A few days ago I shipped out packages to the UK , Sweden, Canada and the US. When I printed out the shipping labels for the UK and Canada I noticed that the customs number was now there along with "E-Delcon".

Well it turns out that it stands for Electronic Delivery Confirmation. So according to the USPS website they will now track first class mail to the following select countries:

Australia
Belgium
Brazil
Canada
Croatia
Denmark
France
Germany
Great Britain
Israel
Netherlands
New Zealand
Spain
Switzerland

Now the pricing has gone up a bit as we've all seen but overall I think this is great. I know the international folks will like being able to track a parcel and sellers in the US can now ship a loose figure for under $40 (that was the minimal cost for a tracked parcel).

I'm going to watch the stuff I sent out and see how it looks in the tracking system, but this could be a great for both buyer and seller!

The past few packages I shipped internationally all had custom's numbers I could track using the USPS website while they were still in the US. I could see 2 to 3 places in the US they went before leaving the US.
Once they were delivered I could see a confirmation of delivery, but there was nothing shown for all the places in between. Is this what you are talking about or is it a real place by place tracking system like we have in the states?

I didn't know you could track by the custom's number and maybe that is new. I haven't shipped anything internationally until last month and they all were trackable.

It is pretty cool to know it did arrive safely. I wonder if the same thing can happen if shipped from those places.

cheers

lets hope China is next Ive been burned as many have by unscrupulous buyers. or mail carriers.
here is an article on the changes..
to bad Ebay is slow to make an announcement

http://www.ecommercebytes.com/cab/abn/y13/m07/i11/s01

Thats great to hear. I hope it's trackable and not just dissapears once it leaves the country. Being able to track world wide would be a real painkiller for sure.

I just checked a package I sent last week and it showed the normal in US stops but today updated with a "Customs Cleared" status in the destination country. (FRED! )

I don't think it will show any stops up to the door, but I already know it will show a confirmation.

That "Customs Cleared" message is new compared to the last 3 I shipped. It is good!

Any suggestions for shipping with insurance reasonable ? I picked up a few small things here in the US to send to another member in Australia and wanted to insure the package for them , but so far it's looking like the cheapest way to go would be priority and thats around $40 , USPS doesn't offer it on flat rate priority for some reason .

Eric

You cant insure first class insurance sadly. I'll tell you not to even bother. Ive had two big claims and neither paid. USPS just says it's not there fault unless the box is beyond destroyed or lost.

psybertech wrote:

I just checked a package I sent last week and it showed the normal in US stops but today updated with a "Customs Cleared" status in the destination country. (FRED! )

I don't think it will show any stops up to the door, but I already know it will show a confirmation.

That "Customs Cleared" message is new compared to the last 3 I shipped. It is good!

Good news  

I'll help you on that 'stop at the door' status  
If it got cleared last night it should be delivered to DC today and final mile delivery tomorrow.
So i can stop F5-ing the mailbox for today.

Will kepp you posted!

I have a successful first class delivery !!

Here is the tracking info:

First-Class Package International Service
Delivered
August 6, 2013, 2:24 pm
NETHERLANDS
International Letter
Customs clearance processing complete
August 6, 2013, 10:54 am
NETHERLANDS
Customs clearance processing complete
August 5, 2013, 8:49 pm
NETHERLANDS
Processed Through Sort Facility
August 3, 2013, 1:41 pm
NETHERLANDS
Processed Through Sort Facility
July 31, 2013, 10:37 am
ISC NEW YORK NY(USPS)
Processed through USPS Sort Facility
July 31, 2013, 8:57 am
JAMAICA, NY 11430
Arrived at Sort Facility
July 31, 2013, 8:56 am
ISC NEW YORK NY(USPS)
Dispatched to Sort Facility
July 30, 2013, 4:47 pm
POUGHQUAG, NY 12570
Acceptance
July 30, 2013, 4:30 pm
POUGHQUAG, NY 12570
Electronic Shipping Info Received
July 30, 2013

Great to know there is a cheaper alternative still with tracking for lower value items.