Good news for Hongkongers whose plans to send gifts to loved ones in the US were derailed when the US Postal Service announced they would not accept parcels from Hong Kong and Mainland China until further notice. The agency has now confirmed that they will take all inbound post from the SAR and the Mainland as usual, and deliver them to addressees in the US. The agency announced the suspension on February 4 and backtracked a day later. However, Hongkong Post has said it will not accept parcels addressed to the US, only documents.
Normal Hong Kong-US postal services resume on February 5
In a statement, the US Postal Service said they will resume accepting all post from Hong Kong and China — both mail and packages — from February 5. The agency, which is the largest mail delivery organisation in the United States, said they are working with the country’s Customs and Border Protection department to devise a way to collect the 10% tariffs that President Donald Trump imposed on China earlier this month without disrupting package delivery.
Hongkong Post suspension
However, on February 5, Hongkong Post also announced that they have been advised by the US postal administration not to take parcels for delivery to the country. The only exception will be for goods that have been filed as a “formal entry” with Customs and Border Protection — a measure that until recently only applied to commercial shipments, not postal items.
Under this requirement, anyone who sends a parcel from Hong Kong to the US must provide import documents and pay duties through a customs broker. Any other parcels from Hong Kong that entered the US on or after February 4 will be returned to the SAR. There is no word yet on whether the US Postal Service’s return to its previous policy will affect Hongkong Post’s decision.
Image credit: Ethan Long via Flickr
