Parcel held at Customs: the fake fee by text or phone call

Parcel held at Customs: the fake fee by text or phone call

"NZ Customs: your parcel is being held due to unpaid duties. Pay $3.99 within 24 hours or it will be returned to sender." Or a recorded call: "Your international parcel has been detained by Customs. Press 1 to speak to an officer." If you've ordered something from overseas recently, it sounds completely believable. In almost every case it's a scam, and the few dollars they ask for are just the hook to get your card details.

How does the Customs fee scam work?

1. The notice. A text, WhatsApp message, email or call in the name of NZ Customs, NZ Post or an international courier. They say a parcel in your name is being held and there's a fee to pay: duty, GST, "storage" or "redelivery".
2. The rush. There's a deadline: 24 or 48 hours, or the parcel "will be returned" or "destroyed".
3. The payment. They send you to a website that copies the official look, or on the call they ask you to read out your card. Sometimes they ask for a bank transfer or gift cards.
4. The real theft. With your card details they make purchases or add the card to a phone wallet. That's why, straight afterwards, you often get a text from your bank with a code, and the fake site asks you to enter it "to confirm the payment".

Why is it so believable?

Because lots of us buy online from overseas, parcels really do get held sometimes, and the amount is small enough not to raise alarms. The scammers send millions of messages; some will always land on someone who's waiting for a parcel.

How do I tell a real Customs charge from a fake one?

• How does Customs ask for payment? According to Customs' own payment page, personal customers who owe Customs receive an invoice and pay it through internet banking, using New Zealand Customs Service as the payee and the invoice number as a reference. Customs says card payments aren't available. So a "Customs" link asking for your card number is a giveaway.
• Was GST already included? Many overseas online shops charge New Zealand GST at checkout on low-value orders. Check your receipt: if GST was already charged, be very sceptical of any extra "GST" demand.
• Does your tracking number appear? A real notice refers to your shipment's tracking number, the one the shop gave you. A fake one just talks about "your parcel".
• Are they asking you to pay via a link in a text, over the phone or with gift cards? Treat that as a scam. NZ Post's scams page explains how to recognise fake messages using its name, including links that don't go to its official website.
• Is the link the official website? Customs' website ends in customs.govt.nz and NZ Post's in nzpost.co.nz. Addresses with extra words ("customs-delivery", "parcel-fee-nz") or odd endings are a clear sign.
• Does the call start with a recording? A robot asking you to press a key to "speak to Customs" is a typical pattern of these campaigns.
• Does the amount not add up? Real charges depend on what you bought. A generic figure with no link to your order is suspicious.

What do I do right now?

1. Don't tap the link and don't pay anything. If it's a call, hang up. Don't give any details "to check".
2. Look up your order yourself. Open the shop's app or email and copy the tracking number.
3. Check through the official channel. Type the courier's or NZ Post's web address yourself, or use its official app, and enter the tracking number. Customs also explains how to track down a parcel on its Find your parcel page, and you can call its National Contact Centre on 0800 428 786.
4. Forward the text free to 7726, the Department of Internal Affairs scam-text reporting service, and take a screenshot first.
5. Block and report the number in the spam numbers directory so others can recognise it. NoCall also warns you when a number has already been flagged.

What if I've already paid or given my card details?

1. Call your bank on the official number on the back of your card or in its app, not one from the message. Ask them to block the card and issue a new one.
2. If you gave a confirmation code, tell the bank: a payment was probably authorised or your card added to a phone wallet, and that needs to be revoked.
3. Check your transactions over the next few days and turn on notifications in your bank's app. Fraudulent charges don't always appear straight away.
4. If you paid by bank transfer, ask your bank to try to stop or recall the payment as soon as possible.
5. Report it to NZ Police on 105 or through the 105 online service if you've lost money, and to the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), with screenshots, numbers and receipts.

Frequently asked questions

I'm expecting a parcel from overseas. How do I know whether a charge is real? Check with the courier or NZ Post using your tracking number on their official website or app. If Customs is owed money, you'll get an invoice to pay through internet banking, not a payment link in a text.

They called and I gave my name and address, but not my card. Is that a problem? Not directly, but expect more scam messages and calls that use those details to sound convincing. Be extra cautious for a while.

Someone I met online sent me a gift and now Customs wants money. Is that normal? This is a classic romance scam variation. There's usually no parcel at all. Don't pay, and read our guide to romance scams.

Can I complain if my bank won't refund me? Yes. Ask the bank about its internal complaints process and, if you're not satisfied, the independent dispute resolution scheme it belongs to.

In short

A text or call saying your parcel is held at Customs and you need to pay a small fee by link or over the phone is almost always a scam. Customs invoices personal customers and is paid through internet banking, and NZ Post doesn't ask for payment through random links. Check with your tracking number through official channels, forward the text to 7726, and if you've paid, call your bank now. And report the number in the NoCall spam numbers directory.