Italy
USA trade laneItaly and France are the two largest sources of imported wine in the United States, and Italian wine reaches every price point: Prosecco and Pinot Grigio by the container for national distributors, Chianti, Montepulciano and Primitivo for restaurant lists, and allocated Barolo, Brunello and Amarone for collectors. The buyers range from established importers to producers sending their first container to a newly licensed partner. For all of them the freight is the easy part. A wine shipment cannot be released without a US importer holding a federal permit, approved labels and an FDA-registered winery behind it, and in summer the container itself can cook the wine.
We work through WCA partner agents in Italy; AGF has no office there. Our partner collects from the cantina or a consolidation warehouse, makes sure the excise document and the export declaration are in order, and loads the container to the temperature plan you choose. AGF runs the shipment from Glendale: the ISF before loading, FDA prior notice, the entry filed by our licensed customs brokers with your TTB details, and delivery to your licensed warehouse or distributor.
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Shipping Wine from Italy to USA
Wine travels three ways. A reefer set at 13-15 °C is the safe choice for premium wine and for anything sailing between June and September, when a dry box crossing the Mediterranean and the Atlantic can reach temperatures that age wine in weeks. A thermal liner inside a dry container is the middle option for everyday wine in shoulder months, and a plain dry box is reasonable in winter. Bulk wine for US bottlers moves in flexitanks of roughly 20,000+ liters per 20ft container. Palletized, a 20ft takes 10-11 pallets and a 40ft 20-24 depending on pallet size; heavy bottles take a 20ft to its road-weight limit before it is full, so the load plan comes from the producer's packing list.
From Genoa or La Spezia, New York is 9-22 days depending on whether the service calls direct or transships, Savannah about 21-25 days and Los Angeles about 35 days through the Panama Canal; Vado Ligure handles a large share of the region's reefer traffic. At origin, wine leaves the producer's excise warehouse under an electronic e-AD, and the export declaration's MRN is what discharges it once exit is confirmed — a mismatch leaves the Italian producer exposed to excise, so our partner checks both before the container moves.
- Reefer at 13-15 °C for premium wine and June-September sailings
- Thermal liners as the middle option; dry boxes only in cool months
- Flexitanks for bulk wine to US bottlers
- Several producers' pallets consolidated by our partner agent before loading
What Drives the Cost
- Reefer, liner or dry container — the temperature plan is the biggest freight variable
- Number of pickups: one cantina, or a consolidation across Piedmont, Tuscany, the Veneto and the south
- Federal excise tax, set by alcohol content and wine type — sparkling wine pays a far higher rate than still wine
- Duty: EU goods at 10% all-in under the Section 301 measure since 24 July 2026 — confirmed per HTS line at quoting
- Cargo insurance on full value, and breakage allowance for glass
- Season: summer heat protection, and the pre-Christmas peak when distributors restock
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2204.21 | Still wine in bottles of 2 liters or less — Chianti, Barolo, Pinot Grigio, Primitivo | A specific duty per liter that differs by alcohol strength; with the Section 301 measure on EU goods the total is 10% all-in since 24 July 2026. Confirm the 10-digit line at quoting. |
| 2204.10 | Sparkling wine — Prosecco, Franciacorta, Asti, Lambrusco | Same EU tariff position; the federal excise rate for sparkling wine is several times that for still wine, so it belongs in the landed-cost sheet. |
| 2204.22 / 2204.29 | Wine in larger containers — bag-in-box and bulk wine in flexitanks | Bulk wine for US bottling; the finished bottle still needs an approved label and an accurate origin statement. |
| 2205 / 2208 | Vermouth and aromatized wine; grappa, amaro and limoncello | Spirits and aromatized wines need the same TTB importer's permit and their own label approvals; duty and excise differ from wine. |
Regulations and Compliance
TTB importer's basic permit
Only a US importer holding a federal basic permit from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) can import wine for sale. An Italian producer cannot import on its own account; it needs a permitted importer, and many states also license that importer. We ship for permit holders and coordinate the producer's documents with them.
COLA label approval
Every label needs a Certificate of Label Approval (COLA) before the wine is released into commerce. US labels carry items Italian labels do not — above all the government health warning and the US importer's name and address — and the sulfite, alcohol and net-contents statements must follow US formats, so labels are approved and printed before bottling, not fixed at the port.
FDA registration and prior notice
Wineries are food facilities under US law and must be registered with the FDA; registrations must be renewed between 1 October and 31 December 2026, and a lapsed registration stops the shipment. Prior notice is filed for every shipment before arrival. We check the producer's registration before booking.
Excise documents at origin
Wine leaves the producer's excise warehouse under an electronic administrative document (e-AD) in the EU's EMCS system, linked to the export declaration lodged with Italian customs. The MRN on the export declaration, confirmed at exit, discharges the e-AD. Our partner agent checks that the two match before the container leaves Italy.
Tariff position
Since 24 July 2026, EU wine pays its normal duty topped up to 10% in total under a Section 301 measure, plus federal excise. Italian wine was not among the wines hit by the earlier Airbus-dispute tariffs on French, Spanish and German still wine. Rates change, so we confirm the total for your exact lines at quoting.
Three-tier distribution
Most states require wine to pass from importer to distributor to retailer, each licensed. That shapes where the container is delivered — usually the importer's or distributor's licensed warehouse — and it is worth settling before the first order ships.
Door-to-Door Import Service
We start with your permit and labels: the importer's TTB permit, approved COLAs and the producer's FDA registration. Then our partner agent in Italy collects from the cantina or consolidates several producers, checks the e-AD and export declaration, and loads to the temperature plan — reefer, liner or dry — with the ISF filed before loading.
After the crossing to New York, Savannah or Los Angeles, our licensed customs brokers file the entry with prior notice and your TTB details, the importer pays duty and federal excise, and we deliver to your licensed warehouse or distributor by truck, reefer truck in summer.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I import wine from Italy to the USA?
Do I need a license to import wine from Italy?
What is the tariff on Italian wine in 2026?
Should Italian wine ship in a refrigerated container?
Wine 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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