Royal Mail Launches New Delivery Duties Paid Import Services Ahead Of End Of US De Minimis Exemption

Royal Mail is rolling out new postal delivery duties paid (PDDP) services ahead of changes to US import requirements and the end of the de minimis exemption for packages under $800.

The new services are now ready for use after a short pause in acceptance of shipments to the US, with Royal Mail saying they will be available at Post Office and to online customers starting August 28.

Iain Johnson, Managing Director International, at Royal Mail said: “We have been working hard with the relevant US authorities and our international partners to adapt our services in a very short timeframe. Our UK-based customers, whether consumers or businesses, can now send items to the US through all of our usual channels, including online and the Post Office, in time for the new customs requirements which come into effect on Friday 29 August.”

For business (account) customers:

• Duties will be calculated applicable to where the items, being sent to the US, were manufactured, and paid to US Customs. Royal Mail will invoice customers for duties we have paid on their behalf.
• There will be a handling fee per parcel to cover the additional costs associated with providing clearance services into the US.

Pricing of our PDDP services to the USA
We want to help customers continue to export to the USA with Royal Mail and keep costs to a minimum. Individual postage pricing will remain the same for the new PDDP services as for the current USA export services.

We will simply add a 50p per parcel handling charge, to cover the additional costs associated with providing clearance services into the USA. This will be invoiced as a handling fee, in addition to postage costs.

Using our PDDP services to the USA
For postal imports into the USA, items will be assessed for duties using the country-specific tariffs (known as IEEPA tariffs) . These tariffs work as a % applicable to the value of goods based on the item/s country of origin (manufacture). For example, items with a UK country of origin, will incur a 10% tariff on the value of those items.

Royal Mail will only have duties assessed using country-specific tariffs (IEEPA).

PDDP Product Codes and Specifications
If you already use Royal Mail export services to the USA, then you don’t need to do anything to get the product codes for new USA PDDP services as we have already added these product codes to your account along with two supplementary codes (CUO and CUE) which we’ll use to invoice duties and taxes in association with the PDDP service.

For consumers and small businesses:

• Postage can be purchased online or at a Post Office.
• Duties on items will be calculated and collected at the point of buying the postage.
• Consumers sending gifts worth less than $100 will not have to pay duty.
• Customers who only send personal correspondence are not affected by the changes. They can continue to send items to the US, without a customs declaration, as they do now.

What do you need to know?
We want to help you carry on sending goods and gifts to the USA and keep your costs to a minimum. Postage costs will remain the same for the new PDDP services as they are for the previous equivalent Royal Mail USA services.

There are some administrative fees associated with the new US requirements that will apply to goods and gifts. These fees will be clearly communicated, at the online checkout or at the Post Office, so you’ll know the total amount to pay before you complete your purchase.

Running a small business?
Whether you purchase your postage online or at a Post Office, Royal Mail’s PDDP service will calculate and collect the duties for your items, so you don’t have to. However, it’s worth familiarising yourself with the country tariffs (known as IEEPA tariffs), which could apply to the goods you’re sending.

Buying postage online?
We’ve updated our online systems to meet the new requirements. If you use our online channels, the new Royal Mail USA PDDP service will be available for purchase. This service will display duties and fees payable, prior to the checkout.

Buying Royal Mail services at the Post Office?
If you visit a Post Office to send items to the USA, you will be advised of and pay any duties and fees at the same time you purchase your postage at the counter.

Ecommerce marketplaces like eBay and Etsy which offer the ability to purchase shipping labels through the platform will likely still need some time to update their systems to support the new Royal Mail PDDP services.

At this time, those marketplaces have not made any announcements about the timing of those updates or when they might re-enable support for purchasing international Royal Mail labels for shipping to the US, so sellers may need to purchase labels directly from the Post Office in the meantime.

Stay tuned for updates and track all of the postal services across the globe that have suspended shipping to the US in response to the tariff and de minimis changes:

International Postal Services Scramble To Sort Out Tariffs & End Of De Minimis, With Some Pausing US Shipments

International postal services scramble to sort out duties as end of de minimis exemption looms, with some pausing shipments to US as a result.