Importers have found that in some cases it is to their advantage to use the national postal service—that is, a country's mail system, rather than courier services—to import merchandise into the United States. Some benefits to be gained are:

• Ease in clearing shipments through CBP. The duties on parcels valued at
$2,000 or less are collected by the letter carrier who delivers the parcel to the addressee

• Savings on shipping charges: smaller, low-valued packages can often be sent less expensively through the mails,

• No formal entry required on duty-free merchandise not exceeding $2,000 in value,

• No need to clear shipments personally if under $2,000 in value.Joint CBP and postal regulations provide that all parcel post packages must have
a CBP declaration securely attached to the outer wrapping giving an accurate description of the contents and their value.

This declaration can be obtained at post offices worldwide. Commercial shipments must also be accompanied by a commercial invoice enclosed in the parcel bearing the declaration.

Each mail parcel containing an invoice or statement of value should be marked on the outer wrapper, on the address side, “Invoice enclosed.” If the invoice or statement cannot be conveniently enclosed within the sealed parcel, it may be securely attached to the parcel. Failure to comply with any of these requirements will delay clearance of the shipment through CBP.

Packages other than parcel post—for example, letter-class mail, commercial papers, printed matter, or samples of merchandise—must bear on the address side a label, Form C1, provided by the Universal Post Union, or the endorsement “May be opened for customs purposes before delivery,” or similar words definitely waiving the privacy of the seal and indicating that CBP officers may open the parcel without recourse to the
addressee. Parcels not labeled or endorsed in this manner and found to contain prohibited merchandise, or containing merchandise that is subject to duty or tax, are subject to forfeiture.

A CBP officer prepares the CBP entry (a form) for mail importations not
exceeding $2,000 in value, and the letter carrier at the destination delivers the parcel to the addressee upon payment of duty. If the value of a mail importation exceeds $2,000, he addressee is notified to prepare and file a formal CBP entry (also called a consumption entry) for it at the CBP port nearest him. A commercial invoice is required with the entry.

A CBP processing fee of $5.00 will be assessed on each item of dutiable mail for which a CBP officer prepares documentation. The postal carrier will collect this nominal fee on all dutiable or taxable mail along with the duty owed. There is also a postal fee (in addition to prepaid postage) authorized by international postal conventions and agreements as partial reimbursement to the Postal Service for its extra work in clearing packages through CBP and delivering them.

NOTE: The following general exceptions apply to the $2,000 limit:

• Articles classified in Subchapters III and IV, Chapter 99, Harmonized
Tariff Schedule,

• Billfolds and other flat goods,

• Feathers and feather products,

• Flowers and foliage, artificial or preserved,

• Footwear,

• Fur, articles of,

• Gloves,

• Handbags,

• Headwear and hat braids,

• Leather, articles of,

• Luggage,

• Millinery ornaments,

• Pillows and cushions,

• Plastics, miscellaneous articles of,

• Rawhides and skins,

• Rubber, miscellaneous articles of,

• Textile fibers and products,

• Toys, games, and sports equipment, and

• Trimmings.

The limit for these articles is $250, except for textiles (fibers and products). Virtually all commercial shipments of textiles require formal entry, regardless of value. Unaccompanied shipments of made-to-measure suits from Hong Kong, a category that includes single suits for personal consumption, also require a formal entry regardless of the suit’s value.