Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Import Cost Calc ("we," "us," or "our") operates the website located at importcostcalc.com (the "Site"). We provide free online calculators for businesses and individuals who import products from China, including tools for calculating import duties, customs fees, freight costs, AQL sampling sizes, landed costs, and related import metrics.

This Privacy Policy explains how Import Cost Calc collects, uses, stores, and protects information about visitors to our Site. By using Import Cost Calc, you agree to the practices described in this policy.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information You Provide Directly

When you email us directly or contact us through our contact page, you may provide your name, email address, and the content of your message. This information is used solely to respond to your enquiry and is not added to any marketing list without your explicit consent.

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

When you visit Import Cost Calc, our servers and third-party analytics services automatically collect certain technical information, including:

• Your IP address (anonymized in Google Analytics)
• Browser type and version
• Operating system
• Referring website (the page that linked you to Import Cost Calc)
• Pages visited on our Site and time spent on each page
• Date and time of each visit
• Device type (desktop, tablet, mobile)
• Screen resolution and viewport size
• General geographic location (country/region — not street-level)

This data is collected in aggregated, anonymized form for analytical purposes. It is used to understand how our Site is used, identify popular calculators, and improve the user experience.

2.3 Cookies and Local Storage

We use cookies and browser local storage to operate certain features of the Site. See Section 4 for full details.

3. Calculator Data — What We Do NOT Collect

This section is important. All Import Cost Calc calculators operate entirely within your web browser using client-side JavaScript. This means:

• We never receive the values you enter into any calculator. Your product costs, FOB prices, supplier names, duty rates, order quantities, profit margins, and all other inputs exist only on your device.
• No calculation results are transmitted to our servers. Results are computed locally in your browser and displayed on your screen. They are not logged, stored, or associated with your IP address or identity.
• Your calculator sessions are not tracked individually. While we may record that a user visited the "Landed Cost Calculator" page (via Google Analytics page view), we do not know what values you entered or what results you received.
• Closing your browser clears all calculator inputs. We do not retain any input data between sessions unless your browser's localStorage caches it — and you can clear this at any time through your browser settings.

You can verify this by using browser developer tools (Network tab) while operating any calculator. You will see no POST requests or data transmissions related to your calculator inputs.

4. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

We use the following types of cookies on Import Cost Calc:

4.1 Strictly Necessary Cookies

These cookies are required for the Site to function. They do not track you across other websites and cannot be disabled without breaking core site functionality. They include session management cookies and security tokens.

4.2 Analytics Cookies (Google Analytics)

We use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to understand how visitors use our Site. Google Analytics sets the following cookies:

• _ga — Distinguishes unique users. Expires after 2 years.
• _ga_[ID] — Stores session state. Expires after 2 years.
• _gid — Distinguishes users. Expires after 24 hours.
• _gat — Used to throttle request rate. Expires after 1 minute.

We have enabled IP anonymization in Google Analytics, meaning your IP address is truncated before being processed. We do not use Google Analytics Advertising Features (Remarketing, Demographics, Interests Reporting) on our analytics implementation.

4.3 Advertising Cookies (Google AdSense)

Import Cost Calc may display advertisements served by Google AdSense. Google uses cookies to serve ads based on your visits to this and other websites. Key cookies include:

• NID — Used by Google to customize ads in Google products. Expires after 6 months.
• DSID — Used to identify a signed-in user across different Google domains. Session cookie.
• IDE — Used by Google DoubleClick to record and report user actions after viewing or clicking ads. Expires after 1 year.

You can opt out of Google's personalized advertising at google.com/settings/ads or by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.

4.4 Managing Cookies

You can control and delete cookies through your browser settings. Instructions vary by browser:

• Chrome: Settings → Privacy and Security → Cookies
• Firefox: Options → Privacy & Security → Cookies
• Safari: Preferences → Privacy → Manage Website Data
• Edge: Settings → Privacy, Search, and Services → Cookies

Note that disabling analytics cookies will not affect calculator functionality, but disabling all cookies may prevent some site features from working correctly.

5. Google Analytics

Import Cost Calc uses Google Analytics 4 (GA4), a web analytics service provided by Google LLC ("Google"). Google Analytics uses cookies to collect information about how users use our Site. The information generated by the cookie about your use of our Site (including anonymized IP address) is transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States.

Google will use this information to evaluate your use of our Site, compile reports on website activity, and provide other services relating to website activity and internet usage. Google may also transfer this information to third parties where required to do so by law, or where such third parties process the information on Google's behalf.

Google Analytics data is retained for 14 months and then automatically deleted. You can learn more about how Google uses data collected on partner sites at policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites.

6. Google AdSense and Advertising

Import Cost Calc is a participant in the Google AdSense program. Google AdSense allows websites to display advertisements that are relevant to their content and their visitors' interests. When you visit our Site, Google may use cookies and web beacons to collect information about your visits to this and other websites in order to provide advertisements that may be of interest to you.

Personalized vs Non-Personalized Ads: By default, Google AdSense may serve personalized ads based on your browsing history. For visitors in the European Economic Area (EEA), UK, or Switzerland, we implement consent management to comply with GDPR and the ePrivacy Directive. Non-personalized ads are served to users who have not consented to personalized advertising.

Ad Data Collection: Google AdSense may collect information including your IP address, browser type, device information, and browsing behavior across websites that display Google ads. This data is processed according to Google's Privacy Policy.

We do not control what advertisements are displayed on our Site. We do not share personal information with advertisers. We do not allow advertisers to collect personal data from our Site visitors beyond what Google AdSense collects through its own systems.

7. How We Use Information

We use the information collected through Import Cost Calc for the following purposes:

• To operate and improve the Site: Analytics data helps us understand which calculators are most useful, identify technical issues, and improve the user experience.
• To respond to enquiries: Name and email you provide when contacting us are used solely to respond to your enquiry.
• To display relevant advertisements: Google AdSense uses cookies to display relevant ads. This is how we fund the development and maintenance of our free calculators.
• To ensure security: We process certain technical data (IP addresses, request logs) to detect and prevent abuse, spam, and security threats.
• To comply with legal obligations: We may process and retain certain data as required by applicable law, court order, or government authority.

We do not sell personal information. We do not use personal information for direct marketing without explicit consent. We do not build user profiles for purposes beyond what is described in this policy.

8. Information Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell, rent, or trade personal information to third parties. We may share information in the following limited circumstances:

• Service Providers: We share data with Google (Analytics and AdSense) as described in this policy. Google acts as a data processor under our instructions for analytics purposes.
• Legal Requirements: We may disclose information if required by law, subpoena, court order, or other governmental authority, or if we believe disclosure is necessary to protect the rights, property, or safety of Import Cost Calc, our users, or others.
• Business Transfers: If Import Cost Calc is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, user data may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify users via a prominent notice on our Site before data is transferred and becomes subject to a different privacy policy.

9. Data Retention

• Email enquiries: Retained for up to 2 years, then deleted.
• Google Analytics data: Retained by Google for 14 months.
• Server access logs: Retained for up to 90 days for security purposes.
• Calculator inputs: Not retained — all calculation data is processed locally in your browser and is never transmitted to our servers.

10. Your Rights (GDPR / CCPA)

10.1 European Users (GDPR)

If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), UK, or Switzerland, you have the following rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR):

• Right to Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Right to Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate personal data.
• Right to Erasure ("Right to be Forgotten"): Request deletion of your personal data.
• Right to Restriction: Request that we limit how we process your data.
• Right to Data Portability: Receive your personal data in a structured, machine-readable format.
• Right to Object: Object to processing of your personal data for direct marketing or legitimate interests.
• Right to Withdraw Consent: Where processing is based on consent, withdraw it at any time without affecting lawfulness of prior processing.

To exercise these rights, contact us at our contact page. We will respond within 30 days. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.

10.2 California Users (CCPA)

California residents have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA):

• Right to Know: Request disclosure of the categories and specific pieces of personal information collected, the sources, purposes, and third parties with whom we share it.
• Right to Delete: Request deletion of personal information collected from you (subject to certain exceptions).
• Right to Non-Discrimination: We will not discriminate against you for exercising any CCPA rights.
• Right to Opt-Out of Sale: We do not sell personal information. If this practice changes, we will provide a "Do Not Sell My Personal Information" link.

11. Children's Privacy

Import Cost Calc is intended for business use by adults engaged in commercial importing activities. Our calculators cover topics such as import duties, freight costs, and profit margins that are relevant to business operators, not to children.

We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 years of age (or under 16 for EEA users). If we discover that we have inadvertently collected personal information from a child, we will delete it promptly. If you believe a child has provided personal information to us, please contact us immediately at our contact page.

12. Data Security

We implement technical and organizational measures to protect information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These measures include:

• HTTPS (TLS encryption) for all data transmitted between your browser and our servers
• Regular security reviews of our server configuration
• Limited access to personal data on a need-to-know basis
• Secure deletion of personal data when no longer needed

However, no method of transmission over the internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

In the event of a data breach that affects your personal data, we will notify affected users and relevant authorities as required by applicable law.

13. Third-Party Links

Import Cost Calc calculator pages may contain links to external websites such as hts.usitc.gov (USITC tariff schedule), ustr.gov (USTR Section 301 lists), cbp.gov (US Customs and Border Protection), and various freight forwarder and compliance service providers. These links are provided for your convenience and reference.

We have no control over the content, privacy practices, or policies of these external sites. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party sites you visit through our links. Our inclusion of a link does not imply endorsement of the linked site or its practices.

14. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements, or the services we offer. When we make material changes, we will:

• Update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this page
• Post a notice on our homepage for 30 days after the change takes effect
• If required by law, notify you directly

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically. Your continued use of Import Cost Calc after any changes take effect constitutes your acceptance of the revised policy.

15. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:

• Email: [email protected]
• Contact Page: importcostcalc.com/contact
• Response Time: We aim to respond to all privacy-related enquiries within 30 days.

For GDPR-related requests, please include your name, country of residence, and a description of your request. We may need to verify your identity before processing requests related to personal data access or deletion.