You ship to the Cayman Islands by ocean LCL or FCL from Miami to George Town, Grand Cayman (about five days on IWF's LCL service) or by air to Owen Roberts (GCM), then declare every import to Customs and Border Control on COLS and pay import duty, 22% for most goods. The islands import almost everything they consume and build, and almost all of it arrives from South Florida, so the lane is short and frequent: days by sea, hours by air. The constraints sit at destination. George Town's cargo facilities are tight, containers are trucked from the port to an inland Cargo Distribution Centre because there is no room to store them on the waterfront, and every import must be entered on the customs online system within seven days of arrival. Duty is the main cost variable: the Cayman Islands charge import duty by commodity code rather than a sales tax at the border, and a flat 15% concession on building materials for Grand Cayman runs through 31 December 2030.
| Route & mode | Indicative cost | Transit | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miami to George Town, Ocean LCL (5 CBM / 1,500 kg) | about $1,230 (IWF published LCL rate, September 2026; excludes destination duties, taxes and local charges) | about 5 days | mixed supplier orders, retail and construction lots |
| Miami or Port Everglades to George Town, Ocean FCL | on request | 2 to 5 days on direct sailings | full loads, building materials, furniture, vehicles |
| Miami to Grand Cayman (GCM), Air freight | on request | 1 to 2 days | urgent, high-value and perishable goods |
| China to George Town, Ocean FCL or LCL | on request | 30 to 45 days (via transshipment or via Miami) | Asian-sourced fixtures, finishes, furniture |
The LCL figure is the total for a 5 CBM / 1,500 kg shipment, FCA Miami CFS to the George Town port. Rates change with fuel and space; request a firm quote.
Shipping to the Cayman Islands takes eight steps, and most of the work happens in Miami before the vessel sails.
Step 4 is where the US supply chain does most of the work.
US cargo reaches the Cayman Islands on direct weekly services from Miami and Port Everglades to George Town, Grand Cayman, and the short sailing brings most US cargo in within a week of loading. South Florida is the islands' supply line. Because the market is small and most buyers source from several US suppliers at once, Miami consolidation does much of the work: vendors deliver to a Miami warehouse, cargo is received, checked against invoices and loaded into one container or one LCL lot. A Miami warehouse also lets importers hold stock and ship on a schedule instead of every time a supplier delivers.
Full loads move as 20ft and 40ft FCL under container shipping to the Caribbean. Smaller lots move as LCL: IWF's published rate for 5 CBM / 1,500 kg from Miami to George Town is about $1,230 (September 2026; excludes destination duties, taxes and local charges), with transit of about five days. The mechanics of shared containers are covered in how LCL container shipping works.
Air freight lands at Owen Roberts International (GCM) in George Town in one to two days from Miami, and suits urgent spare parts, electronics, jewelry, pharmaceuticals and perishables. See air freight to the Caribbean for the service scope. Turks and Caicos runs on the same short South Florida supply pattern, as our guide to shipping to Turks and Caicos shows. Cargo from further away reaches the same port on a longer route.
Asian and European cargo reaches Grand Cayman in two ways: on an ocean service that transships at a regional hub, or by moving to Miami first and joining the regular South Florida sailings. For mixed or smaller orders, routing via Miami is the more reliable option because the final leg runs on a frequent schedule. Kingston is one of the region's main transshipment ports, covered in our guide to shipping to Jamaica, and the full set of hub options and their trade-offs is compared in the guide to Caribbean transshipment hubs. Transit from China runs 30 to 45 days depending on the route and connection.
The China lane has its own detailed guide: shipping from China to the Cayman Islands covers routing, LCL options and supplier coordination for Asian cargo. European fixtures, stone and finishes for high-end projects follow the same logic: consolidate at origin, transship or relay via Miami, and plan the final leg into George Town.
The Cayman Islands have one cargo port, George Town on Grand Cayman, and air cargo moves through Owen Roberts International (GCM).
With a single cargo port, gateway choice is simple; planning effort goes into consolidation, delivery timing and storage at the distribution centre, and into the customs entry that releases the cargo from it.
Imports clear through Cayman Islands Customs and Border Control (CBC), and every shipment, dutiable or not, must be entered on the Customs Online System (COLS) within seven days of arrival by a trader registered with a Trader Identification Number, according to CBC's import regulations.
A complete, correctly classified COLS entry is what keeps clearance short and avoids storage charges at the distribution centre. The classification on that entry also sets the duty.
Most goods imported into the Cayman Islands pay 22% import duty on their customs (CIF) value; there is no VAT or sales tax, so duty is the main border cost.
There is no separate VAT at import; the duty is the main border tax. For a regional comparison, see the guide to Caribbean import duties and taxes. Concessions apply only when the paperwork supports them.
A Cayman Islands import needs a commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading or air waybill and a COLS entry under the importer's TIN, plus permits for controlled goods.
Plants, animals, vehicles, firearms and hazardous goods are the main controlled categories in the Cayman Islands; each needs a permit, a specific duty treatment or carrier approval before it ships.
LCL is the right choice for the Cayman Islands under 10 to 12 CBM, and IWF's 5 CBM / 1,500 kg rate from Miami gives a useful benchmark. Between 12 and 15 CBM, compare against a 20ft FCL, because destination handling at the distribution centre is charged per shipment. Above 15 CBM, or for heavy, fragile or high-value building materials, a full container gives better protection and control. Air freight fits small, urgent or high-value cargo where days matter, such as replacement parts for a hotel or a missing component on a construction site.
Construction and hospitality drive much of the import demand. Residential, condominium and hotel projects on Grand Cayman consume building materials, fixtures, furniture and appliances, and the 15% flat duty on building materials keeps that flow steady. Retail, food distribution and the financial services workforce add constant demand for consumer goods, vehicles and electronics.
The top end of construction is where shipping gets demanding: imported stone, custom millwork, glass, high-end fixtures and finishes are heavy, fragile and expensive to replace if damaged. The industry follow-up on shipping high-end materials for luxury construction on Grand Cayman covers packing, consolidation and timing for those projects.
On a short, frequent lane, the forwarder's value is control in Miami and clean paperwork at destination: receiving goods from multiple suppliers, consolidating them efficiently, and supporting a correct COLS entry with the right classification and concessions. Interworld Freight, founded in Miami in 1992, runs ocean FCL and LCL, air freight and customs coordination for the Cayman Islands from its Miami hub with warehousing, and handles Asian and European origins with coverage on every major trade lane. Quotes are answered within one business day.
From Miami, LCL to George Town takes about five days, and direct FCL services from South Florida take two to five days. Air freight to Owen Roberts (GCM) takes one to two days. From China, plan for 30 to 45 days.
IWF's published LCL rate for 5 CBM / 1,500 kg from Miami to George Town is about $1,230 (September 2026). That figure excludes Cayman duties, taxes and local charges.
A flat 15% import duty applies to building materials imported to Grand Cayman through 31 December 2030. Furniture, appliances, electronics and construction tools are excluded from the concession.
COLS is the Customs Online System used by Cayman Islands Customs and Border Control. All imports must be entered on COLS within seven days of arrival, using the importer's Trader Identification Number.
It is optional. Importers can file their own COLS entries or authorize a broker as their agent, but the importer stays responsible for duties and corrections.
Most goods pay 22% of their customs value under the Customs Tariff Act, with building materials for Grand Cayman at a flat 15% through 2030. Many foods carry 17% or 0%, and vehicles pay a sliding rate by value. No VAT is charged at import, so duty plus specific fees is the full border tax.
The tariff schedule zero-rates selected goods, including many fresh and frozen fish and poultry lines, and building materials shipped to Cayman Brac and Little Cayman are fully waived through 2030. Boats up to 18 feet and vessels used only for international voyages are also duty-free. Everything else is dutiable even when it must still be declared on COLS.
Photo: Cargo port, George Town, Grand Cayman. Jack Adamenko, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.