US-France postal disruptions make sending gifts costly – how to work around it
Three attempts and more than €200 later, American Greg Marshall still has not been able to send a 2.6 kilogram gift package back to the US
Published
Greg Marshall went to his local post office in the Bourgogne region this summer with a simple goal: send a few letters and parcels to friends and family in the US.
The packages were set to contain medallions and some materials that were part of a historic restoration project in the US that Mr Marshall, an 80-year-old former marine, is involved in.
Little did he know, that simple request would turn into a nearly three-month, costly adventure navigating US customs regulations and French postal rules.
Mr Marshall said he first sent a Colissimo package in June with the label and customs declaration correctly filled out. It was addressed to a friend of his in Hawaii.
However, the friend never received the package, and it bounced back to France. Mr Marshall tried to send it to Hawaii again, later in June, and the same thing happened.
Rising costs
When he sent it one last time to another friend in North Carolina, it also bounced back. Each time, he said he paid around €75 for a package of 2.6 kilograms.
The last time the package bounced back, it also arrived at a different postal office in a nearby town, Arc-Sur-Tille, about an hour-long round trip away from Mr Marshall's residence. Since he moved to France in 2003, this is the first time he has run into issues sending packages to the US.
"This stuff has been going on for me for three months," he told The Connexion. "For other people or for the system, maybe much longer, but it's au courant right now."
US-France postal policy changes
He could not be more correct. Many Americans are facing the repercussions of a recent change in postage policy between the US and France. Since last August, American customs duties have applied to packages starting from the first dollar, creating a flux of changing policies from La Poste on sending parcels to the US.
In Mr Marshall's case these complications mean his daughter and grandchild's birthdays have passed, while their gifts are still waiting in France. For others, the complications have led to issues sending tax documents, birth certificates and even voting ballots.
There are several reasons a package can be returned by US authorities, a La Poste spokesperson told The Connexion.
"Generally, the most frequently reported reasons concern customs compliance issues, inaccurate or incomplete declarations, an insufficiently precise description of the contents, an inconsistency between the information declared and the goods shipped, or difficulties related to the recipient's address," the spokesperson wrote in an email.
US authorities have sole jurisdiction to accept or refuse shipments, they added.
While Colissimo packages were at one point suspended to the US, they are now authorized again. Senders must complete a customs declaration and pay the duties at the post office or online before sending.
Rules for gifts
However, US authorities have a special rule regarding packages marked as gifts, according to a recent publication by France's Service Public. They will only accept gift packages that contain homemade items, and the words ‘cadeau’ and ‘CN23’ must be marked on the package. An item with monetary value such as a DVD or book cannot, therefore, be declared as a gift.
Relating to this, La Poste's website states that one reason a US-bound package could be sent back to France is that it was marked as a gift, but its value was under €80 and customs documents suggest either the sender or recipient was a professional.
Keep in mind that customs duties must now be paid by the sender at the post office or online, before the package goes out. Administrative documents like tax returns and birth certificates are now considered "goods" by the US authorities and are recommended to be sent via Chronopost, La Poste told The Connexion previously.
Some people have reported that their local La Poste office has refused outright to send letters and packages to the US, and it appears that there may be some confusion in various branches about how to deal with US-bound shipments. If you have any issues sending letters or parcels to the US at a La Poste office using the above methods, you could try pointing employees to the Service Public website.
The La Poste spokesperson offered the following advice for Americans hoping to ensure their package reaches its destination safely: prepare shipments using dedicated channels on laposte.fr or at a post office, correctly fill out the customs declaration, precisely describe the contents being shipped, declare its actual value, include all required documents and verify the recipient's contact information.
If you are sending a gift, it may be worth checking this site to ensure your package will not be sent back. You can also reference this page with information on sending letters and packages to France.
Mr Marshall is now considering sending his package through FedEx or UPS but said it was important for France's head of postal service to get the word out about why US shipments are bouncing back and how to tackle the issue.
"They should be informing every La Poste in the country, because it is going to continue happening to other unfortunate Americans," he said.
If you have moved to France from the US, we would love to hear about your experience with La Poste. Share your thoughts with us at feedback@connexionfrance.com.
