International Mail (CBP Shipment Type)

🔖 This article is part of the Shipment Release Types Guide

A typical International Mail shipment

International Mail is a U.S. Shipment Type used in the highway environment when a commercial carrier is transporting mail that remains under postal authority (i.e., mail dispatched by a foreign postal operator and tendered to the U.S. Postal Service (USPS)). In these movements, mail is generally processed under CBP’s mail importation rules rather than the standard commercial entry workflow used for typical truck freight.

International mail items (including letter-post and parcels) are presented for CBP processing through postal channels. CBP may examine mail and assess duties/taxes where applicable, and USPS handles delivery/collection as required.

What qualifies as International Mail (practical criteria)

A shipment should only be treated as International Mail when it is:

• moving from a foreign postal operator (e.g., Canada Post) and destined to USPS as mail under postal handling; and
• transported by a carrier acting in support of the postal stream (i.e., the shipment remains mail, not converted into a standard commercial freight shipment).

CBP’s mail rules (19 CFR Part 145) govern how mail is handled at CBP mail facilities and what can be examined/opened (including specific protections around correspondence).

Mail can contain merchandise

The statement that International Mail must consist only of “letter class mail or correspondence” is too narrow. International mail can include merchandise, and it is commonly accompanied by a postal customs declaration (e.g., CN 22 / CN 23 or USPS customs forms/labels) depending on how it is mailed. CBP guidance for internet purchases specifically notes that sellers should affix a completed CN 22 or CN 23 to help speed processing at International Mail Branch facilities.

Merchandise moving in the postal stream is generally processed as mail under Part 145 (with postal declarations and CBP examination/assessment as applicable), and is not automatically a “formal entry” truck shipment like PAPS. Whether an item requires additional documentation/actions can depend on the commodity, value, admissibility, and CBP instructions for that mail item.

International Mail and ACE eManifest

In ACE eManifest there is presently no functionality to declare an International Mail Shipment. As such, highway carriers can simply leave the International Mail Shipment off when preparing their manifest, and have the driver verbally declare the shipment and present the paperwork to the officer.

Operational notes for carriers and drivers

• Do not mix workflows: If the load is genuine postal mail tendered to USPS, it should remain in the postal/mail process. If the freight is commercial cargo (even if it “looks like parcels”), it should be manifested and cleared using normal commercial processes (PAPS, etc.) as instructed by the importer/broker.
• Carry supporting paperwork: Drivers should have the postal tender paperwork and any documentation provided by the postal operator/contract authority available for CBP/USPS at the port or mail facility as directed.
• Admissibility still applies: CBP can examine mail and enforce restrictions/prohibitions; mail is not automatically exempt from CBP controls just because it is “mail.”