Nov 8, 2021
Holiday Shipping Problems Courtesy of Japan Post
Planning on sending packages home to the US, Australia or Canada this year? You might not have the opportunity anymore, at least if you were planning on using affordable and reliable Japan Post. As of November 1st. Japan Post has stopped carrying any air mail of any parcel variety to these States or Australia, while a hold of several months may have been lifted for Canada.
Found on the Japan Post website.
While shipping to Canada was restricted for a few months this year, it seems that small parcels might be able to get through now but who knows how long that will last or when the US or Australia will be back to receiving Japanese parcels.
In the past few months, shipping via Japan Post to the US has greatly increased in price, in some cases doubling or tripling the previous cost of shipping the same size package to the same address. Meanwhile, shipping to Australia had remained reasonable. Back in 2020, we saw a similar freeze on shipments to Australia and North America that lasted a few months in the spring and summer. That was at the peak of the beginning of the pandemic though. Now, those countries are all getting back on track and even Japan has seen a huge drop in Covid cases, but that seems to have no affect on our packages going nowhere fast.
This is where updates regarding the news about which country can't get mail from you will be.
If you're planning on sending anything to loved ones overseas via Japan post, check the Japan Post website regularly for updates and cross your fingers.
2 Comments
Eli
on Nov 9
Japan post was never reliable when it comes to overseas shipping from my experience, especially not during the pandemic. I had so many parcels returned because they stopped accepting parcels to a certain country right after I shipped and so many were delayed. When they implemented the new digital labeling system for overseas shipping the website was down for several days and most employees had no idea how to work with these labels in the beginning. When a parcel gets lost they are not very helpful either. They just tell you to call customs or the post office in the receiving country even when you ship something as registered. You would assume the service improves with the price increase but it has just gotten worse.
JTsu
on Nov 12
@Eli I had never had anything get lost before, so that's new information for me and sounds like a horrible experience. I found them generally alright previously, compared to how unhelpful the post offices in my mom's area of the US has been since I moved abroad, but this month has changed that. After I wrote this, a post office worker came to my home to return 4 different packages I sent to Australia. One was sent on October 4th and they held it for a whole month so they would have an excuse to return it to me! I wish going down there and tearing them a new one would do any good at all. It would only waste my energy. I'm sorry your experiences with Japan Post also suck.