Is this customs payment text a scam?

A real customs charge can still arrive through a fake message

Do not decide solely by whether you are expecting goods from China. Check three things separately: does this shipment exist, does the carrier confirm this bill, and have you reached its payment service independently? Treat any missing confirmation as unresolved.

Check the demand independently, rather than accept or reject every customs text.

Start with the dispatch record, then ask for the bill

Find the tracking number in your original order, supplier correspondence or booking confirmation. Open the carrier's website yourself. If the Chinese dispatch record names a different operator from the UK delivery message, ask the supplier for the UK delivery reference before approving payment.

GOV.UK says the delivery company sends a bill identifying the fees payable. Through contact details found independently, ask the carrier: 'Does this reference belong to our shipment? What amount is outstanding? Please separate duty, import VAT and your own fees, and confirm how we should pay.'

Give your accounts team the commercial invoice and transport records, using the UK customs document checklist. A screenshot of the demand alone is insufficient for your approval record.

Use the verification result to choose the next action

Use this as an internal payment decision checklist. Do not use a link, QR code or telephone number supplied only in the disputed message to resolve the dispute.

Worked example: a genuine sample shipment, an unverified demand

Hypothetical example: your business is waiting for samples from China. A text names the correct tracking number and asks for a customs payment. The supplier confirms dispatch and says import charges were included. Neither fact confirms the text's payment destination.

Open the carrier's website independently and contact its billing team. If it cannot confirm an outstanding bill, keep payment on hold and request clarification. If it confirms a bill, compare its payer instructions with the supplier's booking record and check whether anyone has already paid. Use only the payment route confirmed independently by the carrier.

The decision has two parts: authenticate the demand, then settle responsibility for a genuine bill. For the latter, see courier customs fee disputes and DDP shipments and import VAT. No assumed tax rate or fee amount is needed to make this decision.

Report the message; act immediately if details were disclosed

GOV.UK says suspicious texts can be forwarded to 7726 free of charge. Do not reply to an uncertain message, open its attachments or supply private information. Find email reporting instructions through the official reporting source below.

If you supplied bank or card details, contact your bank immediately through its app or a trusted number, even if no money has left the account. Explain what you entered and ask it to secure the account. If you disclosed a password, change it immediately and change it on any other accounts where you reused it. Alert your business's IT contact if a work account was involved.

Save the message, payment receipt if any, and the carrier's response for your incident record. If the demand also involves a supplier's changed bank account, follow the separate checks in avoiding sourcing scams.

Leave the next shipment a clear payment trail

Before dispatch, record the expected carrier, shipment reference, agreed payer and how import VAT will be handled. Give accounts access to the booking record and payment receipts. Use the pre-shipment import VAT agreement guide to document the handover.

For help reconciling a China supplier's dispatch and payer instructions with a UK delivery demand, use Cambridge China Bridge's UK customs and delivery service. Keep the carrier's confirmation of the bill and payment route with the final approval.