Samiam Posted August 5, 2010 Share Posted August 5, 2010 What is going to be the best and cheapest way to ship a box of used books to Indonesia? The buyer says I need to put a large paper saying "used books" in the box for the customs agent, since she has to pay $$ to get from customs, and it will be cheaper for her if it is known they are used books. What else? I tried to look on the USPS website but it's all complicated!!! The buyer asked me to ship it as economical as possible. I can't figure out what service to use. I hate to drive all the to the Post office, wait in line, then come home, contact buyer, and then have to go back to PO for actually ship. Ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LauraGB Posted August 5, 2010 Share Posted August 5, 2010 I might not consider using USPS to ship internationally; once it leaves the country, tracking it is next to impossible. Would you consider Fed Ex? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plansrme Posted August 5, 2010 Share Posted August 5, 2010 Cram one of those babies chock full, check "gift" on the customs form and send it on its way. I used to regularly send books to China, and this was always the cheapest option. They all got where they were supposed to as well. Of course the international flat rate is much more than the domestic flat rate, but it was a fraction of the charge for any of the other USPS options (or UPS) for the same weight. The flat rate boxes are free. You can take your books and tape to the post office and pack the box there. Terri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dobela Posted August 5, 2010 Share Posted August 5, 2010 There is a very slow very cheap rate to foreign countries - but it literally goes by boat and can literally take months to arrive. I would do air mail, or what ever is recommended at the post office. They will also have all the customs forms that you need to aattach to the box when sending. I would not send by FedEx or UPS unless the recipient requests it. In some countries this willlead to high customs charges and to high charges as the package may be handed to another company to actually deliver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted August 5, 2010 Share Posted August 5, 2010 There is a very slow very cheap rate to foreign countries - but it literally goes by boat and can literally take months to arrive. There was, but alas no longer. Rosie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lightly Salted Posted August 5, 2010 Share Posted August 5, 2010 What is going to be the best and cheapest way to ship a box of used books to Indonesia? The buyer says I need to put a large paper saying "used books" in the box for the customs agent, since she has to pay $$ to get from customs, and it will be cheaper for her if it is known they are used books. What else? I tried to look on the USPS website but it's all complicated!!! The buyer asked me to ship it as economical as possible. I can't figure out what service to use. I hate to drive all the to the Post office, wait in line, then come home, contact buyer, and then have to go back to PO for actually ship. Ideas? Because the best way to ship varies depending on destination, I'd put the onus on your buyer - ask her to tell you how she wants it shipped. Surely she has other shipments come in occasionally, from other sellers/companies/family/friends, so ask which way has worked best for her and then do that ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giraffe Posted August 5, 2010 Share Posted August 5, 2010 Because the best way to ship varies depending on destination, I'd put the onus on your buyer - ask her to tell you how she wants it shipped. Surely she has other shipments come in occasionally, from other sellers/companies/family/friends, so ask which way has worked best for her and then do that ... I agree - see what works for the recipient. When I ship to family overseas I use UPS because that is the most effective. USPS almost always results in lost packages. FedEx causes customs problems. UPS is the cheapest most effective way for that country. I think it depends on whatever works best for the destination. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C_l_e_0..Q_c Posted August 5, 2010 Share Posted August 5, 2010 UPS is the cheapest most effective way for that country. I think it depends on whatever works best for the destination. It really depends on the country because UPS is the *worst* for Canada. I just got a package for my dad through UPS. The item was 30$. I paid 24$ in brokerage fee. The brokerage fee were *only* to be sure that no other fee had to be paid in taxes or other. So 24$ to ensure that nothing was due, huh? Where's the logic in that? And 24$ for a 30$ item???? Never ever use UPS for Canada. That's only to say that really, your buyer should tell you how she wants it to be shipped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MagnaSky Posted August 5, 2010 Share Posted August 5, 2010 At work we use DHL for international shipping, and we have had no problems with shipments to Malaysia. You can check DHL shipping rates online and you can also schedule a pickup location and time (costs extra), or find a drop off location. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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