Shippo Supports International Shipping Globally
Please check out Carriers Supported by Shippo to see which carriers Shippo supports that ship internationally from your country.
- All International Shipments Require Customs Declaration
- Exceptions to Customs Declaration Requirements
- What is Customs Declaration?
- What is a Commercial Invoice?
- How do I create a Commercial Invoice?
- What are customs fees?
- Should I select DDU, DDP, or FCA?
- How do I use tariff numbers or harmonized codes in Shippo?
- What do I do with the Commerical Invoice?
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All International Shipments Require Customs Declaration
For orders with international addresses, Shippo will automatically check off the Use customs declaration box.
Exceptions to Customs Declaration Requirements
In some cases, the Customs Declaration is not required, and that box may be unchecked. It is the shipper's responsibility to include customs documentation when required. Two examples are:
- Shipping between certain European Union countries
- Shipping from the United States to U.S. Territories with some carriers
What is Customs Declaration?
Custom Declaration is the process of declaring the items that you are shipping cross-border. Items shipped cross-border are generally subject to import and export taxes, customs duties, and fees.
What is a Commercial Invoice?
A Commercial Invoice is the physical document used to declare your items for customs purposes. It is provided through Shippo in several ways:
- Included as part of the actual shipping label
- Included on a separate page(s) as part of the shipping label download
- Available to print by clicking Download Commercial Invoice on the purchase confirmation screen or Shipments Page
- Sent electronically through a process called Paperless Trade and a physical copy is not required
What are customs fees?
Customs agencies use the commodity, quantity, value, country of manufacture, and other factors to determine duties and taxes charges for international shipments.
Customs fees (duties and taxes) are not included in the Shippo rate and will be added on after the package has been sent by the customs agencies of the sending and receiving countries.
Should I select DDU, DDP, or FCA?
The customs fees must be paid either by the sender or the recipient. This is determined by thte incoterm that you select when you do your customs declaration. Shippo supports three options:
- DDU (Delivery Duties Unpaid)
- DDP (Delivery Duties Paid)
- FCA (Free Carrier)
DDU
DDU is the default option in Shippo and means that your customer, the recipient, will be responsible for paying the customs charges before receiving the package.
- The carrier will contact the customer for payment instructions once the charges are calculated and the package is ready for final delivery.
DDP
Choose DDP if you would like to pay all customs fees on behalf of your customer. This is common when sending a gift internationally.
- USPS does not enable DDP for their shipments. All USPS international shipments will be sent DDU.
- Customs charges will be calculated and charged to you, the sender, approximately three weeks after shipment. Charges will be billed through your carrier account or through Shippo if a Shippo carrier account was used.
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DHL Express charges an additional processing fee for DDP.
FCA
Free Carrier (FCA) shipments are supported only FedEx and DHL Express. With FCA, you deliver the goods, cleared for export, at a named place and the shipment can be delivered to a carrier nominated by the buyer. Your buyer must nominate a carrier.
What do I do with the Commercial Invoice?
USPS
For USPS international shipments, you do not need to include a Commerical Invoice with your shipment so you will not see a button to download one.
All necessary customs information is included with the USPS label automatically.
- USPS First Class Package International labels will be a single page with the customs details are included right on the label.
- USPS Priority Mail International labels come have a few variations depending on the shipment's specifications:
- The label file may be a single page with the customs details included right on the label.
- The label file may be two pages — the first is the label, which you should apply to the box as normal, and the second is a copy for your records.
- The label file may be four pages — the first is the label and should be put on the box, the second and third should be included in a pouch on the outside of the package, and the fourth is for your records.
UPS
For international shipments with UPS, the Commercial Invoice is built into the label itself, so you can also just download the label for UPS.
Other Carriers
For FedEx, Canada Post, and DHL Express, the Commercial Invoice is not included with the labels, and you will need to click Download Invoice to print the Commercial Invoice after downloading your label.
You need to print three copies of the commercial invoice, sign them, and include them in a pouch on the package. DHL Express labels will also include an "Archive Doc," which is sometimes requested by DHL employees but is not required. Just keep it on hand during drop-off/pick-up in case it's needed.