International Tracked & Signed
Features
*A signature is taken on delivery however we don’t provide a copy of the signature to you as part of the service and it’s not available to view online.
Options
1 Delivery aim to Ireland, France, Germany, Spain, Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, Sweden, Austria and Luxembourg is 3-4 working days
International Tracked & Signed cannot be sent to PO Boxes or Pack Stations, because a signature cannot be captured. This restriction does not apply when items are sent to Africa or the Middle East
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International Tracked
Features
Options
1 Delivery aim to Ireland, France, Germany, Spain, Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, Sweden, Austria and Luxembourg is 3-4 working days
Visit International TrackedReady to send?
Buy online now with Click & Drop
International Standard
Features
Ready to send?
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International Economy
Features
Delivery aims
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You are responsible for checking postal restrictions and prohibitions for your destination.
There are rules about what Royal Mail will carry and each country has their own restrictions which may differ, so it’s important to check both.
Check the status of deliveries around the world on our International Incident Bulletin
Prohibited and Restricted items to the USA
Prohibited items are forbidden and must not be sent.
Restricted items are allowed under certain conditions.
Prohibitions and restrictions vary from country to country and can sometimes apply to items which you may think are ordinary so please check the criteria carefully.
Please ensure that you follow the below guidelines before sending your items to the USA
- Royal Mail prohibits and restricts certain categories of items, please click here to check that your item is allowed within our network.
- Each post around the world must follow the Universal Postal Union (UPU) rules applicable to letter post and postal parcels regarding prohibited and restricted items. To identify whether your item is allowed, please visit Article 19 which contains a detailed list of items that are not admitted in the International mail flow here.
- The destination country also set their own rules around which items are prohibited and/or restricted. To check that your item is allowed to be sent to the USA please visit the UPU Country specific list here and scroll down to the USA.
- You can also use the UPU CDS search function here.
Please note: Specific Country restrictions and changes may be enforced at short notice, so for any clarification please contact the destination country’s trade, postal and customs authorities as appropriate. Royal Mail have no control over UPU and Country specific restrictions regarding prohibited and restricted items and it is your responsibility to check whether your items are allowed.
Additional information
Sending food
If you’re shipping food or beverages to the USA as a business, you need to file a Prior Notice of Imported Foods with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This is a requirement before shipping and the FDA reference number needs to be displayed on the parcel.
This applies to articles shipped for commercial purposes or as gifts. Articles of food include (but are not limited to) food for humans or animals, dietary supplements, nutritional supplements, vitamins, food and colour additives.
Electronic customs data
When you send mail from the UK to destinations that are in a different customs union, we require you to provide electronic customs data.
The easiest way to provide your customs declaration is through one of our automated shipping solutions, like Click & Drop, Pro Shipping or API shipping.
Royal Mail prohibitions and restrictions
Universal Postal Union list of restricted articles for all countries
More questions about what you can send to the USA? Email a Public Information Officer from the US Customs and Border Protection website.
Remember to use the correct address format
You can use just the first half of the ZIP code, although the full version is preferred.
Put the country name on the last line, in capitals. You can use the abbreviation USA.
Examples:
Mr Joe Engle
1612 Dexter Street
FORT WAYNE IN 46805
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Mr Bill Harrison
347 L’Enfant Plaza SW
WASHINGTON DC 20260-6500
USA
To help facilitate customs clearance, it is recommended that you provide recipient contact details (email address and/or phone number) so that recipients are contactable if any information is missing or incorrect. Contact details should be provided within the electronic customs data or in the case of a CN23 on the physical declaration. To ensure this information is protected do not write these contact details separately on the outside item.
Attach a customs label
You’ll need to apply a customs declaration form to your package.
If you buy postage online with Click & Drop the label will be generated automatically, and we will also send customs data in advance of your parcel.
Alternatively, customs declaration labels are available online or in a Post Office® branch.
- For items with a value up to £270, you will need customs form CN22 (pdf, 394.05 KB).
- For items with a value over £270, you will need customs form CN23 (pdf, 227.98 KB) and clear plastic wallet SP 126, also available at any Post Office® branch.
Shipping overseas for business?
