Everything You Need to Know About Sending Parcels to Spain

Discover cheap rates on sending packages to Spain with ParcelBroker’s trusted courier comparison service.

Gain access to the cheapest rates on shipping costs through ParcelBroker, with delivery that could arrive as early as 1 business day. Book now and gain access to parcel tracking and up to £1000 transit cover.

  • Save up to 70% when exporting to the Spain.
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Spain is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Europe and as a member of the European Union, Spain enjoys a free market economy with the rest of the EU. So if you’re looking to send a package to Spain, follow this comprehensive guide for information on delivery times, advice on customs regulations, address labels and more.


What's the Cheapest Way to Send a Parcel to Spain?

Sending a package through ParcelBroker means that you can enjoy the benefits of our affiliated couriers, such as fully tracked service options like our UPS: Standard service, which costs as little as  £20.47 for a 5kg package.

Your package can arrive in just 1 business days, but factors such as the weight and dimensions of your package will naturally affect shipping costs. You can use our shipping calculator for live delivery quotes, or view our information below for details on pricing factors and variations.

Go to our Shipping Calculator

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Package Weight

The weight of your package will affect the cost of delivery to Spain, and may also affect the delivery time for larger items. If you are sending items that have a delivery deadline, then you should obtain a quote first to provide an accurate delivery date to the recipient.

Items up to 50kg in weight can be shipped via ParcelforceDHLFedEx, and UPS, at some of the best rates available online when booking through ParcelBroker. Use our helpful shipping calculator to find live prices on all couriers by adding your package’s weight, dimensions, and quantity of items.

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Package Dimensions

The dimensions of your package will determine which courier service you can use to send your package to Spain. If you are sending bulky items, or multiple packages, you may wish to combine them into a single pallet for easier delivery.

If you need to ship a long or large parcel to Spain, be aware that this may attract additional surcharges for handling, this surcharges are included in the instant quotation we provide



Can I Send a Pallet to the Spain?

You can easily send a pallet to Spain with ParcelBroker’s PB: Express Pallet service, or through DHL: Express Pallet. Get an instant quote for your pallet delivery to Spain through our pallet delivery calculator.

Pallet deliveries are the most cost-effective way to send large, heavy, or multiple packages to a single destination. You may need to order a pallet online or through your local supplier, once this has arrived you should correctly package your pallet using the advice below, securing it with shrink wrap to ensure that items do not become loose or lost from the pallet.

How to Package Your Pallet

Packaging your pallet correctly is vital to ensuring the cheapest possible delivery when sending packages to Spain. Properly stacking your items will reduce the cost of your delivery, as ‘non-stackable’ pallets that cannot be combined with others will be subject to additional charges. We have included an example of how to properly stack your pallets below.

CORRECT

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INCORRECT

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You can also explore our Pallet Delivery Guide for more information.



Same-Day Pickup and Local Drop-Off

Same day pickups are available from most couriers if you book before 12 noon.  Alternatively, you can use a local drop off point if this is more convenient for you.  There are usually several drop off points in towns and at least one in the larger villages.  You can only drop off parcels and documents at local drop off points, you can however arrange to drop off larger items or pallets at local depots instead.

You can compare our live prices below to gain up-to-date costs for shipping to Spain:

UPS FedEx DHL DSV Parcelforce TNT
0.5kg £32.43 £31.43 £32.13 £20.47 £23.72 £21.81
1kg £34.70 £26.30 £33.74 £20.47 £23.72 £21.81
5kg £39.35 £42.54 £33.74 £21.64 £23.72 £21.81
10kg £39.35 £52.17 £37.76 £24.22 £29.93 £27.94
15kg £39.35 £63.81 £41.87 £35.33 £29.93 £30.49
20kg £39.35 £70.16 £46.00 £40.00 £32.92 £30.61
25kg £39.35 £97.89 £52.54 £45.38 £35.91 £33.41

Prices as of April 23, 2024


How Long Does it Take to Deliver to Spain?

Your package could arrive in Spain in as little as 1 business day if sent via an express air service, if it's sent on a road services, then transit times start from 2 business days. Reduce your delivery time by utilising one of our local drop off points, or arrange a collection straight from your door.

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Shipping to Spanish Islands

If you are sending a package to either Menorca, Mallorca, or Ibiza, then you can use ParcelBroker’s trusted courier comparison service to get your package to one of these destinations in as little as 1 business day via Fdx: Economy, PB: Standard, DHL: Standard, UPS, and Parcelforce. Use our helpful live price calculator to obtain the best rates on sending packages to the Spanish islands today.



How to Address my Parcel Before Shipping to Spain?

It is important that you correctly address your package before collection or drop-off at your local postal depot, ensuring that your label is free of spelling errors and correctly formatted.

Below, we have included guidance on how to correctly format an address label for Spain. When writing an address to Spain, you should include the following information:

  • The first and last name
  • Street name, street number, floor number, door number
  • Postal code and city
  • Country

In this example, the addressee lives in the building number 15, on the 4th floor in the apartment number 2 on the street of Manuel Iradier of the postcode 18737, in the city of Pozuelo de Alarcón in Madrid.

Ignacio Sousa
C/ Manuel Iradier, 15, 4o, 2a
18737 POZUELO DE ALARCÓN (Madrid)
SPAIN

In this example the ‘C/’ that features before the street name is an abbreviation of calle, meaning ‘street’ in Spanish.

Spain Territorial Provinces

SPANISH PROVINCES

A Coruña

Álava

Albacete

Alicante

Almería

Asturias

Ávila

Badajoz

Balearic Islands

Barcelona

Biscay

Burgos

Cáceres

Cádiz

Cantabria

Castellón

Ciudad Real

Córdoba

Cuenca

Guipúzcoa

Girona

Granada

Guadalajara

Huelva

Huesca

Jaén

La Rioja

Las Palmas

León

Lleida

Lugo

Madrid

Málaga

Murcia

Navarre

Ourense

Palencia

Pontevedra

Salamanca

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Segovia

Seville

Soria

Tarragona

Teruel

Toledo

Valencia

Valladolid

Zamora

Zaragoza


Spanish Customs Procedures and Required Documents

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Post-Brexit, sending packages to Spain requires a commercial invoice and export documentation in order to clear customs, as your shipment is coming from outside the EU.

VAT on Exports to Spain

The rate of VAT for shipments into Spain is 21% standard, with a reduced VAT rate for items falling under the cultural activities, transport, and electricity categories, and a super-reduced VAT rate for essential items such as food.

There are also a number of items which are exempt from VAT, these are:

  • Medicines imported for the purpose of sporting competitions.
  • Laboratory animals.
    • Agricultural goods or livestock.
    • Assets for charitable organisations.
    • Goods imported to help people with disabilities or victims of catastrophes.

Required Documentation

Shipments sent to Spain from the UK are considered international movements since Brexit.  Therefore these shipments are treated as any worldwide export.  If you are sending the parcel as a business (as in to make profit) then you'll need to register for an EORI number.  Everybody needs to complete a customs declaration regardless of whether it's a personal or business shipment.

What Can and Can't I Send to Spain?

There are a number of items that are either restricted or prohibited to be sent to Spain, and it is the responsibility of the sender to check this list against the items they are sending. For restricted items, your package will most likely be destroyed by Spanish customs if they reach their border control.

For more detailed information, please check your goods against the gov.uk website.

Items you Can’t Ship to Spain that May Surprise You

Interestingly, many EU countries ban the import of rubber erasers in the shape of food products that can be easily ingested - although reasons for this restriction have not been clearly defined. Spain is one such country that will not allow the import of rubber erasers in the shape of food products, so please be aware of this before sending any items which fall under this category.

We have also included a list of generally prohibited items below, however, if you are unsure of any of the items you are sending, you can check the Spanish government postal website for a list of prohibited import items.

LIST OF PROHIBITED ITEMS

  • Alcoholic beverages
  • All forms of asbestos fibres
  • All products containing the biocide dimethyl fumarate (DMF)
  • Animal skins
  • Atlantic red tuna fish (Thunnus Thynnus) originating from Belize, Panama, and Honduras
  • Biological Substance Cat B, UN3373
  • Certain U.S. Beef hormones
  • Chemicals, Haz and Non-Haz
  • Drugs, Non-Prescription
  • Foodstuffs
  • Plants
  • Illicit Narcotics and Drugs
  • Items having a flexible metal blade entirely contained in a plastic, paper or fabric sheath
  • Ivory
  • Jewellery, costume
  • L-tryptophan and any items having L-tryptophan as an ingredient
  • Medical thermometers containing mercury intended for human consumption

  • Restricted commodities when Importing Goods from the U.S. to Spain:

  • Rubber erasers that are similar in appearance to food products that are easily ingested

  • Seeds

  • Ship spares

  • Shoes

  • Sports equipment

  • Telecommunications equipment

  • Textile articles

  • Tobacco and Tobacco Leaves

  • Toys and games containing copper sulphate

What are Spain's Top Imports?

The EU accounts for around 45% of all products imported into Spain, with Germany and France making up 9% each. Spain enjoyed an increase of 5.3% in total imports in 2022, resulting in an overall import revenue of EUR 34.88 billion, according to Trading Economics.

The top imported items to Spain are:

  • Crude petroleum (€24.46 billion)
  • Cars (€14.57 billion)
  • Packaged Medicines (€10.81 billion)
  • Vaccines, blood, antisera, toxins, and cultures (€10.26 billion)

In 2021, Spain was also the largest importer of Olive Oil, un-vulcanised rubber products, and fat and oil residues globally. So it’s certainly an attractive market to consider for your importing and exporting plans.


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For more help with shipping parcels internationally you can browse our frequently asked questions (FAQs) and helpful shipping guides here.

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