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First time shipping something overseas, have a few questions.

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plmiller0905


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I just sold my ipad on ebay to a buyer that lives in France I believe. This is my first time shipping something overseas. With that said I have a few questions:

Are their specific boxes that USPS use for International Priority Shipping or can I use the regular standard Priority boxes?

Also is there any "US Customs" forms that I have to fill out?
 
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All you want to know right here. LINK

Regards.
 
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plmiller0905 said:
I just sold my ipad on ebay to a buyer that lives in France I believe. This is my first time shipping something overseas. With that said I have a few questions:

Are their specific boxes that USPS use for International Priority Shipping or can I use the regular standard Priority boxes?

Also is there any "US Customs" forms that I have to fill out?
Click to expand...

Take this as fair warning, I work for USPS. I can tell you right now,I would not advise you to ship something as expensive as an iPad with USPS overseas, Fedex is your best option UPS second.
 
LelandJLK

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Yes I agree, anything non-domestic I would stay away from USPS. I am biased so I would pick UPS over Fed-Ex.
 
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LelandJLK said:
Yes I agree, anything non-domestic I would stay away from USPS. I am biased so I would pick UPS over Fed-Ex.
Click to expand...

The reason I said Fedex was because were partnered with them at the Postal Service they have a nice international system setup. The problem with shipping international with USPS it once it leaves the U.S. it's out of our hands it's now in possession of a foreign postal entity, And if you think USPS sucks it only gets worst when you leave the states.


Spend the extra money and ship either Fedex or UPS be prepared to spend $70-100 but it's worth the extra money.


Also there is one other option, If you goto the Post Office tell them you want to ship the iPad (GXG) Global Express Guaranteed which will be shipped via USPS but will be delivered by Fedex, usually runs around $60-$80 3-day delivery
 
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Thanks everyone. I didn't know that about USPS. I think I will go the Fedex route.
 
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bargsbeer said:
The reason I said Fedex was because were partnered with them at the Postal Service they have a nice international system setup. The problem with shipping international with USPS it once it leaves the U.S. it's out of our hands it's now in possession of a foreign postal entity, And if you think USPS sucks it only gets worst when you leave the states.


Spend the extra money and ship either Fedex or UPS be prepared to spend $70-100 but it's worth the extra money.


Also there is one other option, If you goto the Post Office tell them you want to ship the iPad (GXG) Global Express Guaranteed which will be shipped via USPS but will be delivered by Fedex, usually runs around $60-$80 3-day delivery
Click to expand...


Do I have to use a certain box to ship the ipad via Global Express or can it be any box?
 
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The reason I'm biased is the airport hub of UPS is in Louisville, Ky....where I am from.

GO CATS!
 
bargsbeer

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plmiller0905 said:
Do I have to use a certain box to ship the ipad via Global Express or can it be any box?
Click to expand...

any box should be fine, Just make sure you pack it very good. In order to get the full insured amount you must declare the value at that amount, If something happens to it and you insured it for $600 but only declared a value of say $75 you will only get insurance money for $75.


good luck
 
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plmiller0905


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bargsbeer said:
any box should be fine, Just make sure you pack it very good. In order to get the full insured amount you must declare the value at that amount, If something happens to it and you insured it for $600 but only declared a value of say $75 you will only get insurance money for $75.


good luck
Click to expand...



thank you. I am going to use the the USPS Global Express and ship it off either Friday or Saturday. Hopefully I'll have my 3g iPad Tuesday.
 
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Having lived overseas, I would suggest that you avoid USPS period! Stick to FedEx, UPS or DHL customs and tracking are pitiful via USPS and I have seen more than one package destroyed via USPS. To add to that they don't like to payout when they lose it. If that is the route you are going, pray...
 
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DaFlake said:
Having lived overseas, I would suggest that you avoid USPS period! Stick to FedEx, UPS or DHL customs and tracking are pitiful via USPS and I have seen more than one package destroyed via USPS. To add to that they don't like to payout when they lose it. If that is the route you are going, pray...
Click to expand...

Based on the website, when using USPS Global Express Guaranteed Service the package is transferred to Fedex in which Fedex delivers the item overseas.

"Global Express Guaranteed® (GXG) is the premium international shipping option from the U.S. Postal Service with international transportation and delivery by FedEx Express"

I am going to check to see how much Fedex and UPS is going to charge me. I assume UPS will be more expensive then both USPS and FedEx. But I thing USPS will charge me between $60 and $70. When I checked FedEx their site said that it would cost $149. That's more than double that of USPS Global Express Guaranteed. But I'll do my homework and pick whats right.
 
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plmiller0905


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DaFlake said:
Good luck!
Click to expand...

lol..you're making me nervous. :Oops: I guess I better just go the plain FedEx or UPS way and leave USPS completely out of the picture.
 
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I've also heard a lot of bad reviews about USPS for international shipping. It seems they don't really have much of a system setup for overseas shipping. I use USPS domestically for a lot of my shipping and they do well with that. They also don't cost as much as FedEX and UPS which is why I choose them.
 
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I am just going to use Fedex. I'm quite sure UPS is going to be the most expensive, followed by Fedex then USPS. I will use my own packaging and go from there. From what I'm hearing USPS is not great with international shipping. And I for one am not trying to get a iPad lost in the mail.
 
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EndlessMac said:
I've also heard a lot of bad reviews about USPS for international shipping. It seems they don't really have much of a system setup for overseas shipping. I use USPS domestically for a lot of my shipping and they do well with that. They also don't cost as much as FedEX and UPS which is why I choose them.
Click to expand...

plmiller0905 said:
I am just going to use Fedex. I'm quite sure UPS is going to be the most expensive, followed by Fedex then USPS. I will use my own packaging and go from there. From what I'm hearing USPS is not great with international shipping. And I for one am not trying to get a iPad lost in the mail.
Click to expand...



The problem with USPS international is that,Once it leaves the U.S. it goes into the hands of a foreign postal entity,You loose accountability. With UPS and Fedex the package stays in their hands Door to Door. As for domestic Mail most of that is transported by Fedex,UPS also transports some U.S. Mail too but Fedex handles the majority of it.
 

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