News from the UPS Office concering custom forms (can anyone else verify)

[doniceage]

So I had my normal custom forms for my latest gb and took them to the UPS to mail out. So upon getting up to the desk the lady behin the counter tells me they now have to enter each the sender address and the destination address by hand. So she proceeded to type them all in by hand as I had wrote them out. Needless to say with about 9 packages and a few others a thing that usually took 10 minues ended up going close to 30 due to all the typing. Has anyone else encountered this State side with custom forms?

D
O
N

[MattDMC]

Yep I've been running into the same thing since Monday.

A very large disgruntled line forms behind you when you have 17 packages going out that they need to do this for LOL.

Back a couple months ago the PO did this for about a week but cancelled it, looks like its back now (hopefully not for long).

[miscs75]

I had the same issue a couple times. Both tellers proceded to type everything out with 1 finger, slowing things down even more. Why does the USPS hire these people? we'll never know

[Mnum]

Seriously that sucks dude. I hope Cananda Post does not do this. The lady behind the desk at the post office I use takes 20 minutes just to type a money order. I'll be there forever. If they are going to do this they need to hire people who can type faster

[reoddai]

Is this it?
http://about.usps.com/postal-bulleti...l/info_006.htm

Effective May 21, 2012, all international mailpieces bearing a PS Form 2976-A, Customs Declaration and Dis™patch Note CP 72, or PS Form 2976, Customs Declaration CN 22 — Sender’s Declaration, that was not completed and submitted online (e.g., using Click-N-Ship service, Click-N-Ship® for Business service, an authorized PC Postage® vendor, or the USPS Web Tools® system) will only be accepted at a retail service counter at a Post Office™ location, except for First-Class Mail International mailings paid by permit imprint, which can be inducted at a Business Mail Entry Unit. In addition, all international mail™pieces that require a customs declaration and bear post™age stamps will only be accepted at a retail service counter at a Post Office location.

The 'good/bad' news is that now you have to fill it out online:
http://webapps.usps.com/customsforms/

TBH, I hate the Customs forms for CAN->US. They are hard to write on, smudge and overall suck.

Don, if you accept Paypal payments and plan on using customs forms, I highly recommend printing the label through Paypal. I've found them to be super easy at least where Canada post guidelines are concerned.

GL US mailers.

Cheers,
reoddai

[centrehice]

This was supposed to be an option for 2009. The USPS expected every user that required an International Customs form to pre-registed their item on-line.

Once they realised that at least 1/3 of all their consumers do not have a home computer, this idea went by the wayside. If you run into a clerk that says this all has to be imputed into the system, it does not. There are 4 copies for a reason, the accompanying number of the customs form brings up a systematic double copy of a record which the USPS has when you show up at the counter with the form completed.

Tell them to get it together.

[Drewk86a]

Once again this is another attempt by the USPS to drive customers away from the counter and towards o-line services.

The USPS announced earlier this year, and has begun, reducing window service hours in many small psot offices to 6, 4 and even 2 hrs per day. Couple that with the fact that the Village Post Office (privately owned contract unit) are not allowed to accept international mail, as of July 01, 2012 and you have a mess.

The window clerks don't like this anymore than we do. They know the line will back up and those customers will get angry, but they have to follow the orders they've been given. I have a buddy who has been sending cards to Canada without the customs form. Not sure how he does it, but he says he has had no problems, yet. Sounds like a ticking time bomb to me.

[zunato]

They started doing it in the last couple of weeks. My local PO told me that they were suppose to being doing this for some while now, but recently were told to start enforcing it.

The clerks at my PO said they will not hold the line up to input the forms. They all told me that they input the information when they are not very busy or have some down time.

[Crosby 87]

The Customs forms,the large increase in postage for bubble mailers and now this. I think there's a conspiracy afoot to slow trading of hockey cards down between the countries. /s

[doniceage]

Matt,
Thanks will have to check that out and pm coming.

DON