Selling & Shipping Internationally

[bidaway101]

Hello all:  I am thinking of listing an item and allowing international bidders from Europe, Canada and Japan only; shipping via usps priority flat rate legal envelope.  My questions are: will tracking automatically come with this service, and, are there other shipping options that are better than this?  The item weighs about 3 ounces, is paper.

If it is too much of a hassle to sell internationally, then I am content with listing it only for US buyers.  Any comments and suggestions about international selling and shipping would be greatly appreciated by this novice.  Thanks.

[mjk_79]

That's a very good question. To be honest I don't have the full answer but I'm pretty sure I know how it's going to go. 

I recently sold an item to a lady in the UK and shipped by USPS Priority Mail international. When you create a label, it will tell you that delivery confirmation is not available, but that doesn't mean it's not trackable. Creating a usps international lable does give you an alternate tracking number. I'm pretty sure that the US post office will receive tracking updates from the destination post office, however I can't say for sure since my box is still on the way. 

I can say that setting up the shipment through ebay shipping was super easy, they even fill out your customs forms for you. I'd just suggest getting some clear international pouches (the ones with ziplock) from UPS to make handling the customs forms easier. If you have a UPS account you can order them for free.

[kristeinjoy]

A package weighing 3 or 4 ounces will cost $9.45 (minus any discounts you may get from ebay) when you ship it by USPS First Class International mail.  Compare that to the  $24.75  that it would cost for a flat rate Priority envelope.   I use 1st class instead of Priority for any low cost item.   If I'm selling a $5 or $10 item, who is going to want to pay an additional $24.75 for the shipping? 

When you ship less than 4 pounds by USPS First Class International shipping to Canada  you will get a tracking number that will show you when the package is delivered.  I don't know if the tracking will show delivery to other places. 

I ship to Australia and the UK quite often without a hassle. 

When you ship by USPS First Class and print the label directly from you ebay page, the label takes up a half page and can be taped to the package the same as when you ship to the US.   Only a Priority mail shipping label requires 4 half sheets of paper and would need a see-through envelope.  You can order those see-through envelopes from the USPS website and they cost nothing.  I do not order them because my local post office will provide them and to me that is less hassle.

[bidaway101]

Thank you very much for your help!    

[bidaway101]

Thank you very much for your help! 

[reallynicestamps]

Well, there is the Global Shipping Program.

The good points are that you ship domestically , to the GSP/PitneyBowes plant in Kentucky, with cheap USPS delivery confirmation and they take it from there.

BUT

Don't use it if your items are under $100.

Canadians, and many EU countries, have very low duty-free levels. For Canada it is $20CDN, currently $18 USD. The GSP charges duty and sales tax (again depending on Canadian province up to 15% of stated value) plus a small ($5) fee for processing to your buyer before have to ship.

If the value of the item is under $100, the item would normally have been ignored by Canadian border authorities. The GSP charges will infuriate Canadian buyers.

Instead use USPS First Class International. The service is Delivery Confirmed to your Canadian customers. And it is cheap(ish) and handles up to four pounds of goods.

[bidaway101]

Thank you very much for your help! Everyone has been so helpful!