Hey Gorilla Family. Straight answer first: when you order an iPhone Duo case from us to an Australian address, the number on the checkout screen is the number that leaves your card. We do not add an Australian GST line to it. What I am not going to do is pretend that is the end of the story, because there is a rule sitting behind it that every Australian buying from an overseas store should understand.
Almost nobody in the phone case business writes this down honestly. So here it is.
| QUICK TAKE | The 30-second version |
| The rule | Since 1 July 2018 the ATO applies 10 percent GST to imported goods with a customs value of A$1,000 or less sold to Australian consumers. |
| Who collects it | The overseas seller, but only once that seller has A$75,000 or more in GST turnover from sales connected with Australia. |
| What we charge | No GST line at checkout. Shipping to Australia is a flat $4.99 USD. Prices display in USD, not AUD. |
| The part nobody mentions | Our parcels travel Delivered Duty Unpaid. Any charge a carrier or the border does raise is billed to you, not prepaid by us. |
| My pick | Order one case and one screen protector together. One parcel, one $4.99 shipping line, one customs event instead of two. |
Does Australia charge GST on a phone case bought from an overseas store?
Sometimes. And it depends on the seller, not on you.
Australia scrapped the old low value import exemption on 1 July 2018. Since then, goods with a customs value of A$1,000 or less sold by an overseas business to an Australian consumer attract 10 percent GST. The Australian Taxation Office is explicit that customs value is the price the goods sell for, with transport and insurance stripped out, so a $44.99 case is nowhere near the A$1,000 line even after freight.
The part that decides whether you actually see a GST line is the registration threshold. An overseas business has to register for and collect Australian GST once it has A$75,000 or more in GST turnover from sales connected with Australia. Below that, it does not.
So why is there no GST line on my Gorilla Cases order?
Because of that threshold test, and I will leave it at that rather than dress it up.
We do not currently add a GST line to Australian orders. You are charged the listed price plus $4.99 USD shipping and nothing else. Australia is our largest market outside the United States, and it is still a small slice of a small business. If our position changes, the line will appear on your order and you will see it before you pay. I am not going to promise you it will never appear, because that is not a promise anyone honest can make about a tax threshold.
What does Delivered Duty Unpaid mean for an Australian buyer?
It means nothing is prepaid at the border on your behalf.
Our published shipping policy says it plainly: customs duties and import taxes are the responsibility of the recipient. That is what Delivered Duty Unpaid means in practice. We hand the parcel to the carrier, the carrier moves it, and if any charge is raised on arrival it is raised against you rather than settled by us in advance.
For a single case this is a low risk, because the low value goods regime is designed so that small consignments are handled through the seller rather than stopped at the border. I am still telling you about it, because the alternative is you finding out from a text message asking for a handling fee.
Could a case order ever cross the A$1,000 line?
Not a personal one. A wholesale one, yes.
One case, two cases, a case and a screen protector and a lens ring — you are spending well under a hundred dollars and the low value rules cover it. Consignments above A$1,000 fall outside that regime and are assessed at the border instead, where GST and any applicable duty are collected on import. If you are buying a carton for a repair shop or a kiosk, that is the bracket you are in, and you should plan for it rather than be surprised by it.
What does shipping to Australia actually cost and take?
Flat $4.99 USD, and our published window is 10 to 14 business days.
Processing runs 1 to 3 business days on our side, and I will say that Australian orders which do ship have been going out fast — the recent ones dispatched the same day they came in. The transit leg after that runs on a consolidated international lane, and I am deliberately not quoting you a door-to-door number I cannot verify from our own delivery data. The published 10 to 14 business day window is the figure we stand behind. If it beats that, good. I would rather under-promise than write a delivery date I cannot back up.
One more thing worth knowing before you check out: our prices display in US dollars. There is no AUD storefront. Your card issuer will convert, and that conversion, plus any international transaction fee your bank charges, is a real cost that has nothing to do with GST and everything to do with your bank.
Which iPhone Duo cases do I actually recommend for an Australian order?
Five, and I have picked them so that two of them fit in one parcel without pushing you anywhere near a customs bracket.
Start here, because it is the cheapest way in. The iPhone Duo Slim Clear Case ($29.99) is hard polycarbonate, thin, and it does not fight the folded thickness. On a book foldable that matters more than it does on a slab phone, because every millimetre you add gets doubled when the phone closes.
The twenty-nine dollars I would spend first if the phone is already scratched. The iPhone Duo Camera Lens Protector Tempered Glass ($29.99) sits over the rear lenses so the glass you replace is the cheap glass. Its coating makes water bead and run off the lens surface, which keeps droplets from blurring a shot. To be clear about what that is not: it seals nothing and adds no water resistance to the phone.
Buy the multipack, not the single. The iPhone Duo Screen Protector Tempered Glass 3 Pack ($34.99) is the one I push hardest at Australian buyers specifically, and the reason is freight. When you are 14,000 kilometres from the warehouse, the cost of ruining an install is not the protector, it is the three weeks. Three in the box means a bad install is an annoyance instead of a re-order. Check the listing for which display each is cut for before you peel anything.
The one most people should actually buy. The iPhone Duo Clear MagSafe Case ($44.99) carries its own magnet array, so it grabs magnetic mounts and charging pucks without you buying an adapter ring. Clear backs yellow eventually. They all do, and anyone telling you otherwise is selling you something.
If you hate fingerprints. The iPhone Duo Matte Magnetic Case ($44.99) is the same magnetic idea with an anti-fingerprint finish. On a phone you are opening and closing a hundred times a day, the matte surface is the difference between a clean phone and a smudged one by lunchtime.
Browse the full lineup in the iPhone Duo Cases collection.
Are any of these waterproof?
No, and I am not going to blur that line. Every product above is drop, shock and scratch protection. None of them carry an IP rating, none are sealed, and none are rated for submersion. Any water resistance you have comes from the phone itself, not from a case we sell you.
Do you stock iPhone Duo cases in bulk for Australian retailers?
We do. If you run a repair counter in Sydney or Perth, foldable accessories are the category almost nobody stocks properly, and the margins reflect that. We can quote wholesale iPhone duo cases across the full catalog, and our iPhone Duo Wholesale cases program covers hinge cases, clear cases, silicone, screen protectors and camera lens glass. Bear in mind that a carton will sit above the A$1,000 low value line and be assessed at the border accordingly. Email info@gorillacasestore.com or call 978-797-0223 and ask for bulk pricing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I pay GST on an iPhone Duo case shipped to Australia? Not on our checkout. We do not currently add an Australian GST line. Whether any overseas seller adds one depends on whether their turnover into Australia has crossed the A$75,000 registration threshold.
What is the A$1,000 low value threshold? It is the customs value at or below which imported goods fall under the seller-collected GST regime rather than being assessed at the border. Customs value excludes freight and insurance.
Will customs stop my phone case? A single case is a low value consignment and is not normally assessed at the border. Our parcels travel Delivered Duty Unpaid, so if a charge is raised it is billed to you.
How much is shipping to Australia? A flat $4.99 USD. There is no free international shipping tier.
How long does delivery to Australia take? Our published window is 10 to 14 business days after 1 to 3 business days of processing.
Are prices shown in Australian dollars? No. The storefront is in US dollars. Your bank handles the conversion and may add its own international transaction fee.
Does buying two items cost double the shipping? No. Shipping is a flat rate per order, so combining a case and a screen protector into one order is cheaper than two separate ones.
Can I order wholesale quantities into Australia? Yes, and you should expect a consignment above A$1,000 to be assessed at the border with GST and any duty collected on import.
Are your iPhone Duo cases waterproof? No. They are drop, shock and scratch protection. We make no water resistance claims on any of them.
Do you ship to the US for free? Yes, on every order. International orders are a flat $4.99 USD.
Final verdict
The honest summary is that buying an iPhone Duo case from us into Australia is simpler than the internet makes it sound. No GST line at our checkout, a flat $4.99 freight charge, a 10 to 14 business day published window, and a low value consignment that customs has no particular interest in.
The two things I would not gloss over are the currency and the duty terms. You are paying in US dollars, so your bank is part of this transaction whether you like it or not. And the parcel travels Delivered Duty Unpaid, which means the border talks to you and not to us. Neither is a reason to avoid ordering. Both are reasons to order one parcel with everything in it rather than three parcels across three weeks.
Use discount code 10OFF at checkout for 10 percent off your order. Questions on fit or bulk pricing, reach us at info@gorillacasestore.com or 978-797-0223.
More reading: What Actually Happens to an iPhone Duo Case Order Bound for Australia, Your Rights on an iPhone Duo Case Bought From Overseas, and An Australian Summer Is Harder on a Foldable Than You Think.
GST figures here are drawn from the Australian Taxation Office guidance on GST on low value imported goods, current at the time of writing. Shipping cost, processing time and delivery window are our own published policy figures.
Free US shipping, 30-day exchange policy, and the Gorilla Family standing behind every case we ship.