Is it prohibited to ship kitchen knives via USPS, DHL, TNT, Fedex?

Parcel forwarder Shipito warns its customers about shipping knives via USPS. It gets many packages returned if they contain any type of knife when shipped by USPS. There are no problems to ship regular kitchen knives by Fedex, TNT, DHL or Airmail.

Please also take into account the rules and regulations of your local postal services and customs.

How to save money by using Multi Piece Shipment (MPS) service

If you have more than one package going to the same delivery address, you may save money by using MPS (Multi Piece Shipment) service. You can usually get the best savings for several small packages. In some cases, MPS may be cheaper than consolidating these packages into one box. MPS can also significantly lower shipping costs for larger packages that cannot be consolidated.

If you use Shipito shipping forwarder and have a Shipito Virtual Mailbox, the MPS service is available for you. It is available for DHL, TNT and FedEx shipping methods.

FedEx MPS (Fedex Multiple-Piece Shipment)

FedEx MPS pricing is automatically available on each Shipito account. Just select more than one package for immediate mail out. Select the same FedEx shipping method (Economy or Priority). And make sure that the addressee is exactly the same. MPS discount will be automatically calculated and lower price charged on each package. Additional discount can be up to 30-40%.

MPS discount is not guaranteed. Expect to pay the quote you see on your shipment. If the MPS discounts kicks in the price is automatically lowered. Sometimes MPS discounts will not be as big as discounted rate already provided through Shipito. It seems that more packages you send at the same time the more likely is to get the MPS discount.

New Shipito MPS system: DHL Express and TNT Express Multiple-Piece Shipment

There are some limitations at this moment:

• Only DHL Express and TNT Express shipping is available. To ship FedEx MPS shipment, you have to use the old method (see above).
• The maximum number of packages in MPS shipment is limited to 10 when using DHL Express and limited to 3 when using TNT Express. The limits may be increased in the future.
• MPS is not available to Russia (because of the customs problems with express carriers like DHL, TNT, FedEx)

How to enter new DHL Express or TNT Express MPS Request ?

1. Login to your Shipito account, and go to the “Packages in Warehouse” section.
2. Click the “MPS Request” button. New window with the MPS Request form will show up.
   
3. Select a Shipito Warehouse with packages you want to ship using MPS.
4. Select all packages you want to include in the shipment and click the “Select Packages” button. Some packages may not be available for MPS shipping (for example if they are scheduled for separate mailout or for consolidation). These packages are displayed on the bottom of the page with the explanation why they are not available at this moment.
   
5. In the next step, enter your delivery address for the MPS shipment.
   
6. When delivery address is confirmed, system calculates total MPS postage for various shipping methods. After the form is displayed, select the shipping method.
   
7. The final step displays a confirmation form with the MPS shipment summary. And it will also show how much would the shipping cost be if all packages were shipped separately using the same shipping method. After the separate shipping cost is loaded, you can confirm the MPS Shipment
   

As you can see, the new MPS system on Shipito that allows to ship via DHL Express and TNT Express is better, because it shows you the exact MPS shipping rate. If it is cheaper than shipping separately, you can confirm the shipment and the price will be locked in and guaranteed.

Custom fees, duties and taxes (VAT) when shopping in the USA from Cyprus

A friend of mine lives on Cyprus. He was very impressed by my shopping in the USA and forwarding packages via Shipito, so asked me whether he could make purchases in the USA from Cyprus. Here is what I have found out.

Cyprus is a part of European Union (EU), so when you ship anything from the EU, you don’t need to pay any customs fees or duties. Everything is different when you make purchases outside the EU. Goods from the USA, China,… are subject to duty.

CUSTOMS FEES and VAT in EUROPEAN UNION (EU)

MERCHANDISE+SHIPPING TOTAL	CUSTOMS FEES and VAT
< 22 EUR	No customs fees and No VAT
22 to 150 EUR	Only VAT applied
> 150 EUR	Both VAT and custom fees applied

If the merchandise plus shipping total is under 22 EUR, you do NOT need to pay any customs fee or VAT. But make sure that you take into account not only the amount you spend on your purchases, but also shipping costs.

If merchandise is between 22 and 150 EUR, you only have to pay VAT. The 150 EUR limit is calculated on merchandise value without any shipping fee. VAT however is paid instead on the total of merchandise plus shipping!

If merchandise is more expensive than 150 EUR, then you need to pay both customs fees and VAT. Both VAT and customs fee are applied to the merchandise plus shipping.

They will recalculate the price to Euro first using their own exchange rate table (at the day of the processing of the paperwork). Duty is paid at a percentage rate determined by the type of item. TARIC (Integrated Tariff of the European Communities) is designed to show the various rules applying to specific products when imported into the EU. TARIC for Cyprus can be found on the web-site of the goverment of Cyprus.

The VAT of 17% is calculated on the price of the item plus shipping and plus the duty charge.

Example:

Men’s or boys’ shirts of man-made fibres ($70 EUR) + $30 EUR for shipping.
Commodity code 6205 30 00 00

Duty 12%: 100 EUR * 12% = 12 EUR.
VAT 17%: (100 EUR + 12 EUR) * 17% = 19,04 EUR.
Duty + VAT: 12 EUR + 19.04 EUR = 31.04 EUR
Total: 100 EUR + 12 EUR + 19,04 EUR = 131,04 EUR

There may also be one or two other small charges depending on delivery method (for customs handling, courier handling).

Note that you can ask the seller to undervalue your package, but this is illegal. The customs official may request proof of price. You can get a big fine for undervaluing your package.

You can ship to Cyprus by USPS Mail or by courier services.

• United States Postal Service (USPS)
  The post office will deliver the customs form to your address/PO box. You will need to return the form to the post office along with an invoice for the goods. The post will then send the form and the invoice back to customs. Then the customs will process the paperwork, assess the duty and VAT payable, and release the package. Then the package will arrive in the post office and you will pay everything there. Note that you can go to the customs office yourself as well. And you will need to do that if your package costs more than 1000 EUR.
• DHL, UPS, TNT or FedEx.
  The courier should handle everything. You just pay the fees when the package is delivered or collected.

Note that customs will only do the assessment for private goods. If the goods are for commercial use, you’ll need to to complete all the paperwork yourself, including TARIC codes, duty rates, etc.

Also note that if you are not a resident of Cyprus and plan to use your purchase outside the EU, you may try to return the VAT.