USPS bizarre shipping route US to TW

I had a package mailed from Idaho to Taiwan. I used USPS Priority Mail Express International… $100 USD including insurance of $1,000, guaranteed delivery within 5 business days.


UPS, FEDEX, DHL all wanted 3 times that much.

The package sat in Boise Idaho for 4 days. Then it went to Norfolk, Virginia and sat there for 2 days. Now it is in Jamaica, NY and has been there for 24 hours.

Why the hell is it going in that direction? Idaho is closer to Taiwan via the West Coast of the US. There is an international USPS hub in San Francisco. It is very frustrating. It appears it will travel to Taiwan via the Atlantic Ocean, through Europe, and across all of Asia. Is anyone at USPS able to read a friggen map? That damn box will see more of the world than I have!

5 days guaranteed! It has been 7 days since it was shipped and it still has not left the US! I called about the guarantee and they said that only applies to select countries. Japan is one of them, but not Taiwan. Why the hell not? Japan is just a stones throw away from Taiwan!

Has anyone experienced this same issue before?

Probably confused Taiwan with Thailand.

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Never had this happen, but it could be for any number of reasons.

It sat in Boise for 4 days, a distribution-center manager decided it was going to look bad on an items-shipped-late report and shipped it on the next available leg on a route that just happened to be a longer, eastbound route - one possibility. Or maybe this is USPS’s preferred Taiwan route: another possibility. A mistake by USPS: a third. Etc.

What was the next-cheapest USPS option after USPS Priority Mail Express International?

Eh?
Doubt it. Even if they did confuse it for Thailand, Thailand is closer via the West Coast too. That doesnt make any sense.

For the size of the package, there was no other option. I would have had to use FEDEX, UPS or DHL instead…for 3 times the cost.

I see. If this works out in the customs/excise department, then maybe it’s not all that terrible since it is via USPS.

I’m interested because I’m putting together a large package of things myself. I haven’t shipped it yet, though. Following this.

That was the general idea. Send it via “normal mail” to try and avoid customs fees and broker fees that other carriers charge.

I can wait. It will get here eventually, fingers crossed. It is just frustrating. I should have read the fine print about Taiwan not being guaranteed 5 days. Still, for the price (including insurance) its not a bad deal.

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Please let us know know how it ends up.

Sure thing. I will keep this updated.

I’ve had shipments from new York following a very similar route… Hopped 3 cities in the US if I remember correctly it even stopped at Hawaii

It’s possible there might an established cheaper route through Europe .I’m just spitballing here. :).

I know somebody who Had a shipment for Ireland from China , the package went to Japan, then France, then Germany then back to France and back to China.

That was also supposed to be a 3 day delivery but its
Taken 7 days already.

I sometimes order books from Abebooks, or other used-books retailers online. It supposed to be from UK or US.
Always write it as Taiwan (ROC) whenever possible to avoid mix it with Thailand and PR China.
The book usually came within 2-4 weeks. US usually a bit longer.
Once, got a little delayed book, say about 2-3 months, the bookseller wrote Taiwan, Province of China… got a (customs? Post office?) Simplified Chinese stamp on it. I reckon that book had a sightseeing detour accross the strait.

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Cross your fingers the plane doesn’t get caught in a storm over the South Pacific and some middle manager spends 5 years using your shit to open coconuts and stuff.

WILSOOONNNN!!!

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Last year I sent a package to Texas via USPS. Arrived in San Fran in 48 hours. Sat there for a week. One day it updated to ‘out for delivery’, Nevermind that it was in the wrong state. A few days later it updated to ‘return to sender-bad address’. BS. Good address, clearly legible. US$65 wasted. Yet another reason US can kiss my ass.

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I’ve had similar things with shipments from the US - a magical mystery tour around half-a-dozen States, or no apparent movement, and then a couple of days to actually arrive in Taiwan.

Maybe USPS have to seek permission from China to send stuff to the renegade province?

Yes, FedEx and UPS get hit with guaranteed taxes, but at least they arrive damn fast (I’m generally only ordering stuff that attracts 5% VAT, so no big deal). And in my experience USPS is only slightly less likely to get checked by Customs these days.

Have you paid import/customs tax on a USPS shipment recently?

SuiGeneris, something I forgot about last night, Bree reminded me of it.

USPS package tracking is atrocious. I’m not sure you can rely on it for accuracy at all. Tracking domestic packages in the US is a black hole for information.

I wouldn’t be surprised if it arrives in Taiwan while USPS tracking still shows it in Jamaica, NY.

FYI if you ship often, Fed Ex/UPS offer big corp. discounts if anyone you knows as access to the rates, sometimes 70% off listed rates (or other local shipping company). This one is 35% off, but from USA we have bigger discounts https://www.ups.com/mrd/promodiscount?loc=en_TW&promoCd=C9VYXZZ26

Example from Taiwan: (We go to Family Mart , pay NT$650 vs $1,540 an 58% discount and next day arrival, if late by a day it’s free and its late day about 10% of the time, its never been more than 1 day late, and as a side not my staff likes it as get FamilyMart points)
UPS Worldwide Express ,
Open the link in a new window
Latest Pickup Time:
2:00 P.M. Wednesday
18 July 2018
Schedule by :
1:30 P.M.

Delivered By:
10:30 A.M. Thursday
19 July 2018
Guaranteed
1,540.00 TWD *
View Details

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Just got an update.

“Your item arrived at an origin transfer airport in NEWARK INTERNATIONAL, NEWARK, UNITED STATES”

Still has not left US soil.

About customs…
I have gotten packages from family that were declared as gifts. Mostly food, personal items and books. Never had to pay tax on it. That was via USPS.

Everything I have had shipped via FEDEX or DHL has had tax due. Even when Amazon charged an up front customs fee.

Not recently. Last occasion was about 5 years ago, and it was a lot of money (tax on musical instruments is sky-high, for some bizarre reason). I haven’t used them since then.

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