Why Australia is an easy import
Of the fourteen countries we write guides for, Australia has the shortest list of things that can go wrong. Tea under heading 0902 enters duty-free. Plain tea is treated as a basic food and is generally GST-free. Commercially prepared tea is allowed in under the biosecurity rules without an import permit, and the courier lodges the declaration. A café in Melbourne can order 5 kg on a Monday and have it on the bench the following week with nothing more than a commercial invoice, a packing list and the lot's certificate of analysis in the box.
The flip side is the market itself. Australian specialty coffee set the standard for milk drinks that much of the world copies, and a matcha latte on a Melbourne menu is judged by the same people who judge the flat white. Colour, texture in milk and a clean finish matter more there than almost anywhere we ship.
Duty, GST and the border
The facts, as we understand them today and as our Australian customers confirm them. Check the GST point with your accountant, because flavoured blends and ready-to-drink products are treated differently from plain tea.
| Item | Australia | What we do |
|---|---|---|
| Customs duty | Tea (0902) is duty-free | We declare HS 0902.10 for retail packs under 3 kg and 0902.20 for bulk |
| GST | Plain tea is generally GST-free as a basic food | Shown as zero on the invoice; confirm your treatment |
| Biosecurity | Commercially prepared tea permitted without an import permit | The courier lodges the declaration; the lot's spec sheet travels in the box |
| Labelling | FSANZ rules for retail packs; bulk for your own drinks needs no retail label | Bulk foil ships with the lot label and best-by date |
| Organic claims | No general equivalence arrangement with Japan | The JAS certificate ships with organic lots; check with your certifier before a retail claim |
| Documents | Commercial invoice, packing list, COA | In every box, plus the spec sheet |
On transit: courier from Osaka to Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth runs four to six days door to door. Our estimates on the Australia page are $110 to $140 for 5 kg and $240 to $350 for 20 kg, fuel surcharge included, duty and tax excluded. Sea freight only makes sense from about 100 kg.
What Melbourne and Sydney cafés order
Australian orders cluster around two products, and the split tells you something about the menus. The first is a bright first-harvest usucha grade for the house matcha latte, where the café is charging a premium and the colour has to hold under oat milk until mid-afternoon. Hoshi, our Yame first harvest from the Kirari cultivar at $315 / kg, FOB Osaka, is the one we send most for that job, with Wa at $275 / kg as the blended alternative for cafés that want a steadier price across the year.
The second is a volume grade for iced lattes, frappes and baking, where the tea has to stand up to sugar and ice. Tsuyu, Kagoshima second harvest from the Asatsuyu cultivar at $180 / kg, is the usual pick, and Aki at $100 / kg goes into the kitchen. Most cafés run both: one tea for the drink they name on the menu, one for everything else.
- House latte: Hoshi ($315 / kg) or Wa ($275 / kg). 4 g per cup, so $1.10 to $1.26 of tea per latte at list price.
- Iced and blended: Tsuyu ($180 / kg). Colour that survives ice, about $0.72 of tea per 4 g cup.
- Baking and soft serve: Aki ($100 / kg). Strong flavour through butter and sugar.
- Halal cafés: the halal and kosher certified line (Wa, Mai, Mine, Kaoru), MOQ 10 kg.
The oat milk question
Oat milk is the default in a lot of Australian cafés, and it is harder on matcha than dairy. Some grades go grey in oat milk within minutes because the colour pigments react with the higher pH and the oat protein. This is not a defect you can taste; it is one your customers see. When we send samples to Australia we suggest tasting each tea in the exact oat milk the café uses, at the ratio they use, and letting the cup sit for ten minutes before deciding. Colour hold is one of the four scores on every product page for exactly this reason.
Landed cost per kilo
Because there is no duty and plain tea is GST-free, the landed cost in Australia is close to the list price plus freight. For a 5 kg first order of Hoshi at $315 / kg, the tea is $1,575 and the courier is about $110 to $140, so roughly $340 per kilo landed. At 20 kg the same tea lands at about $328 per kilo, and the 20 to 99 kg tier price applies. That gap is why we suggest Australian cafés move to a monthly 10 to 20 kg order once the menu is settled, and why the standing order model fixes the price for the harvest year.
How to start
- Pick up to six teas on the samples page. 20 g each at $5, plus courier. Australia sits in our Asia Pacific zone, so the sample courier is the cheapest we offer.
- Taste each one in your own milk, hot and iced, and leave the iced one on the bench for ten minutes.
- Order from 1 kg once the cup has decided.
- Ask for a quote with freight if you are over 5 kg; we send one page with price per kilo, courier and documents.
Questions buyers ask
Is there import duty on matcha into Australia?
No. Tea under heading 0902 is duty-free into Australia. Plain tea is also generally GST-free as a basic food; flavoured blends can be treated differently, so confirm with your accountant.
Do I need an import permit for matcha in Australia?
Commercially prepared tea is permitted under Australian biosecurity rules without an import permit. The courier lodges the declaration, and the commercial invoice, packing list and certificate of analysis travel with the box.
Which matcha do Australian cafés order most?
A first-harvest usucha grade for the house latte, such as Hoshi at $315 / kg, and a second-harvest grade for iced drinks and baking, such as Tsuyu at $180 / kg. Most cafés run one of each.
How long does shipping take from Japan to Australia?
Four to six days door to door by courier from Osaka, with tracking. Sea freight only makes sense from about 100 kg.
