Hello

I am waiting on a parcel from the USA to the UK and the last update I got was from USPS saying

"Your item departed a transfer airport in HEATHROW, LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM on June 15, 2022 at 9:39 am. The item is currently in transit to the destination"

Any idea when this will hit customs? It has been 3 days and no update. I would have expected an update by now at least.

Thanks

 

Corona surcharge 2 days + congestion of delivery routes + 3 days. I guess in 5 days it is with you.

 

try the same tracking number on Royal Mails site. sometimes the tracking stops with one country and picks up with another

 

It still says leaving originating country on RoyalMail, hence why I think it hasn't got to customs yet

 

Don't worry, USPS will send an update eventually, maybe, if someone is in a good mood that day. It may of course be that the package got routed through China and will be off the radar for a few weeks. Or, it might ve stolen, or just thrown in the trash because no one felt like dealing with it. In any event, try and forget it exists and if it ever does arrive it will be a pleasant surprise that will brighten your day.

 

Why would it come from USA, to arrive at UK, to go through to China just to come back again to UK

 

Had a buddy who shipped to India through Usps and it did hit customs but after a month and a half. So don’t hold your breath and call someone if you can ASAP and figure out what’s the insight on this issue.

 

Royal Mail are useless, my last parcel (MOTU M4 from DV247) was carefully placed in my wheelie bin and a note was pushed through my door saying it had been put in my preferred place. I'd been listening intently for the doorbell, he didn't even knock. On their web site it says a recycle bin isn't an acceptable place - I guess they think a black bin is.

 

In my experience, once you stop seeing any updates in their computer tracking systems whatsoever; like your package is lost; is how you know it is at customs. Then it clears, and shows up in one day before you could see it using a tracking system.

 

Last package I received via USPS & Royal Mail left the sender in LA on Mar 25th, arrived with me in the UK on Apr 1st.

As others have said, if the tracking 'goes dark' for a day or two, most likely it's passing through customs, and it can be a bit of a crapshoot with how long they'll take, usually only 24-48hrs, but can be longer.

I receive a fair few packages from the States - had a few that have been delayed, but never had one not show up at all.

Personally I've always found Royal Mail to be pretty decent (although this is obvs dependent on the individual mail carriers in your area) what you really don't want is Hermes (now Evri) handling your stuff, they're an absolute shitshow.

 

Last edited: Jun 18, 2022

usps is pathetic. twice I have stuff stolen at chicago international hub. also my brother had the same thing happen, again at chicago. poof! gone and no way to get it back. whats worse is the receiver cant file a complaint only the sender can which makes it even more of a joke. if something does make it past sticky fingers in chicago when it does arrive it will likely be 2 or 3 months later and they will want import money on top to add insult to injury. grrrrr What a racket im tellin ya

 

So finally, RoyalMail tracking is updating and the parcel has left the international logistics centre. I am assuming that it is customs. What will be the next update? I put my tracking number in to the 'pay a fee' page on RoyalMail but it doesn't show any charges, just says that there is an error.

"We seem to have a problem processing your custom charges. If it isn't the first time seeing this message, please follow the alternative instructions on your 'Fee to Pay' card"

So I am assuming that there aren't any customs charges...or that RoyalMail site is throwing an error...has anyone ever avoided custom charges in the UK?

I just find it stupid to wait for the dreaded card to show up in the mail, so thought I would check online.

 

I used to buy a load of stuff from Japan and it was 50/50 as to whether I'd stung for customs. Wasn't value related either, the most expensive item I bought sailed straight through, so you may be lucky.

 

Yeah, this is a $300 valued item. So no idea...I was told they went on weight...

 

I used to buy a lot of stuff from Japan as well, and like you, I'd get stung about half the time. The last five years or so though, the only things that have ever gotten through has been low-value junk from China that was borderline as to whether it qualified or not.

OP, they don't go on weight, they go on dollar value AND they add on a £15 processing fee. This often tips US purchases from being a good deal to being cheaper to buy in the UK. Royal Mail are utter cunts. Expect to be charged $60 (what's that now, about £45) plus the £15 processing fee. You're generally paying about the same as VAT, so about 20% plus the £15 charge. So expect that Fee to Pay card to be demanding about £60 and they won't deliver your goods until you've paid up.

Fastest way is via credit card online.

 

Yeah. Last time I had to pay the Royal Mail fee was about £8

 

Don't ask me! Ask the Illuminati, or the Catholic church, or whoever controls this stuff. I think they do it just because they can.

 

You'll get a 'fee to pay' card through the door - just go online and pay the fee by card, and you should be able to arrange delivery for the next (week)day.

It doesn't go by weight, it goes by value - more specifically, the value declared by the seller on the customs form attached to the front of your package.

My last fee to pay was £44, on a package worth £175, although that was for fragrances, which are charged a bit differently (you don't pay Duty, but you do pay VAT).

 

Last edited: Jun 22, 2022

So I got in touch with Royal Mail on Twitter and they confirmed that no customs fees have been added to the parcel and it should be delivered soon.