International Shipping & Returns

 

Yes, Matabay tea ships worldwide.  We either ship directly from Uji in Kyoto, Japan, or from our Yokohama select teashop.

 

Standard Shipping

 

Matabay’s shipping fees are the same worldwide for orders less than US$36,00, and are charged by the total weight of your order.  This is how the system works.

Based on the standard international shipping rates from the Japan Postal service, we charge a base fee of US$1.40,  then the weight of the product is added on to the base fee (US$2.10 per 100g).

So, if you order one item that is l00g, your shipping cost will be base charge (US$1.40) + weight charge (up to 100g = US$2.10) = US$3.50

If you order 2 items, one 80g, and one 200g, your shipping cost will be base charge (US$1.40) + weight charge (up to 100g = US$2.10) + weight charge (up to 200g = US$4.20) = US$7.70

For orders of US$36.00 and above, we will ship free of charge to anywhere in the world.  

The shipping rates for orders less than US$36.00, are as below:

 

Express/Priority Shipping

 

We are currently in preparation of offering an Express/Priority shipping option, and am sorry to inconvenience you for not being able to select this as an option at this moment.  However, for orders in where the total is US$150.00 or more, we will ship via Express/Priority shipping free of charge.

Shipping Time:

 

 All orders received by 12:00 PM (Japan Standard Time) are packed and shipped within 24H (with a maximum delay of an additional 12h if the order is not received by 12:00 PM).

 Using standard international small parcel mail, your order is expected to arrive within 7 to 12 days.  Using express/priority mail (EMS), this timeframe can be shortened to 4 to 8 days (*note; we currently only ship express/priority on orders of USD 150.00 or above).

 The actual delivery time is subject to your locality, and custom clearance, so it is impossible to pinpoint the exact arrival date.

 

The timeframe and flow of shipping is as the chart below.

 

Customs Duty

Customs duties vary depending on what country you place the order from, and a VAT (Value Added Tax) and/or custom clearance fee may also apply depending on local law. If you are required to pay a customs duty or VAT, you will be required to pay the duty/import-VAT when you receive your order.  If your country is not listed in the list below, please contact the local custom authorities for information.

• Rates of Customs Duties on Tea Leaves (Import VAT may apply)

• Australia—no duty

• Brazil—no duty up to 50US dollar (10% over 50US dollar + Import VAT 18%)

• Canada—no duty

• China—no duty up to 1,000 Yuan (15% over 1,000 Yuan)

• Dubai – 5%

• European Union—no duty up to 45 Euro (3.2 % over 45 Euro) laws on Import VAT may vary from country to country

• Hong Kong –no duty

• Indonesia – 5%  (Import VAT 10%)

• Macau – no duty

• Mexico – no duty under a value of USD$50 (DTA of 0.08% still applies)

• New Zealand – no duty

• Philippines – no duty if the CIF is under PhP2000.00 (3% if above), Import VAT 12%

• Russian Federation—no duty up to 5,000US dollar (20% over 5,000US dollar)

• Saudi Arabia – no duty

• Singapore—no duty, Import VAT 7%

• Taiwan—no duty up to 3000TW dollar (19.4% over 3000TW dollar) Import VAT 5%

• Thailand – no duty up to 1000THB  (60%, Import VAT 7%)

• Turkey – 145% + Import VAT 8%

• The Republic of Korea—no duty up to 100,000 Won (513.6% over 100,000 Won)

• United States—no duty

• United Kingdom—no duty up to 32 Pound (3.2 % over 32 Pound)

• United Arab Emirates— import duty 8%

NOTICE:  The following countries prohibit the import of tea leaves:

• Nigeria

• Colombia

• Sri Lanka

 

Cancelation, Return and Reshipping Policy

• We will gladly exchange all damaged, defective, or wrongly shipped items.  If your item is damaged, defective, or wrongly shipped, please notify tea-of-japan.com within one week of receiving the order.  Also, if the item is damaged or defective, please save the item and all of the packaging from that order for inspection by the carrier.  Any additional shipping will be covered by tea-of-japan.com

• Unless the purchased item/product is damaged, defective, or wrongly shipped, all sales are final.  Thus, once an order has been processed or shipped, we are not able to cancel your order.

• Once the items have been shipped, the passive rights of the items/products belong to the purchaser.  Thus, if you provide us with a wrong address, and we ship to that address, we will not be able to accept any responsibility in the case the shipment does not reach you.

• In the unlikely event that you are not satisfied with the order, or the tea is not to your liking, we will exchange the item with an item of equal or less value to the item you have purchased under the following conditions.

  • The shipping cost is covered by the purchaser (you).

  • The parcel is insured for its full value.

  • If the item is tea, the package must be unopened. We are unable to accept any opened packages.

  • If the item is tea ware (teacups, teapots, etc), they must be unused, must not be damaged, and returned in their original box.

  • The exchange is only applicable within one week of receiving the order.

The replacement will be shipped upon the safe arrival of the returned goods.

 

Our Packaging Policy

At Matabay, we believe that packaging is also key to enjoying fine tea.  For example, we use steel containers for our finest teas, such as Pinnacle Gyokuro and Pinnacle Sencha, along with our Matcha.  There is a reason for this.  These containers are specially designed to keep the freshness of the tea for as long as possible.  They are quite sturdy, and can be used for many things, even after you have drank all the tea.

Our packaging for other teas are also made to preserve the freshness of the tea for as long as possible, and are made out of recyclable materials.

However, for shipping packaging, we take a minimalistic approach.  Although we believe that it is important to make sure that our tea not only looks appealing to the eye while keeping it fresh, we also firmly believe that there is no reason to go overboard in heavy packaging beyond what is required to protect the items from shipping damage.