Carriers have different address format requirements when you ship to US territories and possessions. Some also require customs paperwork, which you'll be prompted to complete when it's needed. See "Customs Declarations in Shippo" for more.
USPS
USPS requires "United States" in the recipient's Country field, with the two-letter territory or possession abbreviation in the State field. This lets you see domestic service levels with USPS.
Shipments to Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands are considered domestic, so they don't go through customs and don't need a customs declaration.
To opt out of customs:
- Click into the order.
- Open the Customs options dropdown.
- Go to Advanced options and click Edit.
- Scroll to the bottom of the sidebar and check the box next to This shipment qualifies to be exempt from customs.
Shipping from Puerto Rico or another US territory to the United States follows this same USPS process.
DHL Express, UPS, and FedEx
Use the territory or possession abbreviation in the Country field to generate rates with these carriers. A customs declaration is required.
Abbreviations for US territories and possessions
- AS: American Samoa (includes Manua Island, Swain's Island, and Tutuila Island)
- GU: Guam
- MP: Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (includes Rota Island, Saipan Island, and Tinian Island)
- US: Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
- VI: US Virgin Islands (includes St. Croix Island, St. John Island, and St. Thomas Island)
Not seeing rates?
If you're shipping to Puerto Rico, Guam, the US Virgin Islands, or elsewhere and don't see rates for the carrier you want, check your recipient address formatting.
Buyers often enter their address with the territory, like Puerto Rico, in the country field at checkout. That carries over to your Shippo Orders Page with the territory still listed as the country. You'll need to change the country back to United States and set the state field to the matching abbreviation (for example, PR).
To update an address while creating a label, click Edit Recipient in the Recipient box at the bottom of the Order Details screen, make your changes, and click Save.