USPS: Shipping PCBs internationally as letters

[aion]

I'm trying to work out a cost-effective system to send PCBs internationally. If I send them in a bubble mailer, it automatically requires a customs form and costs me between $6.50 and $9.50 even if it's just one board, so that's not going to work.

I tried using flats like Bean talked about earlier this year, but even though I printed out the requirements from the USPS website and brought them with me, the postal clerk insisted that there could be nothing rigid inside the flat even if it passed the bend test. I think he's mistaken, but it's not wise to try to tell a professional that you know their job better than they do. So that's not going to work.

So I started sending them as letters in normal envelopes stapled to thin cardboard to keep them from moving around. They pass the thickness test (less than 1/4") and I've been able to send about ten of them so far without any trouble. No customs form, and it costs me between $2 and $3. I can send up to six PCBs in one envelope. They usually arrive in about a week, sometimes less. Pretty awesome.

EXCEPT, a different clerk at the post office yesterday insisted that if there's anything but a letter inside, it needs a customs form and they'll have to run it through as a package. So now I have a situation where, depending on who is behind the counter, it's going to cost me either $2 or $7+. Not a risk I can take.

I know a lot of you have shipped PCBs internationally as letters, so my question is this - do you think I would be able to just buy stamps (the big $2 stamps) and mail the envelopes myself without going to a post office? I would follow the pricing table on the USPS website, adding the 20-cent "non-machinable" surcharge since it's an irregular size, and of course erring on the side of adding too much postage instead of too little.

I'm tempted to just go for it - the worst that can happen is it gets sent back to me within a few days and I can try again a different way. But I thought I'd see if anyone else has any experience mailing things like this without going to the post office and could offer any advice.

[GermanCdn]

Buy a pile of cheap Christmas cards, tape them inside, and mail them yourself, you shouldn't have a problem, and PCB's are no thicker than gift cards, so there shouldn't be a perceptible difference from the Post Office perspective.  As far as customs and duties go, pretty sure anything shipping to Canada or Europe under $50 doesn't require the paperwork, as it falls below both the GST and VAT processing limits.

Your pcbs arrived yesterday, nicely done, will build a couple this weekend.

[calciferspit]

I'd use a birthday card type set up taping the pcb to the inside of the card like a gift card would be and slap on your postage. That is a very common standard letter scenario that the post office is used to accepting. It works wonders sending oneself hash when one visits Amsterdam.   

[Stomptown]

Yep! Thank you cards are the way to go here. I have not had any issues yet. You may want to check into cost for shipping up to an ounce.

[DutchMF]

It works wonders sending oneself hash when one visits Amsterdam.   

Seriously? I could make a decent living from that! 

Paul

[pickdropper]

I've shipped plenty of PCBs through in e regular envelope.  The clerk was willing to do it, but said that it is really only supposed to be documents only.  Unfortunately, the next cheapest option was significantly more expensive (as you've found).  It also seems to vary by clerk.

So I just put them in envelopes these days.  I haven't had a problem yet and it keeps shipping costs down for people overseas.  If I start running into problems, I'll switch to padded envelopes, but it will significantly add to the cost.  Hopefully, it doesn't come to that.

[alanp]

I avoided the whole issue by buying the stamps and then dropping the envelopes into a mailbox for the Doppelganger PCB's (normal size envelope, normal thickness for a long letter.)

Didn't get any complaints about 'em not turning up. Maybe NZ Post is better than America post?

[pickdropper]

I avoided the whole issue by buying the stamps and then dropping the envelopes into a mailbox for the Doppelganger PCB's (normal size envelope, normal thickness for a long letter.)

Didn't get any complaints about 'em not turning up. Maybe NZ Post is better than America post?

I haven't had any issues, either.  Not yet, at least.

I did have one board go missing, but it turned up eventually and I think I forgot to write the country on the envelope (oops).

[aion]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I may go with the stamp option then unless I encounter any issues. The birthday/holiday/thank-you card idea is fantastic for an extra level of misdirection. I'll have to see if I can find a bunch of them for cheap. I can stack two PCBs together without going over the max thickness, so I may be able to send as many as six or eight PCBs in one card depending on what size of card it is.

[gtr2]

Shipping ANY merchandise or gift internationally requires a customs form 2976 (CN22)

[gtr2]

I will also mention international post can be rougher on PCB's than you would think.  I wouldn't recommend anything other than a #000 bubble mailer.  Even still I've had a few larger boards get broken in a #000. 

Ship them as large envelope first class.  As long as they are less than 3/4" they pass.  Much cheaper than the package rate you were quoting.

Josh

[Thomas_H]

Shipping ANY merchandise or gift internationally requires a customs form 2976 (CN22)

+1