2026 Landed-Cost Report
A cheap factory price is not the price you pay. EAC certification, duty, 16% VAT and the long inland leg quietly turn a $50,000 machine into a ~$70,000 one in your yard. Here's exactly where the money goes — visualised — so you can budget before you buy.
The picture
Illustrative for a machine railed to Almaty. The grey block is what you negotiate. Everything orange is what most quotes leave out — about 40% more.
Line by line
Most machinery needs an EAC certificate (TR CU 010/2011) to clear EAEU customs — usually with a factory audit, from ~€2,500, and annual surveillance for serial production.
Budget it early — weeks to monthsThe EAEU Common Customs Tariff runs 0–10% for machinery. The trap is misclassification — the wrong HS code means the wrong duty, plus penalties and delay at the border.
Classify correctly before you shipKazakhstan's VAT rose to 16% in 2026 (from 12%). It's charged on the customs value + duty, not the bare factory price — so it stacks on top of freight and duty.
Confirm the current rateCentral Asia is landlocked. A quote "to the port" isn't a quote to your yard. Rail vs road, transhipment and border dwell to Almaty or Tashkent can rival the main freight.
Always price door-to-doorThe most expensive line never appears on a quote: the machine that arrives wrong. Faked hours on a used excavator, wrong voltage, a downgraded spec, a "factory" that was a trader. From a landlocked yard, a return can cost more than the unit — plus bank/FX and customs handling on top.
Verify the supplier · inspect before it shipsThe numbers
Illustrative, representative 2026 figures — not a quote. Your duty depends on the HS code, freight on route and volume, and EAC is a one-off spread across the order.
| Cost line | Basis (illustrative) | Amount (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| Factory price (EXW China) | Your negotiated machine price | $50,000 |
| Main freight to the region | Sea + rail / breakbulk share | ≈ $4,000 |
| Import duty | ~5% of customs value (0–10%) | ≈ $2,700 |
| Import VAT | 16% on customs value + duty | ≈ $9,100 |
| EAC certification | One-off, machinery (from €2,500) | ≈ $2,700 |
| Inland leg + customs + bank/FX | Border to your yard, fees | ≈ $1,500 |
| Landed cost in your yard | ≈ 40% on top of the EXW price | ≈ $69,900 |
The point isn't the exact number — it's that "$50,000" was never the real cost. A proper landed-cost quote shows all of this up front.
How to budget right
Insist every line — duty, VAT, EAC, inland — is in the number before you commit.
Confirm classification up front so duty is right and the border can't reclassify and fine you.
It can take weeks and may need a factory audit. Begun late, it strands paid-for goods.
For a landlocked destination the inland leg is not optional. Quote to your yard, not the port.
The one cost that can wipe out the deal — the wrong machine — is the cheapest to prevent.
Sources & notes
Tax and duty rates change and differ by destination country and product. Confirm current figures for your goods and route before budgeting. Key public references:
FAQ
As a rough guide, expect roughly 30–45% on top of the EXW factory price by the time the machine is in your yard — freight, import duty (0–10%), VAT (16% in Kazakhstan in 2026, on customs value plus duty), one-off EAC certification, the inland leg and handling/bank fees. The exact figure depends on the HS code, route and order, so get a full landed-cost quote up front.
Most machinery falls under TR CU 010/2011 and needs an EAC certificate to clear customs in the EAEU. For machinery it usually requires a factory audit, starts around €2,500, and serial certificates need annual surveillance audits. Start it early — it can take weeks to months.
Central Asian countries are landlocked, so a quote to the port leaves out the longest, often costliest part of the journey: rail or road from the border to your city. Always insist on a door-to-door price to your actual destination.
Get a full door-to-door landed-cost quote before you commit, confirm the HS code, budget EAC from day one, and verify and inspect the supplier before payment. Those four moves remove almost every nasty surprise at the border.
No more surprises
Tell us the machine and your city. We'll come back with a door-to-door landed cost — duty, VAT, EAC and inland leg included — so you know the real number before you commit.
Every cost line on the table, in Russian or English
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