Customs, Duties, and Delivery: How Your Wedding Dress Reaches the US

    Posted by Alena Amros on June 05, 2026
    An elegant wedding dress displayed in a boutique window, ready for delivery
    An elegant wedding dress displayed in a boutique window, ready for delivery to the US

    Key Takeaways

    • You pay nothing at customs. Duties, taxes, and documentation are handled before your dress leaves France.
    • Your all-inclusive price is the final price. There are no charges waiting on delivery day.
    • We ship by UPS with full tracking and a signature on arrival — typically 3 to 5 days.
    • More than 1,000 dresses delivered to date, with zero loss or damage incidents.
    • On delivery day, your only task is to sign for the package.

    Here is the short answer: you pay nothing at customs. No duties, no surprise fees, no paperwork to chase. We handle every step of bringing your dress from our atelier in France to your door in the United States.

    This is one of the most common worries we hear from US brides. Ordering a dress from Europe sounds like it should involve customs forms and unexpected charges. With us, it doesn't. Here's how it actually works.

    Who Handles Customs and Duties

    We do. All of it.

    Before your dress leaves France, we prepare every customs document and pay any applicable duties ourselves. The dress arrives in the US already cleared. Nothing is collected from you on arrival.

    This is built into how we price. The figure you approve before production is all-inclusive. It covers the dress, the materials, the shipping, and the customs handling. When we say the price is final, we mean it stays final — right through to the moment the box is in your hands.

    You will never get a call from a carrier asking for a payment before they release your dress. That situation simply doesn't happen with our orders, because the duties are already settled when the dress ships.

    How Your Dress Travels to You

    We ship every dress by UPS. Each shipment includes:

    • Full tracking. You receive a tracking number the moment your dress is dispatched, so you can follow it the whole way.
    • A signature on delivery. Your dress is never left unattended on a doorstep. Someone signs for it.
    • Protective, branded packaging. The dress is prepared to travel safely and arrive in the condition it left the atelier.

    From dispatch in France to delivery in the US, transit usually takes 3 to 5 days. We send the dress well ahead of your wedding date, with room to spare — we never cut delivery close to the day itself.

    Our Delivery Record

    We have completed more than 1,000 orders. Across all of them, we have had zero loss or damage incidents in transit.

    That record isn't luck. It comes from shipping with a carrier we trust, packaging each dress to protect its structure and embellishment, and handling the customs paperwork correctly every time. A single error on a customs form can hold a package for days. We don't leave that to chance.

    For a garment that took weeks of handwork to build, the delivery is not an afterthought. It is the final stage of the craft, and we treat it that way.

    What “All-Inclusive” Actually Covers

    When we quote your price, it includes everything needed to get the finished dress to your door:

    • The dress itself — design, materials, construction, and embellishment
    • Shipping from France to the US
    • All customs documentation
    • Any import duties or taxes

    There is one exception worth naming honestly: if you request a design change after production has already begun, that can affect the cost. That's the only thing that ever moves the price — and it's always your choice, agreed in advance. Customs and shipping are never added later.

    What You Do on Delivery Day

    Sign for the package. That's the entire list.

    You'll have tracked the dress to your door. When UPS arrives, you sign, and the box is yours. There's no customs office to visit, no form to complete, no fee to settle. The first thing you'll do is open it — not reach for your wallet.

    FAQ

    Will I have to pay customs or import duties when my dress arrives?
    No. We pay all duties and prepare the customs documents before the dress leaves France. Nothing is collected from you on arrival.

    Could a carrier hold my dress until I pay a fee?
    No. Because duties are settled before shipping, there is no outstanding charge for a carrier to collect. Your dress arrives already cleared.

    How long does shipping to the US take?
    Usually 3 to 5 days by UPS once the dress is dispatched. We always send it well ahead of your wedding date.

    What if my dress is lost or damaged in transit?
    Across more than 1,000 deliveries, this has not happened. Every shipment is tracked, signed for, and protectively packaged. If an issue ever arose, we would make it right.

    Is shipping included in the price, or added at the end?
    Included. Your all-inclusive price covers the dress, shipping, and customs. Nothing related to delivery is added later.

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    About the author: Alena Amros is the lead designer at Lutien Bridal Atelier in Ansignan, France, where she has designed and delivered more than 1,000 custom wedding gowns to brides across the US and Europe.

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