USPS international shipping, country by country

USPS sends packages up to 4 lb and $400 by First-Class Package International Service, from $18.48 online for 8 oz, and anything bigger by Priority Mail International; every package of goods needs an electronic customs form with a 6-digit HS code for each item. Near 4 lb, a Priority Mail International Flat Rate Envelope can cost less if the item fits, though it has no tracking. On top of that, each country's listing in USPS's International Mail Manual bans or limits its own goods: Germany, Hong Kong, Italy and New Zealand prohibit lithium batteries, and Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany and Portugal require the duties to be prepaid. Since Oct 19, 2026, USPS also bills the sender for duties, taxes and import fees that a buyer abroad leaves unpaid when the destination asks for them (IMM 424).

30 countries, each with its own page: the listing's rules quoted, services and limits, prices, customs and duties. Prices from Notice 123 effective Oct 4, 2026; listings read Oct 19, 2026.

Rates verified on Oct 19, 2026

Every country at a glance

Online prices are USPS Commercial Base (PC Postage labels), Notice 123 effective Oct 4, 2026. Max weight: Priority Mail International, the lower of Notice 123 and the IMM listing (they differ for Australia). Prepaid duties: USPS Delivered Duty Paid in the country's IMM listing. * Not for dutiable goods under the listings for Italy and Taiwan.
Country	First-Class Pkg Intl, 8 oz	Up to 4 lb	Priority Mail Intl, 1 lb	Flat Rate Envelope (to 4 lb)	Max weight	Prepaid duties	Watch for
Australia	$23.62	$65.75	$68.36	$51.27	44 lb	No	Replica guns, used bedding and fruit cartons banned
Austria	$24.47	$67.51	$68.14	$52.74	66 lb	Optional	Toy guns and replicas banned
Belgium	$24.47	$67.51	$68.14	$52.74	66 lb	Required	Prepaid duties required; no PO boxes for parcels
Brazil	$26.43	$62.93	$69.81	$46.02	66 lb	No	Used consumer goods banned; tax ID required
Canada	$18.48	$39.59	$42.14	$31.61	66 lb	Optional	Province required in the address; valuables only insured
Denmark	$24.47	$67.51	$68.14	$52.74	66 lb	Required	Playing cards and long knives banned; prepaid duties
Finland	$24.47	$67.51	$68.14	$52.74	70 lb	Required	Replica guns banned; prepaid duties required
France	$23.43	$54.10	$67.23	$52.74	66 lb	Required	Prepaid duties required; 2 EUR fee under 150 EUR
Germany	$20.75	$54.10	$79.61	$52.74	70 lb	Required	Lithium batteries banned; prepaid duties required
Hong Kong	$21.94	$55.44	$66.30	$48.12	66 lb	No	Lithium batteries banned
India	$21.18	$57.07	$64.11	$48.12	44 lb	No	Jewelry, gold and silver banned; import license over 100 rupees
Ireland	$24.47	$67.51	$68.14	$52.74	66 lb	No	10-digit TARIC code recommended
Israel	$22.38	$60.52	$68.14	$52.74	44 lb	No	Records and films by First-Class Package only; tax ID needed
Italy	$24.47^*	$67.51^*	$68.14	$52.74	66 lb	Optional	Leather, perfume, non-wood toys, cards, batteries banned
Japan	$22.99	$64.27	$63.91	$48.12	66 lb	No	Non-thermal labels requested; IP-infringing goods banned
Mexico	$19.21	$42.42	$59.47	$46.02	70 lb	No	Cosmetics need prior approval; taxes over $50
Netherlands	$24.47	$67.51	$68.14	$52.74	66 lb	Optional	Commercial goods need an import permit
New Zealand	$23.62	$65.75	$68.36	$51.27	66 lb	No	Antiques, collectibles, jewelry and batteries banned
Norway	$24.47	$67.51	$69.39	$52.74	66 lb	No	Cosmetics with alcohol need approval; VOEC VAT
Philippines	$20.98	$71.62	$64.11	$48.12	44 lb	No	Liquids and glass or fragile items banned
Poland	$20.81	$55.09	$67.17	$52.74	44 lb	No	Jewelry and coins banned
Portugal	$20.81	$55.09	$68.14	$52.74	66 lb	Required	Jewelry and coins banned; prepaid duties required
Singapore	$21.18	$57.07	$64.11	$48.12	66 lb	No	Jewelry and most coins banned
South Korea	$21.94	$55.44	$66.30	$48.12	44 lb	No	Journals limited to 3 copies; valuables restricted
Spain	$22.38	$60.52	$68.14	$52.74	44 lb	Optional	Used clothing needs a disinfection certificate
Sweden	$22.38	$60.52	$69.39	$52.74	44 lb	Optional	Daggers and flick knives banned
Switzerland	$24.47	$67.51	$69.39	$52.74	66 lb	No	Celluloid items and flammable film banned
Taiwan	$21.18^*	$57.07^*	$64.87	$48.12	44 lb	No	Old coins banned; import license unless books or gifts up to $1,000
United Arab Emirates	$21.18	$57.07	$64.87	$49.01	66 lb	No	Aerosols and imitation pearls banned
United Kingdom	$21.95	$53.43	$67.44	$50.58	66 lb	Optional	No knives, aerosols or soiled clothes; VAT rules under £135

USPS rules for every country

No goods in letters. First-Class Mail International carries correspondence and documents only (IMM 242.1-242.2), and USPS defines documents as written, drawn or printed information “excluding objects of merchandise” (IMM 123.622). Something you sold goes as a package.
Customs forms are electronic. PS Form 2976 for First-Class Package International Service, 2976-A for Priority Mail International, printed by label software, Click-N-Ship, Customs Form Online or the Post Office; each item needs a detailed description, quantity, weight, value and at least a 6-digit HS code (IMM 123.11, 123.711).
Books, CDs and DVDs are goods, not documents: they need a form and a value (IMM 123.623). Airmail M-bags, sacks of printed matter to one address, go to 17 of these 30 countries (IMM 261); there is no Media Mail abroad (IMM 141.1).
Banned to every country: aerosols, nail polish, perfumes containing alcohol and the rest of USPS's list (USPS), counterfeit or pirated goods, cigarettes and e-cigarettes (IMM 136.3-136.4).
Lithium batteries only new and installed in the device, at most four cells or two batteries, no spares, and no used or defective devices unless manufacturer-certified refurbished (IMM 135.62-135.64).
Online prices need PC Postage. Commercial Base prices apply to labels from USPS-approved PC Postage products, not Click-N-Ship (IMM 233.231, 252.25).
Duties aren't in the postage. Most countries collect duties, taxes and a clearance fee from the recipient (IMM 131.34), each above its own de minimis, “a value threshold below which imported goods are exempt from import duties or taxes” (IMM 361.11). Delivered Duty Paid lets you prepay them to Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom; listings make it required for dutiable goods to Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany and Portugal.
Unpaid duties come back to you. Since Oct 19, 2026, when duties, taxes or import fees on a package haven't been paid in full and a customs authority, postal operator or broker in the destination country seeks them from you or USPS, USPS invoices you; you pay the whole invoice even if you dispute it, whether the package was delivered, lost, damaged or returned, with interest at 6% a year if it isn't paid by the due date (IMM 424, added by USPS's interim final rule, 91 FR 66000). USPS's online manual, dated Sep 7, 2026, didn't show it yet on Oct 19, 2026. More: when USPS bills the sender for unpaid duties.
Prepaying duties and the online price. USPS sells Delivered Duty Paid only at a Post Office counter, in Click-N-Ship, through USPS APIs or in its Global Shipping Software (IMM 362), and the counter and Click-N-Ship charge retail prices ($70.40 instead of $68.14 for 1 lb of Priority Mail International to Belgium). PC Postage providers and marketplaces “may choose to use alternative solutions, other than USPS DDP service” (IMM 362), so check that yours collects the duties before you buy a cheaper online label to a country that requires them.
EU duty since Jul 1, 2026: business-to-consumer packages worth up to €150 to countries that follow EU customs rules, once exempt, now owe import duty, and so do gifts between consumers worth over €45 and up to €150: “a flat, nonrefundable €3 duty” for each unique HS code, plus national taxes and fees; “The rules for packages over €150 remain the same.” USPS tells shippers to use Click-N-Ship, a Post Office counter, certain USPS APIs or Global Shipping Software, which work out the duties from the item descriptions; to EU countries that don't take Delivered Duty Paid (Ireland and Poland on this list), “duties, taxes, and fees will be handled on a country-by-country basis” (USPS). The listings for Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Sweden point to the EU's VAT rules.
Registered Mail is sold only for First-Class Mail International items that contain documents (IMM 332). Some listings name “First-Class Package International Service with Registered Mail” as the way to send valuables; those country pages point out the mismatch and the insured Priority Mail International route where the listing gives one.
Check the service alerts. USPS's international service alerts (updated Oct 2, 2026) list 13 destinations where mail acceptance is suspended, none of them on this list, and say the Priority Mail Express International guarantee is suspended to Israel, New Zealand, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland and Great Britain (the alert's names).

Questions

What is the cheapest way to ship a small package to another country with USPS?

First-Class Package International Service, for packages up to 4 lb and $400. Up to 8 oz it costs $18.48 (Canada) to $26.43 (Brazil) online with a USPS-approved PC Postage label; Click-N-Ship charges the retail price (IMM 252.25, Notice 123). Heavier small packages are a different story: a Priority Mail International Flat Rate Envelope costs less online than First-Class Package International from 49 oz (just over 3 lb) to 29 of these 30 countries, and already from 33 oz to 17 of them, as long as the item fits and you can do without tracking, which USPS doesn't offer on Flat Rate Envelopes (USPS). The listings for Italy and Taiwan keep dutiable goods out of First-Class Package International as USPS sells it, so dutiable goods sold there go by Priority Mail International.

Can I send a small item I sold to another country in a letter?

No. “No merchandise, whether dutiable or nondutiable, may be mailed using First-Class Mail International service” (IMM 242.2). Goods go by First-Class Package International Service or Priority Mail International.

Do I need a customs form to ship books or DVDs abroad?

Yes. USPS lists books, periodicals, CDs and DVDs among items that must carry a customs form with a declared value (IMM 123.623), and every form needs at least the 6-digit HS code for each item unless the country listing says otherwise (IMM 123.711).

Can I ship phones or other electronics with lithium batteries abroad?

Only new batteries installed in the device, at most four cells or two batteries per package, never spares and never used, damaged or defective devices unless manufacturer-certified refurbished (IMM 135.62-135.64). Germany, Hong Kong, Italy and New Zealand prohibit lithium batteries outright; the listings for Germany, Italy and New Zealand say that includes items containing them.

Can I use a cheaper online label to a country that requires prepaid duties?

Only if the label service collects the duties. The listings for Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany and Portugal require USPS Delivered Duty Paid for dutiable goods, and since Jul 1, 2026 even a consumer sale worth up to €150 to those EU-rules countries owes import duty (USPS). USPS sells Delivered Duty Paid only at a Post Office counter, in Click-N-Ship, through USPS APIs or in Global Shipping Software, while “USPS-approved PC Postage providers or third-party marketplaces may choose to use alternative solutions, other than USPS DDP service” (IMM 362). Click-N-Ship and the counter charge retail prices (IMM 233.231), so the online Commercial Base price depends on your PC Postage provider or marketplace being able to prepay the duties, through USPS or its own way.

Who pays import duties on a package I ship abroad?

Usually the buyer: duties, taxes, import fees and other charges “are not included in the postage paid by the mailer” (IMM 131.34, as revised Oct 19, 2026), and if you don't prepay them, “the recipient will have to pay the required amounts before they can get their package” (USPS). USPS Delivered Duty Paid lets you prepay them to 13 of these countries, and their listings make it required for dutiable goods to Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany and Portugal (IMM 362). A few listings move some of the tax to the sale itself: New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Switzerland and the United Kingdom (the United Kingdom's for goods up to £135, the others for some sellers or platforms); their pages explain. Since Oct 19, 2026, if those charges go unpaid and the destination's customs, post or broker seeks them from you or USPS, “the Postal Service (or its representative) will send an invoice to the mailer for such amounts,” and you must pay it “even if the mailer disputes the assessment” (IMM 424, 91 FR 66000).

How we built this

We read each country's Individual Country Listing in USPS's International Mail Manual on Oct 19, 2026, quoted the entries that touch books, media, clothing, cosmetics, electronics, jewelry, toys, collectibles and paperwork, and cross-checked each listing's price groups and weight limits against Notice 123. Where the two disagree, the country page says so and uses the lower weight. Prices are USPS's own; selling platforms and label services can charge their own rates. This first set covers 30 countries; USPS's country index lists the rest.

Sources

Rates verified on Oct 19, 2026 from each official page below.

Free 1-page Reseller Cheat Sheet: fees on 8 platforms, Media Mail and stamp prices

What each platform takes from a $10, $25 and $50 sale, Media Mail 1-10 lb, Ground Advantage to Zones 1, 5 and 8, and the Forever stamp, on one printable page. The link appears as soon as you sign up.