Shipping An Item Internationally

[billymac814]

I didn't know where else to put this so I figured this is about the best place.

I recently had an inquiry about a seat for a guy that lives in Australia. I checked UPS and it said 200 dollars!! USPS said 70 which is more reasonable but still pricey and I'm not sure how accurate that was because it was just to Australia and not the actual address. The box would be about 15X15X7 or so and roughly 7or8 lbs. I know some other seat makers do pretty good selling internationally and Id like to be able to. Do the customers just pony up the shipping charges or is there a better way?

[kevinhopkins]

I didn't know where else to put this so I figured this is about the best place.

I recently had an inquiry about a seat for a guy that lives in Australia. I checked UPS and it said 200 dollars!! USPS said 70 which is more reasonable but still pricey and I'm not sure how accurate that was because it was just to Australia and not the actual address. The box would be about 15X15X7 or so and roughly 7or8 lbs. I know some other seat makers do pretty good selling internationally and Id like to be able to. Do the customers just pony up the shipping charges or is there a better way?

Hi.... You want to be careful with shipping overseas, that's for sure. But most of the time, anyone from the country of inquiry already has a pretty good idea of what it's going to cost to get things to them. Just be wary of someone that wants to pay with a credit card and have you had the merchandise to his or her "agent". You might also have to be careful about shipping a seat with exotic leather on it. Customs can be difficult at times. I know shipping skins is a problem, but it might not be if it's incorporated into a finished product. But I'd check with the post office, or who ever you use. We do a fair business with folks overseas, and it can be good, but you do have to be careful. Be wary of someone that seems to have the need to move extremely quickly!

Best wishes!

Kevin

[billymac814]

Thanks Kevin, I've never bought or sold internationally because of that but if they want to pay the shipping I hate to turn anything away. I'm pretty familiar with the "agent" and similar stories. I get them quite often when I list other things on CL.

Do those shipping prices seem accurate? I guess my other concern would be if it was lost or something happens at customs.

[dirtclod]

I send quite a few things out of the country and never have had a problem. Generally you don't need the exact address until you mail it. The county is fine to check on the postage with the post office not sure about UPS, i don't use them because their to expensive. When i get a price i get all three first class priority and express. But with a seat your limited to priority or express because of the weight. Make sure you take the box your going to use and put every thing in it that will be in the box when you mail it. The post office has a size limit to, before they charge a oversize fee. I let them choose the way they want it sent with extra insurance or without. Priority and express mail both come with some insurance but it won't be enough to cover the cost of a seat. Good luck with your sell.

John

[whinewine]

Billy:

you could also try to ship something by seamail. It used to take 3 or 4 months, but it was certainly cheaper than airmail. That used to be an option years & years ago when I did a very small bit of importing in college- I don't know if it still is... You'll need to check with the post office to see- I know for sure they push air, vs sea.

More recently, I sold 2 items to the UK- the shipping charge was $40 USD (I believe a flask & a tankard shipped together)- I think they went by air through USPS (my son handled that transaction).

russ

[bex DK]

The USPS recently made international shipping insanely expensive. The surface option is no longer available--everything is airmail. This changed maybe 2 years ago? It more than doubled the costs and made it unreasonable for us to import many items we used to get from over there.

Considering the weight $70 is probably quite affordable. It is not unusual for my parents to spend more on shipping than on the gifts themselves.

Be sure your customer is aware that he is responsible for all customs and import fees. That is the real kicker usually. When importing to DK, we need to add customs depending on the item type based on value+shipping, an administrative fee (which also might cost more than the item is worth), and 25% tax on top of all that.

If you mark the item as a gift, most countries won't charge import fees unless the value exceeds whatever level they have set. But that isn't really legal. If you do decide to do that despite the legal issues, do NOT include a copy of the bill. Send it in a separate envelope or only electronically. Wrapping it as a gift might help too.

You will want to be sure to insure it and set the item value appropriately. Undervalue items at your own risk but I advise against overvaluing as well becaus that increases the risk of the item going into customs. Be sure to make the listing on the package very clear as to content type. We had to fight with the PO once to get saddle pads evaluated properly--they had charged us the customs rate for women's clothing, which is much higher. A saddle pad US to DK costs about $60 USD, by the way.

Probably best to verify that the customer is aware of the costs involved and understands that they are responsible for any fees or customs charged. Probably a good idea to call the local embassy to verify that your item can be legally imported there. I think Australia is pretty strict and animal products are one of the most moderated items, but we've had no problems sending leather presents to the US and receiving leather tack from other here in Denmark.

Good luck expanding your business overseas. For a good item that cannot be obtained locally, it is often worth the high costs involved for the customer. But not all buyers are aware of how high these costs really are. We generally only buy things if we are really willing to pay twice the cost on items over $50 and even more for less expensive items.

[Denise]

Besides the regular (super high) costs of couriers, they also charge a brokerage fee at the other end to the customer for taking things across the border. The Canadian (and I assume US) post offices do not charge this fee, so that is a savings. Customs and taxes apply at the other end and I see it as your customer's responsibility to know about that, though if you ship a lot to one country you may want to have that information on hand to give them.

We always fully insure all parcels of value. It isn't that much more from the post office (it is by bus or couriers) and I believe it is less likely to be "lost" if it has that insurance sticker on it. I think they take a bit more care with those.

[billymac814]

Wow, thanks everyone, although the more info I get the more confused I am. So when are all these other fees paid? Is that on the other end and not when I ship it? I want to make sure I don't have any suprise costs that I have to take care of.

Russ, I'm from Altoona too.

[Denise]

Insurance, at least in Canada, is paid on your end and should be included your quote for shipping. Everything else that I know about is paid on the other end, but the more you can tell your customer about what they should expect that way, the more they appreciate you. You may not know specifics, but you should at least warn them that they are responsible for all customs and taxes their government applies, plus the brokerage fees if you go the route of a courier.

[dirtclod]

The customer pays you for the insurance and you buy it for them when the package is mailed. I sent a $50.00 package to Canada this week by priority mail $20.00 and it came with $60.00 worth insurance i belive. In all of the packages i have sent all over Europe, Canada and New Zealand i had one person say they didn't get their order and that was in the UK. It wasn't insured and i made another one and sent it. After that i make it real clear that it's their baby if they don't want insurance and it gets lost.

Filling out the customs forms are the worst thing. Make sure you get the right form when you go to the post office to check postage cost. It's one type for first class mail another for priority mail and let another one for express mail.

Customers don't have to pay a brokeage in Canada if it's sent through the post office UPS charges a extra $20.00 fee if you send something bu them. Or at least that's what a customer from Canada told me.

[billymac814]

I'm hoping this sounds more complicated than it really is. I'm sure after I do it once or twice it may be a little more clear.

[dirtclod]

It's really not a problem at all. Like i said filling out the customs forms are the worst thing and their not that bad. Just make sure you have the right one. So you don't have to fill out another one at the post office.

One other thing i send the customer a scan of the form, receipt and a picture of the box so they will know it has been mailed.Oh i put what ever their ordering in a plastic bag incase the package gets left out in the rain because the person's not home and it won't fit in the mail box.

Edited July 11, 2010 by dirtclod

[electrathon]

I'm hoping this sounds more complicated than it really is. I'm sure after I do it once or twice it may be a little more clear.

I have sent a lot of things overseas. Generally, USPS is always the cheapest choice. All you really need to do is walk up to the post office counter like any other package you ship. They will hand you an aditional form, takes about 30 seconds to fill out. Mark it as a gift or the guy on the other end may have to pay import customs fees. Undervalue it on the form as much as you feel comfortable doing. If possible mark it as used part. To the best of my knowledge everything I have sent (about 40 itms, but not leather) has made it. sometimes it can take a while. It used to be a lot faster (by weeks) to ship to Europe than to Canada.

[rickeyfro]

I have sent a lot of things overseas. Generally, USPS is always the cheapest choice. All you really need to do is walk up to the post office counter like any other package you ship. They will hand you an aditional form, takes about 30 seconds to fill out. Mark it as a gift or the guy on the other end may have to pay import customs fees. Undervalue it on the form as much as you feel comfortable doing. If possible mark it as used part. To the best of my knowledge everything I have sent (about 40 itms, but not leather) has made it. sometimes it can take a while. It used to be a lot faster (by weeks) to ship to Europe than to Canada.

One note about undervaluing something in order to save the other guy fees, this will also limit the amount you can insure for, so if you send a $500 seat and list its value as $200 on the customs form, thats all your gonna get if the item disappears, nice to try and save the customer a few dollars but could bite you in the ass.

[cem]

To send to Australia the cheapest option is USPS and lately I have been getting a tracking number as well with them, $70 sounds about right if it's for a seat. We have an import amount of $1000 AUD before we get charged anything by customs you can check here and get your customer to have a look as well if you are worried about going over that amount http://www.customs.gov.au/site/page5549.asp and it also lists the restricted items as well.

I would make insurance compulsory if it's a high end item the customer should understand, I've never had anything go missing over the ten years I've ordered from the US but I still like to get insurance.

Hope this is of some help

Cheers,

Clair

[gesa]

Another note about undervaluing an item.

If the custom officers think the item is worth much more than it is written in the papers ( a custom seat for 60$ ) they will determine the value and your customer will be accused to avoid customs and will be charged with high tax fines, at least here in Germany.

I already ordered a lot of goods from the USA and insist on declaring the real value of the items, and to send it with insurance. For me the items always worth the money I paid.

So far not a single package got lost the last 8 years and I was always happy to get my goods without any trouble.

Gesa

Edited July 12, 2010 by gesa

[bex DK]

Sending with USPS does NOT guarantee that the recipent is free of a brokerage fee. We are charged by the danish postal system for every item that has been sent to us through USPS. A fixed-rate brokerage fee, customs based on the item category, and standard danish VAT of 25%. But the rules vary from country to country even within the EU.

It is easier for your customer to find out what to expect than it is for you. So just make it clear that the responsibility is theirs and that they should do the research if they aren't experienced with it.

Marking an item as a gift when it is a purchased order is not legal. Not everyone cares about that, but it is something to consider. Some people do it, some don't. It's a bad idea as a business IMO to lie on customs forms. It can bite you later if your tax paperwork gets examined and it may be evaluated if you send much. It is fraud on both ends.

Marking as a gift also is no guarantee that the recipient will be free of fees. I once had to pay a couple thousand danish kroner on my christmas presents from my parents. The value of the package exceeded the limit so I had to pay customs and VAT and the fees on all of it.

I've never been in or sent to Australia, so I have no idea exactly how it works there. But I've both received from the US and sent int'l packages while living in the US.

The system generally just works. You only need to care about all this if you want to know how much it will cost in charges on both ends. The paperwork is pretty simple but needs to be exact. They've been tightening the rules in the US system lately too. So you need to be more specific on content than used to. And clarity helps make sure the item is taxed appropriately on arrival so the customer doesn't end up paying too much.

Also be aware that the package may be opened and the item examined. Anything looks suspicious and they will open it up and study it all.

[Denise]

Thanks for the information, bex. Good to know. Now I can say that couriers always charge a brokerage fee, but the post office doesn't to some countries! You are giving very sound advice here.

[whinewine]

Billy:

i was searching the web for international shipping & came up with a few answers.

1] google 'mail forwarding'.

2] There is also a company called Bongo International that forwards parcels to 233 countries at what seem to be reasonable rates. http://www.bongous.com ; you can see rates listed at http://www.bongous.com/shipping_cost_calculator.php .

Their FAQ page is very helpful. They seem to be quite legitimate, but I've never used them.

(I sent you an pm through LW. We should get together.)

russ

[billymac814]

Thanks again everyone. After all that the dude probably won't buy it. But I know for the next time and feel a bit more confident about it.