Pallet forwarding
from Spain to Mexico

Most freight pages describe a hypothetical shipment. This one can point at two published operations, both on this exact lane. The first is the HPL case: 150 HPL panels of 8 mm, bought from a Spanish store, consolidated onto a single 120×80×50 cm pallet weighing 296 kg — €2,340.29 of declared goods moved for €3,111.75 of logistics all-in, ≈€10.5/kg.

That rate was a one-off; the working reference for loads over 200 kg is under €15/kg, varying by route, volume and season. Its door-to-door transit is documented: 17 days.

The second is the gym case: a Monterrey developer equipped his development's gym from Zara Home Spain — 24 packages, 317 kg door to door at ≈€13/kg all-in, the bottom of the ~€13–18/kg reference range, helped by the shipment's volume and a one-off carrier rate.

The operation ran from Day 0 to roughly Day 15, and the verified saving against design-equivalent brands at US list prices was 60–73% (PENT and NOHrD, August 2026). Two different loads, one identical mechanic: several Spanish deliveries received and checked in, one pallet built properly, one set of export documents — and a Mexican side that clears formally through your customs agent, which the customs section below covers in detail.

Mexico separates the courier world from the commercial one sharply. Simplified courier clearance exists for low-value, occasional shipments; a business importing for resale files a formal import (pedimento) through a licensed customs agent and must be registered on the Padrón de Importadores, with sector-specific registers for some categories. Registration is the gate: get it done before the first pallet moves, because it is not something that can be arranged while goods sit in a bonded warehouse.

On the numbers, IVA is 16% on the customs value plus duty and is normally creditable for a registered company, which means the real cost question is duty, not tax.

That is where the EU–Mexico agreement matters: goods of genuine EU origin can qualify for preferential tariff treatment when the supplier issues the origin declaration, so the same European invoice can land at a materially different duty depending on a paragraph of text.

Our part is the European side — receiving from multiple suppliers, consolidating onto a pallet where that is the right format, and issuing the commercial invoice, packing list and origin documents your agent needs to file cleanly.

What turns store deliveries into freight is the pallet build, and it is manual, physical work. Every delivery is checked in against your order and photographed. When the order is complete, the load is stacked in layers with the heavy goods low, corners take edge protection, the whole block is strapped and stretch-wrapped, and pieces the factory packaging cannot protect are crated.

Any wood we use is ISPM-15 heat-treated — non-negotiable in international freight, and our job to get right. Then the paperwork happens once, for the whole pallet: a commercial invoice matching the goods, a packing list, real weights and dimensions, and the supplier origin documents your agent will want.

On speed: air consolidation exists for orders that cannot wait for ocean schedules, and it is priced by weight and volume — which is why a tight, well-built pallet is not cosmetic.

As a band, think on the order of 1–3 weeks door to door — orientative, not a promise: it depends on the route, pickup, consolidation and customs clearance, with the published cases as anchors: 17 days documented for the HPL pallet, Day 0 to roughly Day 15 for the gym operation.

Two details that bite this lane specifically: European electrical goods are built for 230 V / 50 Hz, so anything with a motor or a console needs a voltage plan agreed with your electrician before dispatch; and ceramic or dyed goods vary by production lot, so order the full quantity from one lot with roughly 10% overage rather than planning to top up later.