing is a different job.
Where this site actually fits
SMKlog's calculator prices United States domestic parcels: two ZIP codes, a box, done in about a minute. If the plan is to mail a suitcase to a freight forwarder, a consolidator, or a relative who repacks it for the next leg, that first hop is exactly that kind of domestic shipment and the calculator prices it the same way it prices any boxed suitcase. The leg that actually leaves the country is not automated here; send the details through freight review and a person prices it, including what the destination charges to let it in.
USPS sells three international mail products of its own, priced and explained in our USPS international shipping guide. Those figures move often enough that we keep them on one page rather than repeating them here.
The customs code is 4202, not “suitcase”
Every customs form asks for a classification, and a suitcase has one whether the sender writes it down or not. The US Census Bureau's Schedule B, the export code base for the international Harmonized System, puts trunks, suitcases, vanity cases and similar containers under heading 4202. Schedule B chapter 42, read 2026-08-18, splits it by shell material.
4202.12
Outer surface of plastics or of textile materials. This is the code most wheeled hardside and softside suitcases actually get.
4202.19
Everything else in the trunks-and-suitcases group that isn't leather, plastic or textile on the outside.
Writing “personal suitcase” or “used bag” on a customs form is not wrong, but it is not the classification a customs officer is working from either. The commercial invoice line should carry the 4202 code alongside the plain description.
One country's rules don't transfer to the next
There is no single international luggage rule, only a long list of national ones. Two we've already priced out show how far apart they run.
Japan
Goods worth 10,000 yen or less clear without duty or consumption tax — except the exemption names leather bags and handbags outright as one of the categories it does not cover. Full detail in our shipping to Japan guide.
France
A flat 2 euro customs administration charge applies under 150 euro, waived for a private gift under 45 euro sent between two individuals and for parcels addressed to Corsica or Mayotte. Full detail in our shipping to France guide.
Everywhere else
Assume nothing carries over. Check the destination's own country listing before packing valuables into a bag headed across a border.
Two things worth getting right before the box is taped shut
Mailed is not carried
A traveler's personal-effects allowance belongs to a person crossing a border with a bag in hand. A box handed to a carrier travels unaccompanied, and most destinations assess it like any other parcel, on the declared value of the contents.
Battery installed, not loose
Smart luggage with a battery that doesn't come out is a lithium battery in equipment the moment it's boxed, which puts it under the same country-by-country mail restrictions as a laptop or a power tool. Check the destination's listing, and see our laptop guide for how the installed-battery paperwork works.
Where this comes from
- US Census Bureau, Schedule B, Chapter 42 — the 4202.11 / 4202.12 / 4202.19 classification for trunks, suitcases and similar containers. Read 2026-08-18.
The Japan and France figures above were read and dated on their own pages, linked in the section above; check the original if you need the citation. Schedule B is revised on its own schedule and should be read fresh for anything filed close to a deadline.
Common questions
Can SMKlog quote shipping a suitcase to another country?
No. The calculator prices United States domestic parcels between two ZIP codes. If the bag's first hop is to a US-based forwarder, a consolidator, or a family member who reships it, that leg is an ordinary domestic shipment and prices the same way any suitcase does. The leg that actually crosses a border goes through freight review, where a person prices it.
What HS code goes on a suitcase customs form?
4202.11 for a suitcase with an outer surface of leather or composition leather, 4202.12 for one in plastic or textile materials, the shell almost every wheeled suitcase is made from. Both sit under Schedule B heading 4202, the US export classification for trunks, suitcases and similar containers.
Does a suitcase full of used clothes count as personal effects at customs?
Not automatically. Personal-effects allowances are generally built for a traveler carrying a bag across a border in person, not for a box mailed unaccompanied. A mailed suitcase is ordinarily assessed like any other parcel, on the declared value of what's inside it, under whatever threshold the destination country runs.
Do customs rules for luggage differ by country?
Substantially. Japan's own customs exemption drops goods worth 10,000 yen or less, but names leather bags and handbags as one of the categories excluded from that exemption. France adds a flat 2 euro administration charge under 150 euro, waived for private gifts under 45 euro. Neither number transfers to any other country.
What about a suitcase with a built-in battery?
A non-removable battery pack in a smart suitcase is still a lithium battery installed in equipment once it's taped shut in a box, and that puts it under the same country-by-country mail restrictions as any other battery-powered device. Check the destination's own listing before you box it; our laptop guide covers the installed-battery paperwork in more detail.