Post Office facilities must collect a Postal Service fee from the addressee for each item on which customs duty or Internal Revenue tax is collected. The Postal Service fee is authorized by international postal agreements to reimburse the Postal Service for costs it incurs clearing items through customs and collecting customs duties at the time of delivery.
The Postal Service collects the fee on each package bearing CBP Form 3419ALT. When a single mail entry form covers several packages, the Postal Service collects the fee only on the package bearing CBP Form 3419ALT. The CBP Form 3419ALT is enclosed in an orange adhesive-backed Treasury Department envelope attached to the outside wrapper or envelope. The form indicates the tariff item number, rate of duty, and amount of duty to be collected plus a customs processing fee, which is assessed on all dutiable mail shipments.
The Postal Service fee, which is retained by the U.S. Postal Service, is accounted for by using the procedures in Handbook F-101, Field Accounting Procedures, subchapter 7-2.
Post Office facilities will not collect a Postal Service fee for customs clearance and delivery in the following cases:
- On dutiable articles from overseas U.S. Post Office facilities (civil or military).
- On parcels assessed with duty that are delivered without collection of duty under 713.233e.
- On mail items examined and passed free of duty by U.S. Customs.
See Notice 123, Price List, for the Postal Service fee for customs clearance and delivery for each dutiable item.
The Postal Service fee for customs clearance and delivery is not refundable by the U.S. Postal Service even though the U.S. Customs Service may later refund the duty paid by the addressee.
The exemptions provided for in 712.2 apply only to the Postal Service fee for Customs clearance and delivery. Customs duties and customs fees are not exempt from collection.
