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Whether you’re a one-time sender for international shipment, or you’re looking to go global with your business, parcel delivery around the world is having more steps to take note of than sending a parcel to your neighbor down the street. Use this checklist to kick start your international delivery journey worry-free!
Streamline Your International Delivery With This Checklist
Here’s the checklist for sender before book a parcel delivery:
1. Determine if you can ship your item
Any shipment containing prohibited items may be subjected to an order being cancelled without notice. EasyParcel and courier companies will not be responsible for any loss or damage of the prohibited or restricted item(s). No compensation for loss or damage will be given.
Prohibited or restricted items are also dependent upon the countries of transit and destination. Additional surcharges might be imposed by the destination country and will be billed to the sender.
2. Bind your credit card to EasyParcel account
Before kick starts an international courier booking, all you need to do is bind a credit card with your EasyParcel account for verification purposes. Wondering how to do that? Click here for the quick tutorial.
Bear in mind that your selected courier will check on the dimensions and weights of each shipment before dispatch. If the parcel is larger or heavier than declared, our courier partner will apply a surcharge from the debit/credit card as registered under your EasyParcel account directly.
3. Complete your documents
We will take you through the required documentation step by step to make sure the delivery goes smoothly as possible. To help with the documentation, we’ve compiled the details as stated below:-
- Courier Air Waybill – It is the primary delivery document for all international shipments. Click HERE to learn how to attach the AWB correctly.
- Commercial Invoice – This document included price, value and quantity of goods being sold. It is the document used to determine taxes and duties and is required for a package to clear customers. You’ll need to provide a detailed itemised description of the parcel content for the commercial invoice. For example, if your parcel contains clothes, you should list them down as “H&M men’s sweater”, “Uniqlo women’s sweater”, “Padini t-shirt” and so on. Click HERE to learn more about commercial invoices for shipping and why it’s important.
- Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for Controlled Products – If you’re sending item in liquid, powdery and electronics form, then you will need to get this technical document to be included with your shipment. For this, you will need to speak to the manufacturer to find the correct one. If you are unsure about whether or not your item can be shipped, please contact us for review.
4. Secure your item with quality packaging
Little details when packing your goods can cause damage or delay your shipment. Here’s what you can do to help ensure every box you send arrives on time and in perfect condition. More tips in packing your international shipments.
Step 1: Choose quality packaging
Used boxes lose strength. Ensure your box is rigid and dry, with no punctures or damage.
Step 2: Avoid empty space
Too much padding reduces stacking strength. Avoid boxes that are too big for their contents and require excessive padding.
Step 3: Seal with an H
Use proper sealing tape in an H pattern on the top and bottom – don’t use string or rope. If your box is heavy, consider strapping it.
Step 4: Paste the AWB on the top surface
Remove old air waybill (AWB). Affix a new AWB on top, so the barcode is flat (not folded over the edge). Place a copy of the air waybill inside the box to avoid AWB drop in the transit.
5. Get the accurate weight of your shipment
To make sure your delivery goes smooth, there is one rule above all: quote and book the delivery with accurate weight. But wait – wondering when you should book with actual weight / volumetric weight?
What happens if the courier finds out your parcels with misdeclared weight?
- Delayed shipment – Delays occur when the courier put your parcels on hold in their hub until the extra cost that set out as the cost for the standard delivery of your order has been paid.
- Excess surcharge by courier – The courier issues an additional charge to the sender to cover the extra cost incurred on the extra checking procedure, thus you’ll no longer paying for the original lower member rate.
Actual Weight vs Volumetric Weight – Which Should be Used For Booking?
STEP 1: Measure the actual weight with weighing scale. If you don’t have one, grab one FREE from us with top up starting from EP2000 package. T&C Apply
STEP 2: Calculate the volumetric weight of your parcel using its dimensions (length, width, and height including outer packaging). Just key in the dimensions accordingly into volumetric calculator and the result in KG will be shown upon.
STEP 3: Book your parcel with the weight that whichever higher. Sit back, chill out and wait for the knock at your door.
6. Understanding duties and tax
When you deliver something to another country, import taxes & duties may be imposed to your shipment by custom. Here at EasyParcel, we offer 2 payment methods 一 Prepaid By Sender (DDP – Delivered Duty Paid); and Postpaid By Receiver (DDU – Delivered Duty Unpaid).
Delivered Duty Paid (DDP)
Sender pays for the estimated import duties and taxes. The estimated import taxes and duties amount will be included when you pay for this shipment. Paying the charges upfront reduces lag time and streamlines the shipping process to your receiver.
You as the sender must ensure that shipment details are correct and accurate (including shipment value), ready for unloading, and that it fulfils export and import responsibilities. Relevant customs and/or couriers have the right to charge additional charges if you misdeclared any of the shipments.
Note: Delivered Duty Paid (DDP) is currently applicable for Aramex International and Janio only.
Delivered Duty Unpaid (DDU)
Receiver will be informed by courier/customs to pay for the import taxes and duties when the shipment arrives at destination custom. Additional charges such as storage charges, handling charges, etc may be imposed by custom as well. After the payment is made, the shipment will only be released by custom and delivered to the receiver.
You as a sender will have the responsibility to inform the receiver that he/she is required to pay the duty & taxes or any charges incurred by the destination customs in advance. We’ve also rolled out a Tax & Duties Calculator to do the estimate calculation for you.
Frequently Asked Questions
- When does the receiver pay for duties and taxes?
Your selected courier will contact the receiver directly to collect any applicable duties and taxes. These amounts need to be paid upon delivery, before delivery or even after delivery. - What happens if the courier can’t reach the receiver or the receiver refused to pay for duties and taxes
– The amount will be deducted from the sender’s EasyParcel account / registered credit card and proceed with delivery
– Return with charges (sender still need to pay for the duties and taxes)
– Disposal with charges (subject to the destination country and duties and taxes remain unchanged) - How can I avoid charging taxes so I can remain competitive?
Not paying taxes is tax evasion, which we don’t encourage. It’s not worth risking your business getting fined. It’s best to know any import tax and custom duty amount that is applicable to your shipment and being upfront with customers on pricing. - Can I declare my item as a gift to avoid custom duty?
No. Shipments are cleared through customs based on where they’s coming from, the item category, and value – not its purpose. - What happens if I under-declare the value of my item?
Customs officers can easily check your business website and other sources to verify if the value listed matches the actual value of the item. Listing a lower value in order to avoid taxes is tax evasion and against the law. - What happens if my shipment is deemed to have broken import and export laws and regulations?
The relevant customs have the right to return/dispose/confiscate/seize a shipment they deem as a prohibited/dangerous item or a threat to public safety. In such an event, all shipping fees and customs duty or tax levied will be charged back to the sender’s account. - Will I be refunded on shipping fees and DDU or DDP charges for lost or damaged shipment?
Compensation is based on the value of shipment declared during booking, the value stated on the purchase invoice, or the maximum coverage offered by our courier partners, whichever is lower. However, EasyParcel is not liable to refund any of the shipping fees and DDP or DDU charges for lost or damaged shipments after the shipment has been collected by our courier partners.
7. Surcharge / hidden fees to be aware of when sending international shipment
Parcel handling-related charges
This has to do with the items you want to ship, their container, the weight, and the dimensions. If your parcel doesn’t fit the criteria of your selected courier partner, you can be hit with additional charges. Mostly as a percentage of the shipping fees or the value of the items (sometimes even both).
If your parcel exceeds a courier’s standard dimension or weight, surcharges can apply. Hence, when you find yourself hitting courier weight and size restrictions, perhaps you should consider another courier service. The material and the shape of the containers can lead to additional fees. If your container is made of wood or metal, or if it’s cylindrical, you can expect extra fees to be charged.
Shipping-related charges
These are related to the details of the shipment, such as the pickup location, the delivery destination, and the delivery duration.
- The main additional charge that you will face is the fuel surcharge. Calculated as a percentage of the shipping costs, this varies weekly or monthly depending on the country. Be mindful of their fluctuation as it can have a significant impact on your bills.
- If you read the fine print, you may be surprised that depending on the pick-up location, you can face a surcharge. This is usually called a “remote area surcharge” or “extended area surcharge”, meaning these locations are far from the usual collection path of our dear couriers. If pick-up is in a residential building, an additional surcharge may also apply for certain couriers (subject to the courier services).
- Optional value-added services can be chosen as well to take care of your shipments, such as additional insurance (in case of lost or damaged shipment), delivery out of regular working hours (such as Sundays, public holidays or within a short time frame.) However, as these will be chosen by you, it’s unlikely you’d find this surprising.
- Finally, mistakes happen, and unfortunately you can be charged for this. Some of these fees include “address correction fee”, “delivery reattempt” or even “return fees”.
Australia AQIS Charges
Heads up if you’re delivering an international shipment to Australia! As an international shipment sender, you’re advised to understand Australia’s quarantine laws and not to deliver any prohibited food, plant material, animal products or any sensitive items via courier services.
Parcels may be inspected when there is potential quarantine risk material present or where there is insufficient documentation to assess the risk. If no quarantine risk material is detected, the goods are released from quarantine without further treatment.
If there are any sensitive items detected in the parcel, then there will be an inspection fee imposed by the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) which will be directly billed to your EasyParcel account, whilst the amount will depend on the way the parcel is presented to AQIS for inspection and the type of service provided.
8. Know about insurance coverage and its valid duration
All deliveries come with basic insurance coverage provided by our individual courier providers for the lost and damaged parcels (subject to the courier service).
Knowing the maximum coverage of your selected courier is important, especially when you’re sending a high-value item. And, if you need to file a claim, you’ll need to report within the time frame specified by your selected courier companies.
Understanding insurance details never is a hassle at EasyParcel as we have summarised all for you. Have a look through the coverage of each courier company and see which is the best suit for your delivery with a click HERE. Don’t forget – you can always contact our support team if you need a little guidance!
- Air cargo that has originated from, or transited through, Egypt or Bangladesh will be prohibited for import into Australia.
- All Meat Products
- All Wood Products
- Dangerous Goods as defined by IATA (Intl. Air Transport Association)
For a more complete list, please refer to the Customs (Prohibitions and Restrictions) Regulations 1956.
- Dairy product, spice, coffee, nuts, food or any edible items
- Animal products
- Cosmetics
- Credit cards (NI)
- Drugs and Medicine
- Eye glasses and contacts
Eye glasses and contacts
- Food, coffee or any edible items
- Gaming like poker, mahjong, repair/return
- Alcoholic beverages
- Animals and/or plants and their products carrying dangerous viruses, bacteria and injurious insects
- Any item which is harmful to China’s politics, economy, culture/morals
- religious items
- Dangerous Goods as defined by IATA (Intl. Air Transport Association)
- Controlled Chemicals
- Dangerous drugs
- Explosives, Firearms and Ammunition
- Food
- Hazardous Chemicals
- Weapons
- Chinese Herbal Medicines and Proprietary Chinese Medicines
- Pharmaceutical Products and Medicines
- Radio Transmitting Equipment
Click here for more details.
- Alcoholic beverages
- Food, coffee or any edible items
- Articles infringing the rights of patents, of design, of trademarks, and the copyrights of other persons;
- Drugs, Prescription and Non-Prescription
- Narcotics and drugs
- Pornographic materials
- Politically sensitive materials
- Firearms, explosives, ammunition
- Guns, sports weapons, hunting guns
Click here for more details.
- Drugs and Medicine prohibited by the FDA
- Distilled spirit absinthe (except certain diluted brands)
- Merchandise from embargoed countries
- Items made with Dog and Cat Fur
- Counterfeit Trademark and Copyrighted Articles
Click here for more details.
Take note: this is not a complete list of goods subject to import prohibitions and restrictions.
Categorize & Describe Your Parcel Content Correctly
Whether you book for a domestic delivery from Peninsular Malaysia to 200+ foreign destinations, you’ll find a drop-down list of categories for your parcel content declaration as shown below.
All you need to do is just select a category best fits with your parcel content as it will be used for both the customs declaration documents and the customs clearance process. And it’s best if you can describe your item type, material and even brand in detail for the parcel content column.
For example, if your parcel contains clothing, you should describe it as “H&M men’s sweater”, instead of just “shirt”. Bear in mind that, the description for each parcel content needs to be clear and easily understood as it can help speed up the sorting progress and also delivery to your receivers.
Here’s the checklist for receiver once the parcel
on its way / received the parcel:
1. Documents that receivers need to prepare
- Import Permit & Additional Documentation
The documents will be required by destination customs upon the parcel arrival. At the moment, your selected courier will get in touch with you via email, SMS or phone calls to request the details. If the receiver failed to revert back with the necessary details required by customs within the time frame advised by them, then the shipment will be returned or disposed of. - Destination Country Importation Policy
This is aimed to check whether the item is allowed into the destination country. Whenever there is an international order, the sender kindly advises the receiver to check on the import conditions. Since the conditions will be reviewed regularly, kindly make sure to check the conditions each time before order a product from oversea.
2. Understanding duties and tax
There are 2 payment methods when it comes to import taxes and duties in EasyParcel: Prepaid By Sender (DDP – Delivered Duty Paid); and Postpaid By Receiver (DDU – Delivered Duty Unpaid).
If the shipment is under Delivered Duty Unpaid (DDU), receiver will be informed by courier / customs to pay for the import taxes and duties when the shipment arrives at destination custom. Additional charges such as storage charges, handling charges etc may be imposed by custom as well. After the payment is made, the shipment will only be released by custom and delivered to the receiver.
Besides that, Value Added Tax (VAT Tax) will also be charged to consumers whenever they buy any good or service from oversea. At the same time, Goods & Services Tax (GST) is charged in stages, then reimbursed to everyone except the end buyer. It’s different from VAT because it’s a flat-rate percentage of the total transaction, instead of a percentage of value added.
3. Surcharge / hidden fees to be aware of when sending international shipment
Parcel handling-related charges
This has to do with the items you want to ship, their container, the weight, and the dimensions. If your parcel doesn’t fit the criteria of your selected courier partner, you can be hit with additional charges. Mostly as a percentage of the shipping fees or the value of the items (sometimes even both).
If your parcel exceeds a courier’s standard dimension or weight, surcharges can apply. Hence, when you find yourself hitting courier weight and size restrictions, perhaps you should consider another courier service. The material and the shape of the containers can lead to additional fees. If your container is made of wood or metal, or if it’s cylindrical, you can expect extra fees to be charged.
Shipping-related charges
These are related to the details of the shipment, such as the pickup location, the delivery destination, and the delivery duration.
- The main additional charge that you will face is the fuel surcharge. Calculated as a percentage of the shipping costs, this varies weekly or monthly depending on the country. Be mindful of their fluctuation as it can have a significant impact on your bills.
- If you read the fine print, you may be surprised that depending on the pick-up location, you can face a surcharge. This is usually called a “remote area surcharge” or “extended area surcharge”, meaning these locations are far from the usual collection path of our dear couriers. If pick-up is in a residential building, an additional surcharge may also apply for certain couriers (subject to the courier services).
- Optional value-added services can be chosen as well to take care of your shipments, such as additional insurance (in case of lost or damaged shipment), delivery out of regular working hours (such as Sundays, public holidays or within a short time frame.) However, as these will be chosen by you, it’s unlikely you’d find this surprising.
- Finally, mistakes happen, and unfortunately you can be charged for this. Some of these fees include “address correction fee”, “delivery reattempt” or even “return fees”.
4. Steps to take when facing parcel issue
Parcel Arrives Damaged
Step 1: Examine the item
Whether you’ve received a damaged box or only discover a broken item during the unwrapping moment, be hurry to take pictures in order to document the condition of the delivery as soon as it arrived, this includes:-
- Photo of the outer and inner packaging from different angles
- Photo of the damaged item
Step 2: Contact the sender immediately
Inform your sender about the parcel condition immediately and provides all the photos within the stated time frame for the courier companies.
Step 3: Wait patiently for the investigation result
The Investigation result might take around 2 – 3 months ( the time frame vary from case to case ) and courier has the rights to reject your claim due to:-
- The packaging doesn’t meet your selected courier’s standard requirement
- The parcel content has been listed as prohibited items
- The report is submitted after the report time frame specified by couriers
- Failed to provide the necessary documents
Missing Item In The Parcel
Step 1: Examine the item
Once you’ve received the parcel and find out there is an item missing, be hurry to take pictures in order to document the condition of the delivery as soon as it arrived, this includes:-
- Photo of the outer and inner packaging from different angles
- Photo of all the items that you’ve received
- Measure the weight of your parcel (include packaging) and take a photo of the number on scale
Step 2: Contact the sender immediately
Inform your sender about the parcel condition immediately and provides all the photos within the stated time frame for the courier companies.
Step 3: Wait patiently for the investigation result
The Investigation result might take around 2 – 3 months ( the time frame vary from case to case ) and courier has the rights to reject your claim if:-
- The shipment weight tally with the initial booked weight
- There’s no torn / sign of damage on the packaging upon arrival
- The parcel content has been listed as prohibited items
- The claim submission has exceeded the report time frame
- Failed to provide the necessary documents
Receive A Wrong Item
Step 1: Examine the item
Once you’ve received the parcel and find out that different item from what you’re supposed to receive, be hurry to take pictures in order to document the condition of the delivery as soon as it arrived, this includes:-
- Photo of the outer and inner packaging from different angles
- Photo of the wrong item in the parcel
- Measure the weight of your parcel (include packaging) and take a photo of the number on scale
Step 2: Contact the sender immediately
Inform your sender about the parcel condition immediately and provides all the photos within the stated time frame for the courier companies.
Step 3: Wait patiently for the investigation result
The Investigation result might take around 2 – 3 months ( the time frame vary from case to case ) and courier has the rights to reject your claim if:-
- The selected courier found out parcel content wrongly declared by the sender
- The parcel content has been listed as prohibited items
- The submission has exceeded the report time frame
- Failed to provide the necessary documents
