Italy
USA trade laneItalian furniture is bought by the design trade, by retailers and by hospitality projects, and it comes from a handful of districts: Brianza north of Milan for upholstery and design brands, the Veneto and the Marche for case goods and kitchens, Friuli's chair district around Manzano, and lighting makers across Lombardy and the Veneto, including Murano glass. Many orders follow the Salone del Mobile in Milan each April and ship over the summer — straight into the August shutdown if nobody plans for it.
The duty depends on the piece. Upholstered seating with wooden frames and kitchen cabinets are under Section 232, where EU goods are capped at 15% all-in; most other furniture and lighting pays the EU 10% all-in layer. We work through WCA partner agents in Italy; AGF has no office there. Our partner consolidates pieces from several workshops and loads them, and AGF runs the US end from Glendale: the entry filed by our licensed customs brokers, storage at a partner warehouse if the project is not ready, and white-glove delivery through our partners.
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Shipping Furniture & Lighting from Italy to USA
Furniture is volume cargo: a 40ft High Cube is the standard box for a full order, and LCL suits design-trade orders of a few pieces. Lacquered and upholstered pieces need corner protection and breathable wrapping, glass and lighting travel crated, and consolidating several workshops' pieces through our partner agent in Italy turns many small pickups into one container with one ISF and one entry.
From Genoa or La Spezia, New York is 9-22 days depending on whether the service calls direct, Savannah about 21-25 days and Los Angeles about 35 days through the Panama Canal; Trieste and Venice serve makers in the northeast. Production lead times are set by each maker, so build the plan backwards from your installation date, and remember that much of the industry closes for two to three weeks around Ferragosto in August.
- 40ft High Cube for full orders; LCL for design-trade pieces
- Consolidation of several workshops through our partner agent
- Crated glass and lighting; corner protection for lacquered pieces
- Partner-warehouse storage and white-glove delivery in the US
What Drives the Cost
- Cubic volume and packing — crated design pieces take more space than flat-packed furniture
- Section 232 exposure: upholstered wooden seating and cabinets at 15% all-in for EU goods; other furniture at the EU 10% all-in level
- Number of workshops to collect from and consolidate
- Lighting conversion to US voltage and UL or ETL listing
- White-glove delivery, inside placement and storage until the site is ready
- Insurance on full value for high-value design pieces
HS Codes and Duty Notes
Classification guidance only — duty rates change and depend on your exact product. Our licensed customs brokers verify every code before you commit to an order.
| HS Code | Products | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 9401.61 | Upholstered seats with wooden frames — sofas, armchairs, dining chairs | Inside the Section 232 action on upholstered wooden furniture; EU goods are capped at 15% all-in. |
| 9401.71 / 9401.79 | Seats with metal frames, upholstered or not | Outside the Section 232 wood action; EU 10% all-in under the Section 301 measure. Metal-intensive lines get a Section 232 metals check at quoting. |
| 9403.30-9403.60 | Wooden furniture — tables, case goods, beds, office furniture | Not upholstered, so outside the 15% Section 232 cap and at the EU 10% all-in level. Kitchen cabinets and vanities (9403.40 and related lines) are under Section 232 at 15% all-in for EU goods. |
| 9405 | Luminaires and lighting fittings — pendants, floor and table lamps, Murano glass chandeliers | EU 10% all-in under the Section 301 measure; steel- or aluminum-intensive fixtures are checked against the Section 232 derivative list at quoting. |
Regulations and Compliance
Section 232 on upholstered furniture and cabinets
Since 14 October 2025, upholstered seating with wooden frames, kitchen cabinets and vanities have carried a Section 232 tariff from every origin, with EU goods capped at 15% all-in. Non-upholstered furniture and most lighting are outside it and pay the EU 10% all-in layer instead. Classification decides which side of the line a design falls on, so we review specifications before you order.
Lacey Act
Wooden furniture needs a Lacey Act declaration of genus, species and country of harvest, filed with the entry — for walnut, oak, ash and any exotic veneer. CITES-listed species also need permits. The maker must be able to document what the furniture is made of.
TSCA Title VI (formaldehyde)
Plywood, MDF and particleboard in furniture must be certified to the EPA's TSCA Title VI emission standards by an EPA-recognized third-party certifier, and labeled. European E1 or similar labels are not TSCA certification, so the composite-wood paperwork has to be arranged with the maker before production.
Flammability and tip-over
Upholstered furniture for homes must meet the federal flammability standard (16 CFR 1640, based on California TB 117-2013); restaurants, hotels and other public spaces often add stricter local fire codes such as California TB 133. Dressers and other clothing storage units must meet the federal tip-over standard.
UL or ETL listing for lighting
A CE mark is not a US approval. Fixtures installed in US buildings are expected to be listed by an NRTL such as UL or ETL, inspectors look for the listing, and European fixtures usually need US-voltage components and rewiring to get it. LED drivers can also need FCC compliance. Ask the maker for a US-listed version before ordering.
The EU tariff layer
Furniture and lighting outside Section 232 pay their normal duty topped up to 10% in total under the Section 301 measure on EU goods since 24 July 2026. Many furniture lines have a zero base rate, so the layer is the duty. We confirm the total for each line at quoting.
Door-to-Door Import Service
We start with the order and the specifications — which pieces are upholstered, which use composite wood, which fixtures need US listing — so the duty and compliance position is known before production. Our partner agent in Italy collects from each workshop, consolidates the pieces and loads at Genoa, La Spezia or Trieste, with the ISF filed before loading.
On arrival our licensed customs brokers file the entry with the Lacey declaration, and the shipment is delivered white-glove through our partners, or held at a partner warehouse until the showroom, home or hotel is ready.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the tariff on furniture from Italy?
Do Italian light fixtures need UL listing in the USA?
How long does furniture from Italy take to arrive?
Can you consolidate furniture from several Italian makers into one container?
Furniture & Lighting is just one example. AGF ships whatever your business moves — on this lane and beyond. If your commodity isn't covered by one of our guides, tell us what you ship and we'll build the logistics around it.
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Transit, duty exposure and container loads side by side in our furniture import guide.
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