$49.50 Shipping For A $1 Stamp?

ebay sellers are truly unbelievable!

https://www.ebay.com/itm/China-PRC-...223157536817




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Sadly, that's probably the correct rate for USPS Priority Mail International. It's overkill for sure. It could be mailed for $1.15 - $1.36, 1oz. First Class International rate (.21 surcharge if the stiffeners are rigid).

Tracking mail from Arizona to Singapore costs $15 for this, $49.50 from any part of US to Singapore is madness.

$15.50 is the fee for registered mail and doesn't include the price for postage. It can take 4-6 weeks depending on the country.

$49.50 is probably for Priority Mail International Express which is just a few days, but also trackable. This service is usually used for important documents that have to be sent somewhere quickly or really expensive items that one doesn't want to linger in the mail system any more than it has to. I agree it's not for stamps. A $1 set of stamps can be sent for the much cheaper rates I posted previously.

International mail rules have changed for stamps and other merchandise. The USPS just changed the kiosks in the lobby to ask if you are sending anything of value when you specify an international destination. If you answer yes they stop the process and make you go see a clerk. So it is pretty obvious that they are not letting you use first class mail.

So you have to either just apply stamps or pay for the enhanced services that will be sold to you by the clerk. I am not sure what this is but will find out the next time I send something outside the U.S.

The shipping charge quoted is obviously out of line, but they probably don't know they can use registered mail which is about $18.00 to most destinations.

If one does ship registered mail and declares a value then it would have to be shipped at First Class International PARCEL rates which start around $10.00. Add the registered mail fee of $15.50 and then the starting total would be $25.50 to ship anything overseas.

However, since most stamps and covers can be mailed for 3oz. or less and most experienced stamp sellers will just ignore USPS regulations, they can be mailed for $1.15 to $3.33 ($4.32 if 3.5oz). It's when a shipment is 4oz or greater then it get expensive to ship and customs forms are required.

Note - Registered mail is no guarantee that a shipment is truly safe and secure against loss and even if loss will a postal service will reimburse a sender for a loss. It's just a waste of time and money for a false sense of security. Use private shipping insurance if one is concerned.

Perhaps one way to look at it is part of the cost of the stamps is priced into the postage. I was told by a seller in the states that it is better for him to state the item as something of low value rather than high value for tracking mail as there is a higher likelihood of stolen parcels for high value items. Thankfully, none of my parcels from the states or UK have been stolen so far.

USPS seems to be applying a rule of its own making. If I send something to a non-EU destination by Royal Mail, I need to fill in and apply a customs declaration form (which can be printed from the web), but I'm not obliged to use a particular service (although I may choose signed for, tracked/signed for etc). So most material goes in the pillar box, rather than necessitating some queuing at the counter.

Geoff, what do you fill on the declaration form for the value of the item? Do you usually put a nominal value to play it safe or do you state the true estimate?

Wow! That is very high shipping.

I give the actual amount paid, unless the buyer requests otherwise, as I used to do thirty years ago when buying soul records from US dealers!

My calculation of U. S. rate to Singapore:
International Flat Rate Priority Envelope ..... 32.25
ebay and PayPal fees on shipping charge ....... 4.78
Total ......................................... 37.03

I agree with the statement about Registered mail not insuring anything - that is true because it is not actually insurance. You can purchase insurance from the Post Office, but the total value of coverage is not a whole lot more than the shipping charge - so it is worthless. I use APS for insurance on my collection and shipments. They require tracking which means either registered mail or something else with tracking. So it the item is lost you can prove loss in the mail by asking the USPS to track the item.

I have had to track two shipments - one to Germany that suddenly got delivered right after I requested the tracking, and one to Zambia that was never found. The USPS indicated that they gave the shipment to the Zambian Post Office, and the Zambian Post Office indicated that the USPS never gave it to them. Ultimately there was no resolution.

I do not sell by ebay, so I am not bound by their rules. I sell from my own website. I give my international customers a choice of shipping via registered mail covered by my APS insurance, and first class shipping with no tracking. I make them agree to be responsible for the loss if it is not delivered. The only loss I have had in this case was to Canada.

Frankly I would prefer to ship only to the U.S. but most of my British Colony customers are not in the U.S. so I have to ship internationally if I want to sell my stamps.

I found the original listing on ebay. The seller is fairly new and charges $3.99 within the U.S. for something that can be mailed for 50c. to 71c.
They're probably using a heavy mailer to get to the parcel rates.
International Priority Envelope is $47.50 to Singapore if not using a flat rate envelope. Seller probably didn't choose the flat rate.
The seller is either new and clueless about international shipping and/or too nervous about shipping without tracking.

Using ebay Labels I ship to Singapore $12 for 8 oz, $20 for over 8oz and less the 2 lbs. I ship via Intern, 1st Class Package. and I believe I subsidize $1-$2 of the cost. I have several good customers in Singapore.

When sielling cigarette cards, most of my sales are domestic, aside from the odd Aussie and Kiwi and a charming lady in Chicago, for whom I pull the cards out of sleeves to cut the postage cost When I venture into stamps (definitely not high-end stuff in my case), a lot of the interest is from overseas, and losing those offers would be damaging. I also find it rewarding to send things around the world - it was fun having the man in the post office tell me he hadn't had a packet for Mongolia before. I draw the line at heavier lots, however - that really is a world of pain in my experience.