Your Mail
Sending post abroad
There are many services for customers who want to send letters, packets and parcels abroad. As in the UK, postage costs vary with size and weight of letters/packages, and also their destination.
Generally EU destinations are cheaper than those further afield such as USA, Australia/New Zealand; likewise surface mail (by truck or sea) is cheaper than Airmail.
There are several ways in which to send post abroad. These are:
Airmail.
Delivery is via air travel and will normally take between 3-5 days, dependant on the destination.
Surface mail.
Delivery is via land/boat service and is generally classed as an economical service for non-urgent items. Delivery times can vary anywhere between 2weeks and 12 weeks dependant on the destination.
Airsure.
Mail leaves UK on earliest possible flight and receives priority handling abroad. It is electronically tracked and is available in 30 countries. Compensation packages of up to £500 are available to purchase.
International signed for
If you require item to be signed for at destination. Compensation packages of up to £250 or £500 (depending on country) are available to purchase.
Customs declarations
Sending post abroad
For full details about customs declarations you will need to seek guidance from your postal provider or HM Revenue and customs. However you will not generally need customs forms for letters, postcards and documents alone. There are different restrictions for parcels but small packages containing goods, which are travelling within the EU are also normally outside of the remit of customs.
Receiving post from outside of the EU
Postal items arriving into the UK from outside the European Union worth more than £105 are subject to import duty and items worth £18 or more are subject to VAT. These charges are payable by the receiver of the goods in the UK and are usually collected on behalf of HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) by the delivery company when they deliver the package. Where import duty or VAT is payable, the recipient is also subject to a customs clearance fee. This fee is to cover the costs of collecting, administering, handling, and processing the duty due, collection of monies and provision of facilities for customs clearance of packages. For more information about VAT and import duty, please seek guidance from HM Revenue and customs.
