American Trucks in Australia: Import Costs and Rules | 2026 Guide

October 19, 2026 at 8:26 AM

American trucks in Australia are the hardest import in the world to get right, and the one where it is most worth doing. A full-size RHD pickup built in Melbourne starts at AUD 106,950 for an F-150 XLT and runs to AUD 259,950 for the RAM TRX that arrives in 2027. The same trucks sell in the US for $45,000 to $90,000, and a US-built one enters Australia at 0% duty under the free trade agreement.

Our view: there are exactly two doors into Australia for a US truck, and most buyers only know about one. The first is the 25-year concession, which now lets a 1973 Bronco or a 1999 Tundra in as it sits and registers it left-hand drive in NSW, SA and WA. The second is the SEVs register plus a Registered Automotive Workshop, which brings in a 2024 Bronco or F-150 and converts it to right-hand drive. Pick the door before you pick the truck.

By the numbers

Ocean freight, our California warehouse to Sydney: $2,250 per vehicle, 30-33 days, asbestos testing included; New Jersey to Sydney $2,150, 39 days; Florida to Sydney $2,550, 52 days (WCS rates table, October 18, 2026).
Customs duty: 5% general rate on cars, 4x4s and utes under 3.5 t; 0% for a US-built vehicle under the Australia-US FTA; 0% for any vehicle 30 years or older (Australian Border Force Working Tariff).
GST: 10% of the vehicle value plus duty plus freight and insurance. Luxury Car Tax: 33% of the GST-inclusive value above AUD 80,809 (2026-27, ATO), passenger vehicles only.
US exports of passenger vehicles and SUVs to Australia, January to August 2026: about $462 million (US Census Bureau, HS 8703). Pickups are counted under a separate heading and are not in that figure.
SEVs register, read October 19, 2026: Ford Bronco, F-150, Super Duty, Toyota Tundra, RAM 1500 and 2500, GMC Sierra 1500 and Chevrolet Suburban are on it. Toyota Tacoma, Chevrolet Silverado 1500, every Jeep and the Hummer H1 and H2 are not.

How to import a car from the USA to Australia: door one, the 25-year concession

Since the Road Vehicle Standards Act replaced the old pre-1989 cut-off, a vehicle built at least 25 years before you apply can be imported under the older vehicle concession. The date rolls every month. As we write this in October 2026, anything built in or before October 2001 qualifies: the first-generation Tacoma, the tenth-generation F-150, the first Tundra, every Hummer H1 built through 2001, and every classic 4x4 America ever made.

1971 Ford Bronco first generation — A first-generation Bronco: 25-year concession, 0% duty and left-hand-drive registration in NSW, SA and WA. Photo: Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The approval costs about AUD 42 and is lodged through ROVER before the truck ships. If the plate shows only a build year, the department assumes December, so a 2001 truck with no month on it becomes eligible in December 2026, not now. Buy on the build plate, not the model year.

Left-hand drive is the question everyone asks, and the answer depends on the state. In NSW a LHD vehicle 25 years or older registers in full. South Australia exempts LHD from 25 years. Western Australia licenses a LHD vehicle over 15 years old for personal use. Victoria and Queensland want 30 years for full registration, with club or special-interest plates in between. We would register in the state where the truck will live, not where it lands.

Door two: the SEVs register and a RAW

For anything under 25 years old the model has to be on the Specialist and Enthusiast Vehicles register, and the truck has to be imported and modified by a Registered Automotive Workshop holding an approved Model Report for it. Trucks listed under the left-hand-drive criterion get converted to right-hand drive before they are supplied. The register entry is the permission; the RAW is the capacity. Line up the workshop before you bid, because an entry on the register does not oblige anyone to convert your truck.

This is where the local RHD programs come in. RMA builds the F-150 in Victoria, GMSV the Silverado, Walkinshaw the RAM 1500 and the Tundra. Those trims are "genuinely available" in Australia, which is why the import route makes sense for the variants they skip: the Bronco Raptor, the F-150 Raptor and Raptor R, the Tundra TRD Pro. Each has its own guide below.

What a US-built truck pays at the border

Duty first. The general rate is 5% on passenger cars, off-road 4WDs and utes under 3.5 t. A vehicle that originates in the US enters free under the Australia-US FTA, and the ABF does not ask for a certificate of origin; the importer claims it and keeps the evidence for five years. The first digit of the VIN tells you the plant country: 1 is the US, 2 is Canada, 3 is Mexico. A Bronco from Wayne, Michigan qualifies. A Tacoma from Guanajuato does not, and pays the 5%.

GST is 10% of the customs value plus duty plus the freight and insurance to Australia. Luxury Car Tax is 33% of the GST-inclusive amount above AUD 80,809 for 2026-27 (AUD 91,661 for a fuel-efficient vehicle). It applies to passenger vehicles, so a Bronco or Suburban over the threshold pays it. A dual-cab ute escapes only if the ATO's principal purpose test in LCTD 2023/1 says it carries goods rather than people, which turns on payload against seating. Run the numbers for the exact spec before you buy. One trap: the ATO's two-year age exemption counts from the date of import for an imported car, so a 1971 Bronco landed above the threshold pays LCT like a new one.

The Australia destination page keeps the current duty, GST and LCT figures in one place.

Asbestos and stink bugs: the two Australian specials

Asbestos has been banned at the Australian border since 2003, and the ABF does not accept a seller's letter saying the truck is clean. Brake pads, clutch facings, gaskets, seals and heat shields on older vehicles are tested or replaced before loading, by a laboratory whose report meets Australian requirements. Our Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Fremantle rates include that testing. A truck that arrives with suspect parts is held and sampled at the owner's expense.

2022 Ford F-150 Raptor on 37 inch tyres — A 37-inch-tyre Raptor usually ships in a dedicated container or by RoRo rather than a shared container. Photo: Windmemories, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Then the brown marmorated stink bug. Vehicles shipped from the US between September 1 and April 30 are treated for it, by heat or fumigation. Containerised cars can be treated on arrival; RoRo cargo has to be treated before it sails. The Department of Agriculture then inspects every used vehicle inside and out, so a truck leaves our warehouse clean to the wheel arches. Allow about AUD 1,600 in destination charges including the fumigation, plus AUD 140 for the quarantine inspection.

What it costs landed in Sydney

Two examples on the California to Sydney lane, converted at about 70 US cents to the Australian dollar and rounded to the nearest hundred.

A 2023 Bronco Badlands at $45,000, plus $2,250 ocean freight, is $47,250, or about AUD 67,600. Duty is 0%, because the Bronco is built in Michigan. GST at 10% adds AUD 6,760, for AUD 74,400 before fees. Under the LCT threshold, so no LCT. Add AUD 1,600 destination charges and AUD 140 quarantine: about AUD 76,100 on the wharf, before the RAW converts it to right-hand drive and certifies it. Budget for that conversion separately; the workshop quotes it.

A 1973 Bronco at $55,000 plus the same $2,250 is $57,250, or about AUD 81,900. Duty 0%, under both the FTA and the 30-year rule. GST AUD 8,190, for AUD 90,100. LCT still applies at 53 years old, because the ATO counts its two-year exemption from the date of import: about AUD 3,100 on the AUD 9,300 above the threshold. With destination charges, quarantine and the AUD 42 import approval: about AUD 94,900, registered as it sits in NSW. The classic is the simpler truck to land, by a wide margin.

Our shipping calculator gives the current rate for any lane and vehicle type in a few seconds.

How we ship them

Pickups and 4x4s load into 40 ft containers at our own warehouses in California, Florida and New Jersey, which cover the whole of the US for imports and exports. A Bronco or Tacoma shares a container; a Raptor on 37s or a Super Duty usually needs a dedicated one or a RoRo sailing, and we quote both. Our own team loads every truck and handles every document, and we ship door to door, by ocean or by air. Transit to Sydney is 30-33 days from California and 39 days from New Jersey; Melbourne 33-36 and 40 days; Brisbane 40-48 and 49 days; Fremantle 30 and 50 days. The process page walks through the loading standard.

American pickup trucks in Australia: one guide each

Frequently asked questions

Can I import an American pickup to Australia?

Yes, through one of two routes: the 25-year concession for a vehicle built at least 25 years ago, or the SEVs register and a Registered Automotive Workshop for a newer model that is on the register.

How much is import duty on a US truck in Australia?

The general rate is 5%. A US-built vehicle qualifies for 0% under the Australia-US Free Trade Agreement, and any vehicle 30 years or older is duty free. GST of 10% applies on top.

Does Luxury Car Tax apply to imported pickups?

LCT applies to passenger vehicles above AUD 80,809 in 2026-27. A commercial vehicle designed principally to carry goods is exempt under the ATO's principal purpose test. The two-year age exemption does not help an import, because the ATO counts the two years from the date of import.

Can I register a left-hand-drive truck in Australia?

From 25 years old in NSW and South Australia, for personal use from 15 years in Western Australia, and from 30 years for full registration in Victoria and Queensland. Newer vehicles must be converted to right-hand drive.

How long does shipping from the US to Australia take?

From our California warehouse, 30-33 days to Sydney, 33-36 to Melbourne, 40-48 to Brisbane and 30 to Fremantle. From New Jersey, 39 to 50 days depending on the port.

More Australia import guides

Ready to begin your American truck import journey? Contact West Coast Shipping's Australia specialists today for a personalized consultation and discover how simple bringing your dream truck home can be, whether it is on a dealer lot in Texas or you just won it at Mecum.

It's your dream car. Let's bring her home.

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