The landed cost of tiles from India is the total you pay to have the goods in your warehouse: the factory price, freight, insurance, duty, taxes, clearing and local delivery. The cost to import tiles from India is therefore always higher than the quote.
A CIF tiles price already includes freight and insurance to the destination port, but nothing after it. Build the worksheet below once and reuse it for every quote.
What is the structure of the worksheet?
Work from the quote to the warehouse in this order. Each line is a separate item so you can see what moves:
- Goods value (FOB): the quantity in square metres multiplied by the agreed rate.
- Plus ocean freight to the destination port, including surcharges.
- Plus marine insurance, usually calculated on the insured value of the cargo.
- Equals the CIF value, which most customs authorities use as the basis for duty.
- Plus import duty and any other duties, calculated on the customs value.
- Plus VAT or sales tax, calculated on the customs value plus duty, where your country applies it that way.
- Plus port, terminal and storage charges at destination.
- Plus customs broker fees, inspection and documentation costs.
- Plus inland transport and unloading to your warehouse.
How do you find the duty line?
Duty depends on your country, the tile's classification and, in some markets, on anti-dumping measures that apply to the origin or the producer. We do not state rates because they change. Start with the guide to import duties on Indian tiles in the Gulf, US and EU and anti-dumping duties.
Then ask your customs broker or the national customs tariff database to confirm the classification and the rate that applies on the date of arrival. Do this before you finalise the order.
How do Incoterms change the worksheet?
Under FOB you add freight and insurance. Under CIF they are already in the price, but you still add destination costs. Under DAP the seller delivers to a named place and you add only import duty, taxes and unloading. Read FOB, CIF or DAP to choose the term, and insurance for tile shipments to understand the cover.
Whatever the term, convert every quote to landed cost before you compare. A lower factory price with higher freight or duty can end up more expensive.
What should you add for risk?
Add an allowance line for breakage, mixed grades and delay. Tiles are fragile and heavy, and some loss is normal. Decide in the contract how claims are handled, as in how to make a breakage claim on a tile shipment.
Exchange rate movement between the order and the final payment is another item. Fix it where you can, or leave a margin.
How do you use the worksheet in practice?
Build one row per quote and one column per line of cost, then add a row for your own selling price and margin. When quotes arrive on different terms, the worksheet shows which lines each one is missing.
Update the worksheet after each shipment with actual figures from the invoices. After two or three containers you will have a reliable estimate of the destination costs, and you can quote customers with more confidence.
Next step
We help you set up the worksheet for your market and compare quotes at landed cost. Book a free sourcing review with your destination port and product.