The Flexform pieces on this site start in Meda, north of Milan, and reach the United States by sea. Importing furniture from Italy involves more paperwork than most buyers expect, and none of it needs to land on your desk. It helps to know what the steps are, because our quote asks questions that follow from them.
Your order on the Meda line
Flexform builds outdoor pieces to the order: the finish of the steel, the color of the wood, the fabric, the cover. The factory sets the lead time for each order, so we confirm it in writing when we quote. A price copied from a catalogue page would be wrong by the time the sofa lands, since freight, customs and the finishes you pick all move it. That is why the prices on this site are on request.
The customs code and the duty
Customs sorts furniture by its HTS code. Seats and armchairs fall under heading 9401, other furniture such as tables under 9403, both in chapter 94. The duty rate hangs on that code, and rates on European Union furniture have moved several times since 2024. We give you the current figure in the quote, after the broker confirms the code for each piece, and we do not print numbers here that could go stale.
On top of the duty come small processing fees and, for sea freight, a harbor fee. Your quote lists them as separate lines, so you can see the piece, the freight and the customs cost apart.
One rule has moved in your favor. A separate duty on upholstered wooden furniture exempts goods from the European Union, and Flexform ships from Italy. Exemptions like this get reviewed, so the broker checks it again before each shipment.
The wood declaration
A large part of the outdoor catalogue uses solid iroko, a dense West African hardwood, and several upholstered pieces sit on marine plywood. Wood in a shipment triggers the Lacey Act and its PPQ 505 form, which lists every wooden part by Latin name and source country, plywood and panel cores too.
Take Camelot. Its braces are stainless steel, but the round bar across the back is solid iroko, so the declaration lists it. Ansel carries more wood: its armrests and backrest are slats of solid iroko fixed to a 316 stainless steel base. The factory data covers both, and the broker files the form. See the Camelot collection and the Ansel collection.
What the catalogue brings to customs
- Solid iroko
- 32 of 62 collections
- Marine plywood
- 7 of 62 collections
- Upholstered
- 19 of 62 collections
- Stainless steel frames
- 28 of 62 collections
Counted from the factory specifications of the collections on this site.
The label on the cushions
Any upholstered piece on sale in the United States needs a TB 117-2013 label. The standard is Californian, covers smolder resistance, and the whole country follows it. The tag is 2 by 3 inches or larger, fixed for good, and states whether the fillings contain added flame retardants. Camelot and Ansel both have padded seat cushions, so both need one, and the label goes on before the piece ships.
Some pieces also need a Proposition 65 notice, a California rule that many sellers apply nationwide. If a piece you order needs one, the quote says so.
The importer of record
Each shipment has an importer of record, the party responsible to customs for the entry, and a customs broker files the entry for that party. For a large project, a hotel or a developer may want to import under its own name. Tell us early, because it changes who signs what and what the quote includes.
The paperwork on a Flexform order
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Order
- What it covers
- Pieces, finishes, fabric, covers
- Who handles it
- You and us, in writing
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Production
- What it covers
- Made to order in Meda, lead time confirmed on request
- Who handles it
- Flexform
-
Freight
- What it covers
- Sea freight from Italy to a United States port
- Who handles it
- Forwarder, arranged by us
-
Customs entry
- What it covers
- HTS chapter 94 codes, duty and processing fees
- Who handles it
- Customs broker, for the importer of record
-
Wood declaration
- What it covers
- Lacey Act form PPQ 505 for iroko and plywood
- Who handles it
- Broker, from factory data
-
Cushion label
- What it covers
- TB 117-2013 label on upholstered pieces
- Who handles it
- On the piece before it ships
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Delivery
- What it covers
- Truck from the port to your address
- Who handles it
- Us, with the access you describe
Pass the order to our desk
Send the pieces you want, the finishes you are considering and the delivery address through the form below. Add anything about access, such as stairs, a lift or a narrow gate. We reply with a written price that shows the piece, freight and customs lines, and the lead time Flexform confirms.
