How to Import Furniture from Bali for a Hotel Project

The four stages, from brief to delivery

Every hotel or resort import from Bali runs through the same four stages, set out in full on the process page: brief and design, production, quality control and loading, then shipping and delivery.

At brief and design, the buyer supplies drawings, reference images or a piece-by-piece schedule, and the workshop returns technical drawings and a quotation. Ubud Atelier is the single point of contact through all four stages: it makes the introduction to the workshop in Kerobokan, Bali, and relays every exchange between the buyer’s team and the production side. Its role is introduction and communication, nothing on the factory floor and nothing on the water.

Production, quality control, packing and loading all sit with the workshop. Each piece is built to the specification agreed at order, inspected before packing, wrapped for ocean transit and loaded into the container at origin. Shipping and delivery run through the workshop’s freight forwarders, who book the vessel, prepare the export file and work with customs brokers at the destination port through to delivery at the property.

The practical consequence for a buyer is simple: one counterpart for the commercial conversation, and a production and logistics chain that sits entirely on the workshop’s side. Visits to the workshop in Kerobokan can be arranged during production.

Lead times: what the schedule allows

The workshop’s typical lead times are 8 to 10 weeks in production and 12 to 20 weeks door to door, depending on destination. Both figures are typical rather than a commitment, and the destination drives most of the spread between them.

Ocean transit from Benoa, Bali is short within Southeast Asia: typically 5 to 8 days to Laem Chabang for a Thai project, with a further road or coastal leg where the property sits on an island. Mediterranean destinations sit at the other end of the range, with a typical 25 to 35 days on the water via Suez routing before clearance and final delivery.

For an FF&E schedule, the sensible approach is to work backwards from the installation date and treat order confirmation as the anchor. A buyer opening in Europe should plan toward the longer end of the 12 to 20 week range, while a buyer in Thailand or Vietnam can plan toward the shorter end.

The documents, route by route

Three documents are required regardless of destination: the commercial invoice, the packing list and the bill of lading. The rest depends on the route, and the list below ties each certificate to the regime that demands it.

• ASEAN destinations: Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia. A Form D Certificate of Origin, issued by the Indonesian Ministry of Trade, is what secures the 0% duty rate under the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement. SVLK Indonesian timber legality documentation accompanies wood products, and a phytosanitary certificate may be required for natural fibre pieces such as rattan and bamboo.
• European Union destinations. Wooden furniture from Indonesia needs a FLEGT licence, issued on the Indonesian SVLK timber legality system; rattan and bamboo pieces are outside the scheme. From December 30, 2026, the EU Deforestation Regulation also applies to wooden furniture: the operator placing it on the EU market files a due diligence statement with the geolocation of the plots where the wood grew.
• United Arab Emirates. The Indonesia-UAE CEPA preference is claimed with a Form IUAE certificate of origin, issued in English through the Indonesian e-SKA system and valid for 12 months.
• Destinations without a preference. Where Indonesian origin earns no tariff advantage, no certificate of origin is needed, but destination-specific documents can still apply, and several routes ask for a phytosanitary or treatment certificate on wooden and natural fibre furniture.

In every case, HS classification is confirmed with the freight forwarder before each shipment leaves Bali, because the line-level code is what sets both the duty rate and the document set.

Duties and taxes by broad zone

European Union. Most solid wood furniture enters the EU at 0% duty under standard EU rates, while rattan and bamboo categories can carry up to 5.6%. Import VAT is then charged at importation on the duty-inclusive value, at rates between 20% and 24% across the EU destinations the site covers, and a VAT-registered business recovers it through its return. Mykonos is a worked example of the regime, with Greek VAT at 24%.

ASEAN. Furniture of Indonesian origin enters Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia at 0% duty under ATIGA with Form D, so the local tax becomes the only customs cost. Thailand charges 7% VAT on the duty-inclusive value, and Vietnam applies a reduced 8% VAT through the end of 2026. Phuket is the worked example for this zone, with a typical 5 to 8 days of transit on top of the zero duty.

The Gulf. The UAE charges 5% duty on CIF value under the GCC unified tariff when no certificate of origin is presented. Under the Indonesia-UAE CEPA, in force since September 1, 2023, several furniture lines already enter at 0%, the remaining lines stand at 1% in 2026 and reach 0% from January 1, 2027, and VAT is 5%. On a $100,000 order with the certificate, the total customs cost sits between 5% and 6.05%, and Dubai walks through the calculation.

Everywhere else. Outside those three blocs the rates diverge sharply: on a $100,000 order, the total customs cost runs between 6% in the Maldives and about 95% in Sri Lanka for wooden furniture. An indicative customs cost estimate can be prepared at quotation stage, and the destination estimator gives a per destination figure before that conversation starts.

The end of GSP and the arrival of CEPA

Two things change for EU-bound shipments on January 1, 2027. Indonesia leaves the EU Generalised Scheme of Preferences on that date under Regulation (EU) 2026/1395, which closes the GSP route for Indonesian origin into the EU.

The second change runs the other way. The EU-Indonesia CEPA was concluded in September 2025 and is not yet signed; its entry into force is targeted for January 1, 2027. Once in force, it is expected to remove the remaining EU duties on Indonesian furniture, which today means the rattan and bamboo lines at up to 5.6%.

Full container (FCL) or shared container (LCL)

A full container is the default for a hotel or resort fit-out. The order ships as one sealed unit from the workshop’s loading bay to the destination port, which keeps handling to a minimum and gives the project one customs clearance, one delivery window and one set of documents. For a property fitting out guest rooms, public areas and F&B space in a single phase, the volume question usually answers itself.

In a less than container load (LCL) shipment, also called groupage, goods from several shippers share one container, and each pays for the space its cargo occupies. The container is filled and emptied at consolidation points at each end, so the goods are handled more often, and the departure and arrival dates follow the carrier’s consolidation schedule rather than any single order. FCL is the usual mode for a full hotel or resort fit-out; LCL is the mode used for small volumes.

The shipping mode for a given property is a volume and sequencing question, settled at the brief stage rather than after production starts. The boutique hotel sourcing page sets out how hotel projects are scoped and where the commercial details sit.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to import furniture from Bali?

The workshop’s typical lead times are 8 to 10 weeks in production and 12 to 20 weeks door to door, depending on destination. Southeast Asian destinations sit at the short end of that range and Europe at the long end.

What documents are needed to import furniture from Bali?

A commercial invoice, packing list and bill of lading are required on every route. The certificate set then depends on the route: Form D for ASEAN destinations, Form IUAE for the UAE, a FLEGT licence issued on the SVLK system for wooden furniture into the EU, plus an EUDR due diligence statement filed by the EU operator from December 30, 2026, and a phytosanitary certificate where the destination demands one.

Who clears customs at the destination?

The workshop’s freight forwarder works with customs brokers at the destination port. HS classification is confirmed with the freight forwarder before each shipment leaves Bali, because the line-level code sets the duty rate.

Can a buyer see the order during production?

Visits to the workshop in Kerobokan can be arranged during production.

Does the EU charge duty on furniture from Bali?

Most solid wood furniture enters the EU at 0% duty under standard EU rates, while rattan and bamboo categories can carry up to 5.6%. Import VAT is then charged on the duty-inclusive value at the destination member state’s rate.